Stocks to buy: Raja Venkatraman's top picks for 14 October
Market expert Raja Venkatraman shares his top three stocks to buy today, 9 October. Discover his exclusive picks and analysis to inform your investment strategy.
Testing time ahead as the market remains confused about how the trends ahead are unfolding. While the market continues to show that there is still some promise left for the bullish camp, as the trends are maintaining the bullish bias. With the overall bias fuelling some upside, look to initiate longs.
Three stocks to trade as recommended by Raja Venkatraman of NeoTrader today:
CEAT Ltd: Buy above ₹3,580 | Stop ₹3,500 | Target ₹3,850 (multiday)
Bajaj Finserv Ltd: Buy above ₹2025 | Stop ₹1,970 | Target ₹2,150 (intraday)
NTPC Ltd: Buy above ₹342 | Stop ₹338.50 | Target ₹347 (intraday)
Stock market update
The 13 October session reflected a tug-of-war between global cues and domestic resilience. Despite a weak start and sustained intraday selling that dragged Nifty near 25,150, last-hour buying—fueled by easing US-China trade tensions, optimism around India-US trade talks, and a geopolitical peace breakthrough—helped the index close above 25,200. The Sensex ended 173 points lower at 82,327, while the Nifty slipped 58 points to 25,227. Broader markets underperformed, with mid-caps down 0.2% and small-caps shedding 0.4%.
Sectorally, pressure was visible across the board, with metals, IT, FMCG, and capital goods declining by up to 1%. Key drags included Tata Motors, Infosys, and HUL, while Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Auto, and Adani Ports offered some cushion. The setup suggests cautious optimism—while global developments offer relief, weak Q2 earnings expectations, especially in banks, and sectoral fatigue warrant selective participation and a focus on stock-specific action.
Outlook for trading
Our hopes received a strong boost yet again this Monday as the Nifty retained its positive sentiment despite some negative global cues that suggested the trends continue to exhibit a positive bias. The scampering by short holders with the week ending brought about a fair amount of volatility, and the markets retained the bullish tone set at the start of the day. However, we can observe that the market is still attempting to stage an upward run and will need some time to stabilize before it sets the pace for the trend recovery.
Post some enthusiasm shown last week, the markets drifted into a sideways phase. The geo-political tensions continue to remain steadfast, thus keeping any possibility of recovery at bay. With the trends remaining sanguine, it becomes necessary for us to scale down our approach to the market as a whole. The important part here is that at every possible, the markets are seen heading higher. It is easier to target stock-specific action instead of the broader indices. Right now, no clear synergy between the three main indices, Nifty, Nifty Bank, and IT. One needs to see how the relevant stocks are performing.
Moving to the charts, we note that the prices are continuing to exhibit a slow and steady move to the upside, which is highlighting bullish bias emerging at lower levels. Despite repeated attempt, to move higher the Nifty had not been able to move beyond 25500. The Open Interest seen on the daily chart shows that there is an alternating position getting created, which indicates that the markets are definitely uncertain. The Pitchfork drawn has been holding back the ascent, and the median line shown would be the target of the upward charge. A move from here could see the Nifty scale towards its next set of targets around 25,400, which is also the previous high. This level is combining with the median line, and this could prove to be a tough challenge for the Nifty.
Overall, the market is poised at an interesting stage as the trends have picked up steam with some encouraging newsflow from overseas as well as domestic macro numbers that indicate that we could be looking at the recovery to sustain. The new initiatives by the government to kickstart the consumption theme have also found some good buy-in. The steady tailwinds that are emerging ahead of the festive season could help the cause.
Three stocks to trade, recommended by NeoTrader’s Raja Venkatraman:
CEAT (Cmp ₹3,578.60)
Why it’s recommended: CEAT is an Indian multinational tyre manufacturing company, founded in 1924 in Italy and now the flagship company of the RPG Group. It is a leading tyre brand with a presence in over 110 countries, producing a wide range of tyres for vehicles like scooters, bikes, cars, trucks, buses, and tractors. After a strong decline, the prices are seen forming a steady higher high higher low, breaking above the cloud region, igniting some bullish enthusiasm. Encouraging vibes are emerging as the prices are demonstrating a strong upward drive. Can look to go long.
Key metrics:
P/E: 30.82
52-week high: ₹4,048.95
Volume: 549.06K.
Technical analysis: Support at ₹3400, resistance at ₹3900.
Risk factors: Intense competition and vulnerability to volatile input prices.
Buy at: Above ₹3,580
Target price: ₹3,850 in two months.
Stop loss: ₹3,500.
BAJAJFINSV (Cmp ₹2,020.40)
Why it’s recommended: Bajaj Finserv is a leading Indian financial services holding company that provides a wide range of products across lending, insurance, and wealth management. It is the financial arm of the Bajaj Group, founded in 2007, and holds a majority stake in its subsidiary. After forming a double bottom, the stock is seen showing some revival. With the recent reaction to the cloud support producing a bounce, the prices dipped lower and then have now found some support at the cloud region, as the possibility of prices reviving is looking more positive. As a strong momentum buildup is in play, more upward traction is possible.
Key metrics:
P/E: 257.41,
52-week high: ₹2,134.45,
Volume: 1.01M.
Technical analysis: Support at ₹1,950, resistance at ₹2,250.
Risk factors: Economic slowdowns impacting loan quality, strict regulatory environments, heightened competition from fintechs, and risks related to its strategic investments.
Buy at: Above ₹2,025.
Target price: ₹2,150
Stop loss: ₹1,970.
NTPC (Cmp ₹341.70)
Why it’s recommended: NTPC, originally the National Thermal Power Corporation, is India's largest integrated power company and a leading public sector enterprise under the Ministry of Power. Despite some profit booking seen the prices have managed to hold on for a while at the TS & KS line. The formation of a green candle is seen as a revival from the lower levels, indicating a strong push to the upside. With the rounding bottom seems to be holding with RSI inching higher, we can look at initiating a long.
Key metrics:
P/E: 23.53,
52-week high: ₹429.45
Volume: 6.66M.
Technical analysis: Support at ₹332, resistance at ₹350.
Risk factors: Volatile stock performance, valuation concerns, operational efficiency issues, and declining growth metrics.
Buy at: Above ₹342.
Target price: ₹347.
Stop loss: ₹338.50.
Raja Venkatraman is co-founder, NeoTrader. His Sebi-registered research analyst registration no. is INH000016223.
Investments in securities are subject to market risks. Read all the related documents carefully before investing. Registration granted by Sebi and certification from NISM in no way guarantees performance of the intermediary or provide any assurance of returns to investors.
Disclaimer: The views and recommendations given in this article are those of individual analysts. These do not represent the views of Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.
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