F&O stocks witnessed widespread short-buildup signals on October 21, with Bajaj Finance, Eternal, Manappuram Finance and BEL showing falling prices alongside rising futures open interest. Infosys stood out with a long buildup ahead of its quarterly results. NiftyTrader’s expiry-wise data reveals a crucial difference between overall OI growth and positioning in the October contract.
F&O stocks today: 159 short-buildup signals dominate
Indian equity markets ended Wednesday, October 21, in negative territory, with the Nifty 50 declining 0.34% to 22,811.35.
Derivatives data showed rising open interest across several declining stocks.
According to NiftyTrader’s OI Spurts dashboard, updated at 4:08 PM IST on October 21, 2026, 159 of the 213 tracked F&O stock symbols displayed short-buildup signals.
Another 36 stocks showed long buildup. The dashboard contained 217 instruments in total, including four index records.
This means approximately 74.6% of the tracked stock symbols were classified under short buildup.
The reading highlights widespread price weakness accompanied by rising futures open interest. However, it does not mean that every participant was bearish or that prices will necessarily decline further.
Top F&O stocks in focus on October 21
| F&O stock | Spot price | Price change | Total OI change | Signal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bajaj Finance | ₹926.00 | -3.27% | +12.47% | Short buildup |
| Eternal | ₹312.35 | -2.45% | +10.96% | Short buildup |
| Manappuram Finance | ₹301.60 | -5.62% | +16.89% | Short buildup |
| Infosys | ₹1,168.00 | +3.30% | +10.83% | Long buildup |
| Bharat Electronics | ₹371.20 | -1.59% | +12.12% | Short buildup |
Source: NiftyTrader OI Spurts, October 21, 2026, 4:08 PM IST. Total OI change combines the three displayed futures expiries and is measured against the October 19 closing OI baseline, reconciled with NSE’s official derivatives bhavcopy.
Bajaj Finance: Q2 profit growth fails to prevent short buildup
Bajaj Finance shares declined 3.27% to ₹926 in NiftyTrader’s October 21 snapshot, even as the lender had reported strong September-quarter earnings earlier in the week.
According to the company’s official investor presentation dated October 19, consolidated profit after tax before minority interest increased 29% year-on-year to ₹6,367 crore.
Net interest income grew 24% to ₹13,335 crore, while assets under management rose 26% to ₹5,84,624 crore.
The company also disclosed an increase of ₹1,601 crore in Stage 2 and Stage 3 assets during the quarter, including ₹1,047 crore related to its gold-loan business.
Bajaj Finance attributed the gold-loan increase to certain short-tenor schemes that are no longer offered.
What does Bajaj Finance futures OI indicate?
NiftyTrader’s 4:00 PM IST futures snapshot showed:
- October 27 futures price: ₹924.75, down 3.94%.
- October futures OI: 6,01,67,250, up 8.94%.
- November futures OI: 1,50,89,250, up 37.41%.
- Total futures OI: 8,26,79,250, up 12.47%.
The declining October futures price and rising OI produced a short-buildup classification.
However, November futures also recorded substantial OI growth. The aggregate increase therefore reflects expanding positions across multiple expiries rather than October alone.
Check Live: Bajaj Finance futures and OI data on NiftyTrader.
Eternal Q2 results: Profit jumps 92%, but futures OI continues rising
Eternal, the parent company of Zomato and Blinkit, reported a consolidated net profit of ₹125 crore for the September 2026 quarter, compared with ₹65 crore a year earlier.
The increase represents 92.3% year-on-year profit growth.
Revenue from operations increased 77.6% to ₹24,138 crore from ₹13,590 crore.
Despite the growth, quarterly profit fell approximately 53.9% short of the ₹271-crore analyst consensus estimate reported by Reuters, citing LSEG data.
Blinkit continued its expansion, with net order value increasing 79.3% year-on-year to ₹20,940 crore. The company added 308 stores, taking the network to 2,751 stores at the end of September.
Eternal’s shares were already trading lower before the earnings announcement was publicly reported, so the entire day’s decline cannot be attributed to the results.
What does Eternal’s futures data show?
NiftyTrader’s snapshot showed Eternal shares at ₹312.35, down 2.45%.
Its October 27 futures traded at ₹317.25, down 0.97%, while open interest increased 4.70% to 13,65,22,650.
The November 23 contract showed a sharper percentage increase in OI of 144.25%, reaching 1,42,27,475.
Across all three displayed expiries, total OI increased 10.96%.
While the data was classified as short buildup, the November increase came from a much smaller reference base. It should not be interpreted as proof of an equivalent increase in bearish conviction.
Explore: Eternal futures on NiftyTrader.
Manappuram Finance: Why a 16.89% OI increase needs closer examination
Manappuram Finance emerged as one of the prominent declining F&O stocks, with its share price falling 5.62% to ₹301.60.
