Stocks to buy or sell for short-term: Jay Thakkar of ICICI Sec suggests these three shares in F&O segment

Stock Market News: The Indian stock market benchmark Sensex extended its losing streak to six sessions, plummeting by over 900 points in morning trading on Wednesday, February 12, amidst mixed signals from global markets. The 30-share index dropped more than 900 points from the last close of 76,294, reaching a low of 75,388, while the Nifty 50 fell below 22,798, experiencing a decline of over 1 percent.

As of 14:28 IST, the Sensex had decreased by 286.62 points, or 0.37 percent, settling at 76,009.20, while the Nifty 50 was down by 77.20 points, or 0.33 percent, at 22,994.60. Analysts identify five main factors contributing to the sell-off in the Indian stock market: caution surrounding the new Income Tax Bill, hawkish remarks from US Fed Chair Jerome Powell, aggressive selling by foreign portfolio investors, concerns over Trump’s tariff policies, and weak earnings combined with high valuations.

In the F&O segments, analysts pointed out that Nifty 50 futures experienced a bout of short covering last week, particularly following the release of the union budget. Nonetheless, this was temporary, and new short positions have been noted in the past couple of sessions. However, the total open interest in Index futures has begun to decrease when compared to the open interest observed in the January series. The persistence of the current short covering trend should be monitored closely for any further directional movement.

Market Outlook by Jay Thakkar, Vice President & Head of Derivatives and Quant Research, ICICI Securities

Nifty 50

Nifty 50 has broken its crucial support level of 23,000 and below which the next immediate support is at 22,750 and below that 22,500 levels. At 22,500 levels there is the highest put OI as well for this weekly expiry, hence the probability of 22,500 levels holding out for this week is higher.

The PCR is at 0.51 which is close to oversold, hence 22,600 to 22,500 will act as a crucial support, hence a contrarian view can be taken at those levels for a bounce back. The broader markets have broken their previous lows and that is in a free fall mode which is creating more pressure on the benchmark Indices as well. Nifty 50 is trading below its max pain and modified max pain levels of 23,000 and 23,200 respectively, so these levels will act as a resistance. It is also trading below its 30-day VWAP level of 23,430 level which will also act as a resistance going forward. So, the overall trend appears to be negative, however, 22,500 to 22,600 range may act as a crucial support range for this week.

Stocks To Buy in the near-term – Jay Thakkar

Buy SRF Futures at CMP: ₹2,820; Stop Loss: ₹2,700; Targets at ₹2,950 and ₹3,020

SRF has provided a breakout from a long consolidation and the breakout has come due to short covering in the stock and now it has been trading above its 30-day VWAP which is at 2650 and this is a positive sign for the stock going forward. The stock is also trading above its max pain level of 2800 and there has been good put base at the lower levels whereas the call base is at 3000 levels, so there is no major hurdle until 3000 levels as of now.

Buy Bata India Futures at CMP: ₹1,355; Stop Loss at ₹1,305; Targets at ₹1,420 and ₹1,450

Bata India Futures has witnessed good short covering due to which the stock has managed to recently bounce back from the lower levels. There has been significant drop in the OI which had gone up quite a lot due to short built up. Now, with this short covering the intensity of the fall has reduced as well as the probability of a bounce back until 1450 has increased. The stock is just trading above its 30-day VWAP level of 1340 which also coincides with its max pain level of 1340, hence it will act as a crucial support and below that 1305 is the next support.

Sell Jubilant Foodworks Futures on rise near ₹670; Stop Loss of ₹690; Targets at ₹630 and ₹610

Jubilant Foodworks Futures seems to have completed its bounce with the recent up move sue o short covering. There was significant drop in the OI and the prices had bounced back but it couldn’t not surpass its all-time high levels which were its previous levels and now the fresh shorts seems to have started which will weigh pressure on the stock in the short to medium term. The stock is also trading below its 30-day VWAP level of 720 as well as the max pain level of 690 and both these levels will act as a crucial resistance going forward, hence the short to medium term view is negative on the stock.

Disclaimer: The Research Analyst or his relatives or I-Sec do not have actual/beneficial ownership of 1% or more securities of the subject company, at the end of 11/02/2025 or have no other financial interest and do not have any material conflict of interest.

The views and recommendations provided in this analysis are those of individual analysts or broking companies, not Mint. We strongly advise investors to consult with certified experts before making any investment decisions, as market conditions can change rapidly and individual circumstances may vary.