Weekly technical picks by Axis Securities: DLF, NCC and APL Apollo Tubes

The Indian market fell a little over 1 percent in the last week, extending losses for the second straight week. It has lost nearly 4 percent in the last 3 weeks on the back of macro concerns like the liquidity crisis in major US banks, sticky inflation and continued FPI selling. While uncertainty is expected to remain the theme for the market for a significant part of 2023, experts believe there will certainly be stock opportunities.

In a weekly technical note, brokerage house Axis Securities noted that for this current week, it expects Nifty to trade in the range of 17,500-16,700 with a negative bias. The weekly strength indicator RSI is moving downward and is quoting below its reference line indicating negative bias, it said.

"On the weekly chart, the index has formed a bearish candle with a lower shadow indicating support at lower levels. The chart pattern suggests that if Nifty crosses and sustains above the 17,200 level it would witness buying which would lead the index towards 17,350-17,500 levels. However, if the index breaks below the 17,000 level it would witness selling which would take the index towards 16,850-16,700," forecasted the brokerage.

Amid this background, the brokerage has listed its top three technical picks for this week with a time horizon of 3-4 weeks. Let's take a look:

DLF | CMP: ₹373 | Buy range: ₹370-364 | Stop Loss: ₹350 | Upside: 9-13%

The brokerage has recommended a ‘buy’ range of ₹370-364 for the realty stock with a stop loss of ₹350 and a potential upside of 9-13 percent in the next 3-4 weeks.

"DLF on the weekly chart has decisively broken out above the “Consolidation zone ” between 370-342 levels with a strong bullish candle indicating a positive bias. The breakout is accompanied by an increase in volume confirming participation at the breakout level. Stock is holding above the medium-term upward-sloping trendline which is in place from Mar 2022. The weekly strength indicator RSI is in bullish mode and the weekly RSI crossover above its reference line generated a buy signal. The above analysis indicates an upside of 400-413 levels," predicted the brokerage.

The stock has risen a little over 3 percent in the last 1 year and around 2 percent in 2023 YTD. Just in March, it is up over 4 percent. Last week, the stock gained 7 percent after a 3 percent fall in the March 6-10 week.

APL Apollo Tubes | CMP: ₹1,256 | Buy range: ₹1,250-1,226 | Stop Loss: ₹1,160 | Upside: 12-16%

The brokerage has recommended a ‘buy’ range of ₹1,250-1,226 for the realty stock with a stop loss of ₹1,160 and a potential upside of 12-16 percent for a holding period of 3-4 weeks.

"APL Apollo on the weekly chart has decisively broken out above the “Consolidation zone” between 1,200-1,000 levels in mid of February 2023. It retested the breakout area and is expected to continue an uptrend. Stock is holding above the medium-term upward-sloping trendline which is in place since the start of Aug 2022. The stock is forming a higher high-low on the weekly chart. This formation indicates a positive uptrend. The weekly strength indicator RSI is also in bullish mode and the weekly RSI crossover above its reference line generated a buy signal. The above analysis indicates an upside of 1,390-1,440 levels," said Axis Securities.

The stock has risen 36 percent in the last 1 year and over 9 percent in 2023 so far. It has given positive returns in all 3 months of the current calendar year, up 4.7 percent in Jan, 4 percent in Feb, and 1.5 percent in March so far. Last week, the stock rose 3.8 percent after a 2.3 percent rise in the March 6-10 week.

NCC | CMP: ₹103 | Buy range: ₹100-97 | Stop Loss: ₹90 | Upside 17-22%

The brokerage has recommended a ‘buy’ range of ₹100-97 for the realty stock with a stop loss of ₹90 and a potential upside of 17-22 percent for a holding period of 3-4 weeks. 

"NCC on the weekly chart has decisively broken out above the “Multi-Year Resistance” placed at the 100 level indicating a strong uptrend. The breakout is accompanied by an increase in volume confirming participation at the breakout level. The stock is trading in a medium-term rising channel. Last week it took support at the lower band and it is heading towards the upper band of a channel. The weekly strength indicator RSI holding above its reference line indicates positive momentum. The above analysis indicates an upside of 115 -120 levels," estimated the brokerage.

The stock has surged over 67 percent in the last 1 year and over 20 percent in 2023 YTD. It has gained over 15 percent in March so far after a 1.3 percent loss in Feb. In Jan, the stock added 7.5 percent. Last week, the stock surged 4 percent, extending gains for the third straight week. In the March 6-10 week, it had advanced 10 percent after a 1 percent rise in the week before that.

Disclaimer: The views and recommendations made above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, and not of MintGenie.