Synopsis: Private sector lender, ICICI Bank Market Cap Crosses Rs. 5 Lakh Crore for the First Time, becoming the second bank to do so.
The country’s largest lender by assets, HDFC Bank retains its throne at the top with a market capitalization of Rs 8.7 lakh crore, followed by SBI in third place with a market capitalization of Rs 3.81 lakh crore, Kotak Mahindra Bank in fourth place (Rs 3.47 lakh crore), and Axis Bank in fifth place (Rs 2.46 lakh crore).
The shares of ICICI Bank traded at Rs 724.50 on the BSE at the time of writing this story, up 0.79%. This increased its market capitalization to Rs 5,01,202 crore making it part of the few companies that have crossed the 5 lakh crore mark.
Despite occasional consolidation and corrections, the stock has been steadily rising, gaining about 84% in the last year. In terms of returns, ICICI Bank is the second-best performer among big banks for the last year, trailing only to the State Bank of India, which earned 95%.
During the same period, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank gained 62%, 40% and 22% respectively.
The Reserve Bank of India’s acceptance of Sandeep Bakhshi’s re-appointment as Managing Director and CEO of ICICI Bank on August 24 further boosted sentiment.
Bakhshi will now serve as the MD and CEO of the country’s second-largest lender until October 3, 2023.
With the predicted economic rebound, experts believe the banking sector will outperform, therefore ICICI Bank should remain a long-term investment.
“ICICI Bank, along with large peers such as HDFC Bank, represents a very strong and stable long term value prospect for both retail and institutional investors.
Combined with the positive tailwinds of the India growth story, and with favourable upturns in India as a value destination for return-seeking capital, we can expect the banking sector to continue to outperform, and ICICI should remain a beneficiary of such value growth,” said Utkarsh Sinha, Managing Director at Bexley Advisors after ICICI Bank Market Cap Crosses Rs. 5 Lakh Crore.
He went on to say that the RBI’s acceptance of Bakshi’s extension should be interpreted favourably and that ICICI has had a long history of pedigreed management.
“Short term blips aside, it enjoys a deep bench of talent which should give investors comfort about its long term prospects and continuity in practices.”
ICICI Bank is now trading in an upward channel. “It has also given a breakout of Cup and Handle formation and has reversed after retesting the breakout line.
We can expect the target of Rs 790 in next 3-6 months, “CapitalVia Global Research’s Head of Technical Research, Ashis Biswas, stated.
