Bank Nifty to stimulate Marktrally; Defense, Alcobev Stocks in Focus: Pankaj Pandey

Indian shares will probably extend the profit this week, led by banking and IT, said Pankaj Pandey, head of research on icicidirect.com, in an interaction with et now. With the US interest rates on the horizon and the relief of concern on the tariff front, Pandey expects that Bank Nifty will lead the next stage of the rally.

“Bank Nifty is under pressure due to heavy FII sales, but we believe that some reversal is now possible. Banking looks strong enough to raise the markets to levels around 25,800,” he said. Although the selective strength could see, Pandey remained carefully on the sector and quoted muted guidelines and uncertainty surrounding the American economy.

In the defense sector, Pandey emphasized a strong visibility of growth supported by a robust order pipeline. He pointed out that Majors in the public sector such as Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL) and Bharat electronics remain attractive, while private players such as Premier Explosives, Astra Microwave and data patterns also offer opportunities.

“In the next five to seven years we could see £ 8-10 Lakh Crore in orders. Defense is one of the few sectors that can consistently produce in the middle of ten to high growth. Every weakness here is a chance to buy,” Pandey added.

Premium Key Driver in Alcobev

He also sounded cheerful on the Alcobev room despite legal changes in states such as Telangana and Maharashtra. Pandey sees premiumization as the most important growth motor for the industry.

“Allied blenders are well placed with the margins that expect about 15% and strong growth in premium segments. We have a target price of £ 640 on the shares. The entire space looks attractive for us considering the profitability growing process,” he said.

With the banking that is expected to lead MarktMomentum, Defense offer in long-term growth and Alcobev companies that benefit from premiumisation trends, Pandey believes that these sectors can remain in the focus of investors in the coming months.

((Indemnification: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions of the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of economic times)