• Broader markets outperformed; retail sentiment on Stocktwits turned ‘extremely bearish’.
• Analysts maintain a ‘buy-on-dips’ stance as long as Nifty holds above 25,800 on hourly closes.
• Federal Bank gained nearly 2% after approving a ₹6,196 crore fundraise via Blackstone affiliate Asia II Topco XIII.

Indian equity markets took a breather on Friday, with a subdued start on Dalal Street. The Nifty index traded rangebound below 26,000, led by buying in metals and real estate. On the other hand, FMCG was the top sectoral loser. 

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At 09:30 a.m. IST, the Nifty 50 was up 14 points at 25,906, while the Sensex was down 20 points at 84,535. Broader markets outperformed, with the Nifty Midcap index gaining 0.4%, and the Smallcap index rising 0.1%.

Retail sentiment on Stocktwits for the Nifty has moved to ‘extremely bearish’ from ‘bearish’ at market open.

Stock Watch

Federal Bank shares rose nearly 2% after its board approved a proposal to raise up to ₹6,196 crore through a preferential issue of warrants to Asia II Topco XIII, an affiliate of Blackstone. 

Defense PSUs such as Cochin Shipyard, Mazagon Dockyard, BEML, GRSE, and BDL shares rose between 1% to 2% after the government cleared proposals worth ₹79,000 crore to boost the Armed Forces’ capability.

Weak Q2 results drag Colgate shares down 2%. On the other hand, HUL and Laurus Labs fell 3% despite steady performance in Q2 earnings. South India Paper Mills surged 10% after the company swung to a profit of ₹2.8 crore in Q2 from a loss of ₹1.21 crore last year.

Cipla fell over 3% even as it tied up with Eli Lilly to sell its weight-loss drug under a new brand in India. 

Hindalco and NALCO rose 4% after global aluminium prices hit a record high. Vedanta shares too rose 2%. 

Investors will be monitoring Dr Reddy’s, SBI Life Insurance, ITC Hotels, Coforge, Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC, Brigade Hotel, eClerx Services, Jinkushal Industries, Latent View Analytics, NACL Industries, SBI Cards, Shanthi Gears, Sigachi Industries, Supreme Petrochem, and Vakrangee as they report Q2 earnings today. 

Stock Calls

Analyst Vinayak Gautam shared three stock recommendations for Friday with a 1-week timeframe:

Vedanta: Buy at ₹483.25, with a target price of ₹498, and stop loss at ₹475

Cochin Shipyard: Buy at ₹1,792.40, with a target price of ₹1,830, and stop loss at ₹1,775

Choice International: Buy at ₹814.85, with a target price of ₹840, and stop loss at ₹801

Markets: The Road Ahead

From a technical standpoint, SEBI-registered analysts on Stocktwits shared the trade setup. 

Prabhat Mittal identified Nifty support at 25,780 with resistance at 26,020. For Bank Nifty, he sees support at 57,700 and resistance at 58,400.

Investment advisor Nidhi Saxena of The Trade Bond noted that Nifty filled the gap in yesterday’s session and managed to close above the 20-hour EMA, indicating strength. Her view remains buy on dips as long as the index holds above the 25,800 level on an hourly closing basis. Support is seen at 25,800, with resistance at 26,100.

For Bank Nifty, the index continues to form higher highs and higher lows on the short-term chart, indicating an ongoing uptrend. The view remains buy on dips as long as the index sustains above the 57,800 level on an hourly closing basis. Support is seen at 57,700, and resistance at 58,600.

Global Cues

Globally, Asian markets traded higher, while crude oil prices are on track for the biggest weekly gain since June amid supply disruption concerns following US sanctions on Russian producers.

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