According to reports from The Economic Times and The Hindu BusinessLine, Monarch Networth Capital expects the Nifty to rise to 27,000-28,000 during calendar year 2026, implying meaningful upside from current levels of around 23,600. The brokerage estimates Nifty earnings per share (EPS) at 1,251 for FY27 and 1,443 for FY28, and believes India's structural growth story remains intact despite recent market volatility. CEO Gaurav Bhandari stated that "the correction witnessed in large-cap sectors due to sustained FII selling appears excessive relative to underlying fundamentals." As per latest reports, the benchmark Nifty 50 index rose 0.98% to 23,853.90, with the index down 8.7% for the year but showing potential for recovery as monsoon risks recede.
Indian shares closed higher Monday as they followed a global rally, with investors finding comfort in the preliminary agreement between the U.S. and Iran to end the conflict and resume traffic along the Strait of Hormuz. According to The Economic Times, Shehbaz Sherif, the Pakistani Prime Minister who served as a facilitator in these negotiations, announced that two parties will sign a Memorandum of Understanding in Switzerland this Friday. CEO Gaurav Bhandari noted that "investors can now find comfort in the fact that Iran's war is nearing its end," with the BSE Sensex gaining 0.97% to 76,264.33 and both indices up about 3-3.3% respectively in two sessions. The rupee rose 0.41% to 94.71 dollars per Indian 10-year bond, while Asian markets rose 2.7% and Brent crude fell 5.2% to $82.8 per barrel.
As reported by The Economic Times and The Hindu BusinessLine, the brokerage expects the next leg of market gains to be led by banking stocks, telecom companies and a gradual improvement in large-cap IT. India's long-term growth outlook continues to be supported by reforms such as GST, RERA, the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme, corporate tax reforms and infrastructure investments. CEO Gaurav Bhandari noted that "India Inc's resilience is evident in corporate capex growth of the top 500 listed non-financial companies, which has nearly doubled to around ₹10 lakh crore versus pre-pandemic levels." The small-caps and mid-caps rose by 1.1% and 1.3% respectively, with fourteen out of the 16 major sectors rising, while oil-sensitive stocks including refiners BPCL and HPCL, cement makers UltraTech Cement and ACC, tyre companies MRF and CEAT, and airline IndiGo benefited from the lower oil prices. According to Bhandari, "corporate balance sheets have also strengthened considerably, with net debt-to-equity ratios falling to multi-year lows and operating cash flow generation remaining healthy, positioning companies to accelerate investments and drive the next phase of earnings growth."
According to The Economic Times and The Hindu BusinessLine, Monarch is more constructive on select smallcap and midcap stocks, arguing that earnings growth, time correction and valuation normalisation have improved the risk-reward profile in the segment. The brokerage expects the Nifty Midcap 150 index to reach around 25,595 and the Nifty Smallcap 250 index to climb to approximately 19,640. CEO Gaurav Bhandari explained that "the correction witnessed in large-cap sectors due to sustained FII selling appears excessive relative to underlying fundamentals. At the same time, we are even more constructive on select small and midcap companies where time correction, earnings growth and valuation normalisation over the last 18 months have created attractive stock-picking opportunities." The brokerage believes these reforms, along with favourable demographics, rising financialisation of savings, robust foreign exchange reserves and the ongoing shift in global manufacturing towards India, provide a strong foundation for sustained earnings growth across sectors.
As reported by The Economic Times and The Hindu BusinessLine, among its preferred ideas, Monarch highlighted three stocks: SBI due to strong asset quality, healthy loan growth and sustainable profitability, with scope for value unlocking through subsidiaries; HFCL for its earnings turnaround, strong order book and growing export business benefiting from 5G rollout, data centre expansion, defence manufacturing and rising fibre demand; and Hindustan Copper citing rising domestic copper demand, expansion plans under its Vision 2030 strategy and its position as India's only vertically integrated copper producer. The brokerage remains constructive on select small- and mid-cap companies, citing attractive valuations following a prolonged correction and improving earnings prospects, with these reforms and favourable demographics providing a strong foundation for sustained earnings growth across sectors.
