IRFC & RailTel: What Akshay Bhagwat of JM Financial says on these 2 railway stocks ahead of Budget 2024

Akshay Bhagwat, Senior Vice-President, Derivatives Research at JM Financial Services, on Thursday said railway stocks have witnessed a strong upward move in the recent past. "From current levels, a couple of rail stocks could be still considered for placing a bet on the Budget day. One of them is Indian Railway Finance Corporation Ltd (IRFC). The stock is looking strong on technical charts and has potential to hit the Rs 200-mark. Support on the counter will be at Rs 160," Bhagwat told Business Today TV. IRFC was last seen trading 2.61 per cent higher at Rs 179.60.

The second stock which the market expert suggested was RailTel Corporation of India Ltd. "The chart structure is strong. A consolidation above Rs 437 level is possibly setting up for a breakout above Rs 440. If it does, we may see further upside till Rs 475-480. Support area is around Rs 400," Bhagwat stated. RailTel shares edged 0.17 higher to trade at Rs 438.10.

Meanwhile, Indian equity benchmarks traded slightly higher today, led by gains in automobile and FMCG stocks. Broader markets (mid- and small-cap shares) were mixed.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought Rs 1,660.72 crore worth of shares on a net basis during the previous session and domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased Rs 2,542.93 crore worth of shares, exchange data showed.

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Six out of the 15 sector gauges -- compiled by the NSE -- were trading in the green. Sub-indexes Nifty Auto and Nifty FMCG were outperforming the NSE platform by rising as much as 0.82 per cent and 0.48 per cent, respectively. Nifty Consumer Durables slipped 0.53 per cent.

On the stock-specific front, Eicher Motors was the top gainer in the Nifty pack as the stock soared 2.76 per cent to trade at Rs 3,945.55. M&M, Maruti, BPCL and Cipla rose up to 2.26 per cent.

In contrast, Grasim Industries, L&T, JSW Steel, LTIMindtree and ICICI Bank were among the top losers on Nifty50.

The overall market breadth was strong as 1,746 shares were advancing while 1,283 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: Budget 2024 live: FM's speech at 11 am, taxpayers, investors wait with bated breath