LIC shares jumped after strong quarterly results. But the stock is still down 35% from the IPO price of Rs 949 per share.
Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) share price jumped 3.72% to Rs 615.65 today after the insurance behemoth reported a more than five-fold jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 13,191 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 2023. LIC IPO was the largest ever public issue in India with an issue size of Rs 21,000 crore. Investors had high hopes from IPO, but LIC stock’s downfall started with its debut. LIC stock listed with an 8% discount at Rs 865 on May 17, 2022. Over one year has passed since then and the stock is still down 35% from the IPO price of Rs 949 per share.
Despite strong quarterly results, the pressure still remains on the stock as Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Union Budget this February provided a higher impetus for individuals to shift to the new tax regime, which does not favour tax exemptions on investments in insurance schemes. The proposal has come as a big blow to the insurance sector and has caused investors to reconsider its growth prospects, forcing them to stay side-lined.
LIC shares touched a 52-week high of Rs 841 on 25 May 2022 and a 52-week low of Rs 530.20 on 29 March 2023. Today, the stock touched an intraday high of Rs 615.65 and a low of Rs 603.30. At the current price of Rs 605.2, the company’s market capitalisation stands at Rs 3.82 lakh crore. Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty 50 fell 30 points or 0.16% to 18,255.40 and BSE Sensex tumbled 101.31 points or 0.16% to 61,672.47.
Source:financialexpress.com