ICICI Bank & ITC: What Akshay Bhagwat of JM Financial says on these 2 stocks

Akshay Bhagwat, Senior Vice-President, Derivatives Research at JM Financial Services, on Monday said that the ongoing rally in technology sector may continue. On the stock-specific front, the market expert selected ICICI Bank Ltd as one of his top picks for the day. "The stock is staging a short-term reversal. Rs 990 will be the support base for ICICI. And, expected target on the counter will be Rs 1,030-1,040," Bhagwat told Business Today TV. ICICI Bank shares were last seen trading 0.13 per cent lower at Rs 1,002.50.

The second stock which the analyst suggested was ITC Ltd. "One can buy ITC shares at current price for a target price of Rs 480. Keep stop loss placed at Rs 465," Bhagwat mentioned. ITC was up 0.14 per cent at Rs 467.25.

Meanwhile, Indian equity benchmarks rose sharply in early deals today to scale their record high levels. The surge was supported by gains in technology and banking stocks. Mid- and small-cap shares were up as well.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold Indian shares on a net basis during the previous session, offloading Rs 340.05 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth Rs 2,911.19 crore.

13 out of the 15 sector gauges -- compiled by the NSE -- were trading in the green today. Sub-indexes Nifty IT and Nifty Bank were outperforming the NSE platform by rising as much as 3.01 per cent and 0.47 per cent, respectively.

On the stock-specific front, Wipro Ltd was the top gainer in the Nifty pack as the stock jumped 10.72 per cent to trade at Rs 515.35. Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, LTIMindtree and Infosys gained up to 5.12 per cent.

In contrast, HDFC Life, Eicher Motors, Tata Consumer Products, Bajaj Finance and SBI Life were among the top laggards.

The overall market breadth was strong as 2,240 shares were advancing while 862 were declining on BSE.

(Disclaimer: Business Today provides stock market news for informational purposes only and that should not be construed as investment advice. Readers are encouraged to consult a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.)

Also read: Stock recommendations by analyst for January 15, 2024: BoI, L&T and Sonata Software

Also read: L&T, Tata Chemicals, Bank of India among 5 stocks brokerages prefer for near-term trade