Investment advice from Dharmesh Shah of ICICI Securities: Buy Gail India and Gujarat Pipavav Port stocks this week

The Indian stock market saw varied performance in different sectors last week, with metals, media, and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) being the exception. Majority of sectoral indices witnessed weekly advances, leading to the 30-share BSE Sensex ending higher by 376.26 points or 0.52%, reaching the level of 72,426.64. Meanwhile, the Nifty 50 closed at 22,040.70, up 129.95 points or 0.59%. As the Q3 earnings season drew to a close, market experts opined that the majority of companies’ Q3 results were in-line with the Street’s estimates.

According to Arvinder Singh Nanda, Senior Vice President of Master Capital Services Ltd, the overall earnings grew 34% YoY, exceeding the estimate of 28% YoY. Sectors such as energy, metal, BFSI, and cement witnessed the highest YoY surge in net profit. However, IT and FMCG emerged as the major laggards during the earnings season.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) continued to be net sellers, offloading shares valued at ₹6,200 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) adopted a positive stance, purchasing shares valued at ₹8,700 crore, as stated by Santosh Meena, Head of Research at Swastika Investmart Ltd.

Market experts also expressed that the market focus remains on the trajectory of the dollar index and US bond yields. Attention is also directed towards the recent RBI policy and US FOMC meeting minutes. Dharmesh Shah, Assistant Vice President (AVP) of ICICI Securities, suggested that the Nifty 50 is poised for a breakout from five weeks of consolidation and could head towards 22,700 in March.

In terms of stock recommendations for the week, Shah advised buying Gail (India) Ltd in the range of ₹178–183 for the target of ₹202 with a stop loss of ₹170, and Gujarat Pipavav Port Ltd in the range of ₹194–200 for the target of ₹228 with a stop loss of ₹184.

It’s essential to note that these views and recommendations are those of individual analysts and experts. It’s always advised for investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.