Buy or Sell: Sumeet Bagadia Recommends Three Stocks to Buy on Monday - 18 May 2026

Why It Matters

The move underscores heightened volatility and a shift toward selective buying, making Bagadia’s picks a focal point for investors seeking upside amid a cautious market.

Key Takeaways

• Sensex dropped 161 points to 75,238 as investors booked profits
• IT index up >1% as metals, oil fell >1%
• Bagadia recommends buying Dabur, Pidilite, and Sun Pharma on Monday
• Nifty support at 23,450‑23,500; resistance near 23,850‑23,900
• Bank Nifty support 53,000‑53,100; resistance 54,400‑54,500

Pulse Analysis

India’s equity market entered a corrective phase on Friday as the BSE Sensex slipped 161 points to 75,238 and the NSE Nifty 50 lost 46 points to 23,644. The pull‑back followed a two‑day rally and was amplified by a fresh record low for the rupee, which briefly breached the 96‑per‑dollar barrier, and by Brent crude climbing above $108 a barrel. Higher import costs and inflation worries have dampened sentiment, while the lack of concrete outcomes from President Trump’s Beijing visit left global risk appetite muted. In this environment, investors are trimming exposure and looking for pockets of resilience.

Technical indicators reinforce the cautious tone. Bagadia points to a bearish candlestick formation on the daily chart, with the Nifty’s RSI hovering at 45.13, suggesting weak momentum, while the India VIX rose to 18.79, hinting at rising uncertainty. He earmarks 23,450‑23,500 as immediate support and 23,850‑23,900 as resistance, a range that will dictate short‑term price action. The Bank Nifty mirrors this pattern, with support at 53,000‑53,100 and resistance near 54,400‑54,500, and an RSI of 41.6. Traders who respect these zones can manage risk, but a breach below support could trigger a broader sell‑off.

Against this backdrop, Bagadia’s three buy recommendations target sectors showing relative strength. Dabur, a consumer‑goods staple, has broken above its 20‑day EMA and holds above the 450 level, with the RSI above 50 and volume uptick, positioning it for a potential rally toward the 505 target. Pidilite Industries, the adhesive and specialty chemicals leader, recovered from a 1,260 trough to trade near 1,467, again clearing short‑term moving averages and eyeing a 1,595 upside if the 1,405 support holds. Sun Pharma, the largest Indian pharma exporter, breached its descending trendline at 1,878 and could surge past the 1,960 historic high toward the psychological 2,000 mark, provided buying volume sustains. While each trade carries downside risk at the identified support levels, the technical setups align with a risk‑managed, selective‑buy approach in a volatile market.