Trade Setup for May 15: Bulls hold ground—Is Nifty 25,000 the next target?

The Nifty50 stayed resilient on Wednesday, May 14, as dip-buying emerged strongly, reinforcing its short-term bullish trend. The index opened with a 35-point gain, lifted by favorable global cues, and climbed further in early trade. However, a wave of profit-booking pulled the index down sharply—over 200 points from the day’s high of 24,767.

Despite the midday slump, the market staged a solid comeback in the latter half, recovering over 150 points to end the day 89 points higher at 24,667. Broader markets also stayed firm, with the Nifty Midcap Index gaining more than 1%, outpacing the main index.

Sectoral Snapshot:

Financials lagged: The Nifty Bank Index fell 140 points to close at 54,801.

Defence stocks soared: Names like Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. rallied as much as 15% post strong Q4 results.

REC Ltd. slipped 3% after cutting its AUM growth guidance to 11–13% from the earlier 15–17%.

Cipla dropped 2% following management's caution on margin pressures for FY26–27 as a key drug phases out.

Upcoming Action:

Expect stock-specific moves on Thursday, which also marks weekly options expiry. Q4 results from LIC Housing Finance, JSW Energy, Cochin Shipyard, Godrej Industries, Patanjali Foods, INOX India, Kaynes Tech, Irm Energy, Balrampur Chini Mills, and ITC Hotels are due. After-hours earnings from Tata Power, Cipla, and Eicher Motors will also keep traders alert.

Market Outlook:

Experts remain optimistic:

Siddhartha Khemka (Motilal Oswal) points to easing geopolitical tensions and improving macroeconomic indicators as positive drivers.

Nandish Shah (HDFC Securities) notes that Nifty remains firmly above all key moving averages. He sees support at 24,500 and 24,378, with resistance near 24,850–24,975.

Rupak De (LKP Securities) suggests that the recent narrow range indicates healthy consolidation after a strong rally. As long as Nifty holds above 24,400, the uptrend is likely intact, with a potential move towards the 25,000 mark.

Bottom Line:

The bulls are still in control. If Nifty continues to hold above key support levels, the next stop could very well be 25,000.