Street signs: Nifty looks set to extend upward run, Winro in IPO pool

Nifty’s climb: Still catching wind 

After recording its strongest weekly gain in over three months, the Nifty looks set to extend its upward run. Analysts point to strength in information technology and banking stocks, sustained foreign inflows, and the unwinding of short positions as key drivers. The Nifty 50 closed Friday near its day’s high at 25,285. “We expect the index to retain its positive bias and target 25,500,” ICICIdirect said in a note. “Aggressive traders can use dips to initiate fresh long positions, with 25,000 serving as key support. The trend remains constructive as long as Nifty holds above 24,800, with potential to retest the September highs around 25,500.” 

Mkt fireworks go off, IPOs wait in the dark 

Following a record-setting week, the initial public offering (IPO) market is expected to pause, with only one issue — Midwest — scheduled for the coming week. A banker said, “With Diwali falling between October 20 and 23, no IPOs are likely to launch during this period. Activity should resume around October 24-25, with major issues like Lenskart and Groww aiming for the last week of the month or early November.” Among the three IPOs that opened last week, grey market premiums range from 2 per cent to 23 per cent, led by Rubicon Research. Tata Capital is slated to list on Monday with modest gains, while LG Electronics India, debuting a day later, is expected to jump over 30 per cent. However, only a fraction of investors are likely to receive allotments, as the appliance maker’s IPO drew a record ₹4.4 trillion in bids. 

Small fish, big splash: Winro in IPO pool 

Winro Commercial (India), valued at ₹30 crore, has grabbed attention after placing a ₹750 crore bid in the blockbuster LG Electronics (India) initial public offering (IPO). Winro’s stock has hit upper circuits in recent sessions, drawing strong market interest. Given the IPO’s 166x oversubscription, Winro is likely to receive an allotment worth less than ₹5 crore. This is not the company’s first IPO investment — it also participated in the HDB Financial Services IPO, several small and medium-sized enterprise issues this year, and a few last year. As a registered non-banking financial company, Winro can apply under the qualified institutional buyer category, which allocates shares on a pro-rata basis, unlike the lottery system for retail investors. Amid the ongoing IPO boom, investing in Winro is seen as a sly move to up one’s chances of landing an allotment — at least, that’s the market insider’s joke.