Synopsis: Brokerages like Macquarie, Citi, and Kotak are extremely optimistic about India and are predicting Nifty levels of 28,500–30,000+ by FY26–FY27, mainly based on a return to earnings, continuation of liquidity and improvement of macroeconomic conditions.
Global brokerages are going bullish on India rather unexpectedly once again, and a few are now of the opinion that the Nifty might go over 32,000 by 2026. A lot of it is just talk on the street, but some of it also appears in the numbers and the behaviour of the market. These are the things that big-institution investors have noticed, and the reasons for their sudden change of opinion. In this article, we will look into some of the leading brokerage comments on our market.
Macquarie
Macquarie Capital has become optimistic about the Indian market in 2026 and is forecasting that the Nifty could potentially reach 30,000. The brokerage cited that the majority of the earnings downgrades for FY26 are already factored into the estimates, as this year’s revenue and EPS growth have been kept at very low levels. Nevertheless, Macquarie is now turning to see a board reversal, their bottom-up study suggests that earnings could grow by mid-teens in FY27 and FY28, and that’s the main reason they are betting on fresh foreign investor inflows.
The brokerage sees the earnings revival to be led by financials and IT, the two biggest sectors in the index, and the two most heavily weighted of the index (MSCI India).
Financials may be able to enjoy the benefits of increased credit growth and a potential margin expansion, while IT can be the one who gets the better of the market with revenue and margins upsides than what is generally expected. Macquarie admits that Indian valuations continue to be high; however, it argues that a combination of robust domestic liquidity and returning FIIs can still propel the market to gain further and allow valuations to elongate.
Besides, Macquarie shared its opinions about sector selection and stock market behaviour. They believe that EMS companies such as Dixon and Avalon will do well as they have good growth potential, generate high returns, and csh flows. In the financial sector, they prefer large private banks like HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank, then selectively in NBFCs and insurers, whereas PSU banks are their most unfavourable ones.
Regarding the IPOs, Macquaries expects that the current pace of $20 billion IPOs each year can be sustained, bringing more participation in the market. However, they warned that the majority of supplies are promoters and PE/VC investors who are cashing out at high valuations, whereas companies raising growth capital are very few, and this is something that investors need to be watching very closely going forward.
CITI
Citi Research is predicting that the Nifty 50 will go up to 28,500 by the end of 2026, indicating that the market will be 10 percent higher than it is now. According to the brokerage, their positive view is mainly due to improving consumption trends, stronger rural demand, and urban recovery picking up at the very early stages. Besides, Citi’s perspective is in line with those of other global firms such as HSBC, J.P. Morgan, and Nomura, which, after a year of weak earnings and sector-specific challenges, have also become bullish on India.
Firstly, according to Citi, the tough headwinds which caused markets to decline in 2025, such as low earnings growth, higher tariffs compared to other emerging markets, and a lack of an AI-driven market theme, are gradually disappearing. The brokerage is hopeful about “goldilocks conditions” in 2026, of resilient growth and benign inflation would converge to support equities. Supportive of EPS nearly being doubled in FY26, the firm forecasted that earnings per share would grow by 13–14 percent in FY27 due to strong discretionary demand, quickened credit growth and consistent asset quality.
Furthermore, Citi also has a positive view on India’s macroeconomics, forecasting a $20 billion BoP (balance of payments) surplus in FY27, good capital inflows, and the rupee at Rs. 91 per USD. It also expects domestic gross to hold near 7.1 percent in FY27 vs 7.5 percent the previous year.
In terms of sectors, Citi is still bullish on banks, telecom, autos, healthcare, and defence, while bearish on IT, Paints, Metals and consumer staples. It has decided to promote Mahindra & Mahindra among its favourite stocks and in its preferred mid-cap basket, it has introduced Aavas Financiers, as well as the addition of contrarian positions like ICICI Prudential Life, Jubilant FoodWorks, HPCL, Lupin and Voltas.
Kotak
Kotak Securities is very optimistic about the Nifty 50 index level of 29,120 by December 2026, with strong earnings growth over the next three years. The brokerage is forecasting Nifty profits to grow 8.2 percent in FY26, 17.6 percent in FY27, and 14.8 percent in FY28. Besides, it has also drawn up the alternative scenarios with the bull-case target at 32,032 and the bear-case target at 26,208, to represent the range of possible market outcomes.
Kotak pointed out that the Q2 FY26 earnings have come out better than expected, with the Nifty-50 net profits increasing by 2.6 percent YoY, compared to their prior estimate of only 0.3 percent growth. Adjusted EBITDA also increased by 6.7 percent, which is a sign of better than expected profitability. These figures are indicative of a quicker-than-anticipated turnaround in the earnings cycle of India Inc.
Nevertheless, Kotak is warning that foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) are still very risky and likely to continue to pull midterm. On the bright side, however, robust domestic inflows and an overall strong macroeconomic scenario should put the market in a good position to withstand these pressures. In sum, the brokerage is bullish on the Indian equity market going forward on the back of stable earnings, accommodative economic conditions, and sector-specific tailwinds from FY26 to FY28.
Written by Satyajeet Mukherjee
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