NiftyTrader reported a 16.89% increase in aggregate futures OI.
However, the contract-wise breakdown reveals a significant difference.
The October futures contract recorded an OI increase of just 3.57%, compared with a 589.56% increase in the November contract.
In absolute terms, November futures accounted for 91,44,000 of the total 1,15,86,000 increase in OI.
That represents approximately 78.9% of Manappuram’s total OI increase across the three futures expiries.
This is an important finding for traders using aggregate short-buildup screens.
The headline percentage suggests a substantial rise in futures participation, but most of the increase occurred in November rather than in the contract approaching expiry.
It does not, by itself, establish whether the additional positioning represents outright bearish bets, hedging or expiry-related strategies.
A specific company announcement explaining the entire share-price decline was not independently established.
View Manappuram Finance futures and OI.
Infosys bucks the trend with long buildup ahead of Q2 results
Infosys provided a contrasting signal as the stock gained 3.30% to ₹1,168.
NiftyTrader reported a 10.83% increase in aggregate futures OI, classifying the stock under long buildup.
Its October 27 futures contract traded at ₹1,170.50, up 3.72%, while OI increased 8.92% to 7,74,37,200.
The November contract also showed rising futures prices and OI.
The movement comes ahead of Infosys’s Q2 FY27 earnings announcement, officially scheduled for Friday, October 23, 2026.
The company has scheduled its earnings conference call for 6:00 PM IST.
The upcoming results are particularly relevant because the announcement falls shortly before the October 27 monthly stock derivatives expiry.
Traders should monitor the post-results price response, changes in futures positioning and options implied volatility instead of interpreting the current long-buildup signal as a prediction of earnings performance.
Also Track: Infosys futures positioning
BEL: ₹770-crore defence contract announced as futures remain weak
Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) attracted attention after the Ministry of Defence announced a contract worth approximately ₹770 crore on October 21.
The contract covers Improved Low Level Light Weight Radars for the Indian Army, designed to detect and track aerial threats, including mini and micro drones.
Despite the announcement, NiftyTrader’s October 21 snapshot showed BEL shares at ₹371.20, down 1.59%.
October 27 futures traded at ₹368.95, down 1.84%, with open interest rising 3.10%.
Across October, November and December contracts, total futures OI increased 12.12%.
Approximately 80% of the aggregate OI increase came from the November and December contracts combined.
The government announcement was published at 3:30 PM IST, leaving insufficient evidence to attribute the stock’s entire intraday decline to the contract announcement or investors’ interpretation of it.
Check Live: BEL futures and open interest.
What the expiry-wise data tells F&O traders
With the October 27 stock derivatives expiry approaching, the difference between aggregate open interest and near-month positioning becomes particularly important.
For example:
- Bajaj Finance: Total OI rose 12.47%, compared with 8.94% in October futures.
- Eternal: Total OI rose 10.96%, compared with 4.70% in October futures.
- Manappuram: Total OI rose 16.89%, compared with just 3.57% in October futures.
- Infosys: Total OI rose 10.83%, compared with 8.92% in October futures.
- BEL: Total OI rose 12.12%, compared with 3.10% in October futures.
These differences matter because a sharp percentage increase in later-month OI can substantially influence an aggregate buildup signal.
For a more complete interpretation, traders should examine the actual contract expiry, price movement, absolute change in OI, relevant company developments and strike-wise options positioning.
Although rising prices with rising OI are commonly described as long buildup, and falling prices with rising OI as short buildup, neither pattern independently establishes the motives of market participants.
F&O outlook: What to watch next
October 21’s derivatives data showed a clear imbalance in NiftyTrader’s positioning classifications, with substantially more stocks under short buildup than long buildup.
However, contract-wise analysis reveals that the intensity of near-month positioning varied considerably between individual stocks.
The upcoming Infosys earnings announcement on October 23 and the October 27 monthly expiry are the next confirmed events to monitor.
For traders following Bajaj Finance, Eternal, Manappuram Finance, Infosys and BEL, the key question is whether price and open-interest changes persist after new announcements and as expiry approaches.
The takeaway: Aggregate OI provides a useful starting point, but expiry-wise futures data offers a more precise view of where positions are increasing.
Data disclosure: Figures are NiftyTrader snapshots dated October 21, 2026, updated at 4:00 PM IST for individual futures and 4:08 PM IST for OI Spurts. OI changes for the five selected stocks reconcile with the NSE October 19 closing reference data. They are not live quotes at the time this article is read.
Read Next: Eternal Q2 Results: Profit Nearly Doubles to Rs 125 Crore, but Bistro and Nugget Lose Rs 91 Crore
Disclaimer: This article is for information and educational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security or derivative.
