Nifty headed to 24,500 next week, says Dharmesh Shah; these 2 stocks are top buys right now ETMarkets.com Synopsis Indian equity markets are poised for further gains, with Nifty eyeing 24,500, according to ICICI Direct's Dharmesh Shah.
He highlights falling crude oil prices and rupee stability as key drivers.
Bank Nifty has also shown strength, targeting 59,300.
Shah recommends buying dips and identifies Mahindra & Mahindra and Larsen & Toubro as top stock picks with clear upside potential.
By Nandini Sanyal, ETMarkets.com Jun 25, 2026, 02:43:00 PM IST Follow us India's equity markets closed the week on a strong note, and according to Dharmesh Shah, Head of Technical Research and VP at ICICI Direct, the best may still be ahead.
In a detailed market outlook shared with ET Now, Shah laid out a bullish case for Nifty over the coming week, identified the two sectors offering the most upside, and named his top stock picks with precise targets and stop losses.ADVERTISEMENT Nifty eyes 24,500, with 23,800 as the line in the sand The Nifty 50 has been testing resistance near its 100-day exponential moving average, placed around 24,200 — a level that has acted as a ceiling over the last few trading sessions.
Shah believes that level is now poised to be broken.Also Read Investors expecting 15-20% returns may be disappointed: Rajeev Thakkar "We expect Nifty to head towards 24,500 in the coming week, with strong support placed at around 23,800," he said, adding that investors should treat any dip toward 23,800 as a buying opportunity rather than a cause for concern.
His advice for the week: buy the dip, stay the course.
With prices trending toward a target of $68–69 per barrel, combined with rupee stability and falling commodity prices, Shah sees a powerful tailwind building for Indian equities.
"Crude oil is the main trigger point for moving the Nifty above 24,200 — and things look positive from both the current and medium-term perspective." Bank Nifty breaks 58,000; target now 59,300 Bank Nifty, which carries a 35% weightage in the Nifty 50, has been one of the standout performers.
It closed above the critical 58,000 mark in the previous session, a move Shah sees as technically significant.His near-term target for Bank Nifty is 59,300, with strong support at 57,500.
Given that banking stocks have been among the first to see returning FII interest, the sector's technical momentum adds further conviction to the broader market's upside case.ADVERTISEMENT Nifty 50 stocks flagging 5–10% upside Beyond the index level, Shah pointed to a more granular signal: when you scan the Nifty 50 constituents individually — across banking, capital goods, and auto — the majority are indicating 5% to 10% upside from current market prices.
The stock rallied sharply from ₹2,600 to ₹3,800 before retracing approximately 61% of that move, a textbook Fibonacci level that has coincided with strong base formation near the 52-week EMA.
Shah's target: ₹3,400, with a stop loss at ₹2,900.ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The bullish thesis on auto is structural: falling crude oil prices reduce input and ownership costs, commodity price correction improves margins, and post-GST cut sales momentum continues to surprise to the upside.Larsen & Toubro (L&T) is his capital goods pick, and arguably his highest-conviction call.
L&T was among the hardest-hit stocks during the Middle East conflict, but with geopolitical conditions stabilising, Shah sees a sharp reversal play taking shape.
The stock has built a strong base in the ₹4,150–₹4,250 range and closed above ₹4,250 in the latest session — a technically significant breakout.
Target: ₹4,500.
Stop loss: ₹4,050.ADVERTISEMENT For investors navigating a truncated week with headline risk still present, Shah's message is consistent: volatility is noise, the structural direction is up, and M&M and L&T offer the clearest risk-reward on the board right now.
