2 stocks that traders can look to buy next week

"We do not have a cement index but cement as a sector is looking interesting. And lastly, IT looks positive. The thing is most of the IT stocks have done very well at least the bigger ones; now I think the midcaps which were lagging are playing catch up," says Hemen Kapadia of KR Choksey Securities. Edited excerpts:

What are the levels that one should be watching out for when it comes to Nifty index specifically because we are still waiting for the life highs levels? Next week do you expect those levels to come in and if yes, then which will be the Nifty counters that one should be watching out for?
I would strike a slight note of caution. The market seemed to be just a bit overbought. I believe that the setup is good. There are a whole bunch of stocks which are looking interesting. Midcaps have been lagging a bit but hopefully, they will catch up. Bank Nifty posted a fresh all-time high and Sensex posted a fresh all-time high. Many stocks and sectors have done well but Nifty itself seems to be just a bit stretched. So, I would be slightly cautious. Having said that, 18,442 is an important level. If 18,442 sustains from a closing point of view, I believe then the outlook remains positive. In terms of sectors, banks are fine but once again they have had a run-up and look just a wee bit tired; maybe they need to consolidate a bit.

The pharma sector I believe is deeply oversold. Some of the stocks are reflecting positive divergences. The downside does appear limited. So, it is not going to be a tearing rally but it looks like it is oversold. Pharma is one sector that one can consider. We do not have a cement index but cement as a sector is looking interesting. And lastly, IT looks positive. The thing is most of the IT stocks have done very well at least the bigger ones; now I think the midcaps which were lagging are playing catch up.

Some of the top leaders in the IT space that is TCS or rather Infosys are once again back to their seven-month high levels. Going forward, do you expect even the midcap and the smallcap IT names to catch up with this rally? How strong is this move and the confidence investors should have in these names?
Now going back just a bit, after Infosys' bad results a couple of quarters back, we saw a huge gap and that has not been covered up. TCS has done decently well but is nowhere near the highs. Some of the midcap IT stocks just have not performed but I have a feeling that we are looking at a bounce. Just to correlate it a bit, the Nasdaq also seems to have posted a medium-term bottom; the long-term picture is a bit iffy. So some of the midcap stocks, I believe, would start moving up. They might play catch up. Birlasoft, Mphasis, and even Tech Mahindra seem more like trading options. I am not sure if they are in an investment stage right now. If they are, I would say you probably put one-third of your capital. The midcaps would play catch up but it would not be a rally but a recovery and a decent enough recovery that one can invest or trade-in for at least some time.

What are the top picks you are keeping on your radar?
Firstly, I like the IT theme a bit. One can look at Birlasoft and Tech Mahindra. I have a buy call on Birlasoft. The stock formed higher tops and higher bottoms. We closed above the 55-day exponential moving average. Mechanical indicators, MACD, RMI, and RSI have all given a buy. Upward bar reversal on the weekly chart, mechanical indicators on the weekly chart have turned positive. Simply put, buy at Rs 292, stop loss at Rs 277 and target of Rs 322. So, a modest target which I believe would get overshot. The second is a contra buy on SBI Card. The stock is deeply oversold and just about recovering. So, it is more of a bounce. Buy SBI Card at Rs 800, stop loss at Rs 780 and target at Rs 840. The prolonged decline seems to have ended.