NSE IPO: Macquarie starts coverage with Outperform, sees NSE as ‘The Dominator’; bullish on BSE, MCX…

Reports coming in for today mention that Macquarie has initiated coverage on National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) stock with an ‘Outperform’ rating and a target price of Rs 1,965 per share, just ahead of NSE shares’ stock-exchange debut today following the country's second-largest IPO.

The brokerage described NSE as “The Dominator”, citing its leading market share, comprehensive suite of services, technology infrastructure and deep liquidity. Macquarie stated these attributes make NSE a lynchpin of India's ongoing financialisation. “Entrenched network effects, industry-leading profitability and cash” underpin the brokerage's positive outlook on the exchange, Macquarie stated.

Macquarie’s Rs 1,965 target price on NSE stock implies an upside of around 10 percent over the IPO offering price of Rs 1,785 per share. NSE shares are scheduled to list on the BSE at 10 am on Thursday. The stock cannot list on its own exchange under regulatory rules governing recognised bourses.

The NSE IPO, which was entirely an offer for sale by existing shareholders, boosted around Rs 22,569 crore and was subscribed 5.71 times. Market participants bid for 50.58 crore shares against 8.86 crore shares on offer, generating demand of nearly Rs 90,300 crore.

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At the upper end of its Rs 1,700-1,785 price range, NSE was valued at roughly 43 times FY26 earnings. The IPO was India's second-largest public offering, behind Hyundai Motor India's Rs 27,870-crore offering in 2024 and ahead of LIC's Rs 21,000-crore IPO in 2022.

NSE's stock-exchange debut comes as Macquarie takes a positive view of India's broader exchange ecosystem, initiating coverage on both BSE and Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX) with ‘Outperform’ ratings.

Macquarie calls BSE ‘The Challenger’

Macquarie initiated coverage on BSE stock with an ‘Outperform’ rating and a target price of Rs 4,000 per share, describing India's oldest stock exchange as “The Challenger”. The target price implies an upside of over 22 percent. The brokerage further noted that the optionality across BSE's platform prompts its positive outlook on the exchange.

Macquarie stated BSE's pivot towards index options has made it a credible rival to NSE. Its expanding platform and market-share upside provide scope for further topline and margin expansion, while earnings expansion and improving margins should backing firm cash generation, it stated.

Macquarie additionally initiated coverage on MCX with an ‘Outperform’ rating and a target price of Rs 3,820 per share, calling the commodity exchange “The Phoenix” after its recovery from what the brokerage described as near-death conditions to establish a dominant position in commodity trading.

The brokerage stated MCX's first-mover advantage has helped it build a firm market position, while relatively low penetration across market participants and products provides a long runway for expansion. Despite a high FY26 base, Macquarie anticipates expansion in products and investor participation to backing visible expansion and high margins.