ICICI Bank reported its Q2 results on Saturday.
What Happened: ICICI Bank's net profit jumped 14.5% year on year to ₹11,745.88 crore in the September quarter. The company's net interest income (NII) gained 9.5% to ₹20,047.98 crore. While the net profit beat the estimates, the net interest income fell short of expectations.
The private lender's net interest margin stood at 4.27% from 4.53% in the previous year. Its net non-performing assets (NPA) came in at 0.42%, down slightly from 0.43% in the previous year. Gross NPAs fell to 1.97% from 2.48%.
Brokerage Views: CLSA gave an "outperform" call with a target price of ₹1,600. The bank delivered another steady quarter, the brokerage said, with balance sheet growth in the mid teens and net interest margin moderating slightly. Pre-provision operating profit grew faster than NII driven by operating leverage, the research firm said.
NII is expected to play out this year with gross non-performing loan ratio stable and benign credit costs, the brokerage said. This makes ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank stand out among private sector banks, it added.
Motilal Oswal gave the stock a “buy” call with a target price of ₹1,500. The bank posted all-round performance in Q2 and solidified its leadership position, the research firm added.
It said the bank’s asset quality improved slightly while cost control was impressive. The lender’s business growth was robust, the brokerage added, increasing its earnings per share estimate by 2.8% and 1.8% for FY25 and FY26.
Nomura also gave a buy call and raised the target price to ₹1,575. The bank posted a flawless quarter putting it “a cut above the rest”, the research firm said. The global brokerage firm raised the earnings per share estimates for FY25-27 by 2%-3%, factoring in low operating expenses and lower credit costs.
Price Action: Shares of ICICI Bank rose 2.33% to ₹1,284.65 on Monday morning.
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