Macquarie initiates coverage on five Indian market-linked companies, emphasising the dominance of NSE, growth prospects for MCX, BSE, and Groww, and a cautious stance on Angel One amid a shifting digital landscape.
Macquarie has started coverage on five Indian market-linked companies with a broadly constructive view on the country’s exchanges and retail brokerage space, highlighting the National Stock Exchange as its top pick and backing a mix of incumbent platforms and newer challengers. According to Zee Business, the brokerage assigned a buy rating to NSE with a target price of Rs 1,965, while it put outperform calls on Multi Commodity Exchange, Groww and BSE, and a neutral rating on Angel One. Reuters-style reporting from NDTV Profit and Moneycontrol said the call on NSE comes ahead of its listing and reflects Macquarie’s confidence in the exchange’s scale, technology and liquidity.
Macquarie’s strongest enthusiasm is for NSE, which it described as “The Dominator”. The brokerage’s case rests on the exchange’s dominant market share, broad suite of services, robust technology infrastructure and deep liquidity, all of which it sees as central to India’s financialisation trend. According to NDTV Profit, the target price of Rs 1,965 implies limited but positive upside from the IPO issue price of Rs 1,785, underscoring the view that NSE is already a high-quality, mature franchise rather than a turnaround story.
Macquarie was also positive on Multi Commodity Exchange, which it called “The Phoenix”. The brokerage said MCX has recovered from a severe stress period and has built a dominant position in India’s commodity trading market, helped by its early lead in the segment. Zee Business reported that Macquarie still sees room for growth despite a high base in financial year 2026, arguing that low investor participation and limited product penetration leave scope for expansion, margin support and stronger earnings visibility.
Its bullish view extended to BSE and Groww, both of which Macquarie sees as platform businesses with room to take share. BSE, labelled “The Challenger”, was praised for its increasing credibility in exchange trading after shifting towards index options, while Groww, described as “The Disruptor”, was credited with forcing a technology-first rethink in retail broking. Macquarie expects both firms to benefit from scale effects, operating leverage and cash generation as competition in capital markets intensifies.
Angel One was the outlier in the note. Macquarie dubbed it “The Transformer” as it shifts from a traditional branch-led model to a more digital one, but kept a neutral stance with a target price below the stock’s quoted level, according to Zee Business. The brokerage cited tougher competition, sensitivity to trading volumes and a heavy reliance on float income as key risks, suggesting that the shift to a more modern model may not be enough on its own to justify a more bullish call.
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