&w=3840&q=100)
L&T Finance hits new high after over 7 years; should you buy, hold or sell?
Shares of L&T Finance (LTF) hit an all-time high of ₹214.80, up 2 per cent on the BSE in Wednesday's intra-day trade. The stock price of this non-banking finance company (NBFC) surpassed its previous high of ₹213.60 touched on October 24, 2017, the BSE data shows.
In the past five months, LTF has zoomed 60 per cent. While, thus far in the calendar year, the stock has outperformed the market by surging 56 per cent, as compared to 5 per cent rise in the BSE Sensex.
L&T Finance - Q1FY26 performance
LTF reported a steady performance in the April to June 2025 quarter (Q1FY26) with visible recovery in rural portfolios. Retail disbursements stood at ₹17,522 crore (up 18 per cent YoY, 18 per cent QoQ), primarily led by integration of recently acquired gold loan portfolios. Retail book expanded 18 per cent YoY to ₹99,816 crore, while consolidated asset under management (AUM) increased 15 per cent YoY to ₹1.02 trillion. Asset quality metrics were stable with gross net performing asset (GNPA) at 2.93 per cent and net NPA at 0.83 per cent.
Brokerages view, rating and target price for LTF
According to analysts at ICICI Securities, relative resilience, amid volatility in the microfinance institution (MFI) segment, bodes well. Alteration in business mix, amid focus on sustainable and risk calibrated growth is expected to keep business growth steady and improve sustainability of performance. The brokerage firm revised target price to ₹250, valuing the stock at ~2x FY27E BV. Upgrade the stock from Hold to Buy.
JM Financial Institutional Equities, Edelweiss Securities and Mirae Asset Sharekhan also have a 'Buy' rating on LTF with a target price of ₹240 per share.
Current quarterly performance has been steady with moderating credit cost and improved growth visibility given its partnerships with Amazon and Phonepe. Its project Cyclops also offers significant support to the business in terms of underwriting, analysts at JM Financial Institutional Equities said.
With a revival in growth and improving MFI outlook, we retain 'BUY'. Investment in a formidable digital platform shall ensure an accelerated shift to prime customers, which will help improve risk-adjusted yield by 50-100bp. LTF could dip into its remaining buffer of ₹ 275 crore even in Q2FY26. Credit Enhancement in MFI, especially Karnataka, will normalise by September/October, according to analysts at Edelweiss Securities.
Stress in the unsecured segment is a near-term headwind, which the company will navigate and come out stronger. The company has already provided for most of the stress book through a combination of credit costs and excess balance sheet provisions. It remains assertive on reduction in credit costs and improvement in asset quality in the MFI space from H2FY26, said Mirae Asset Sharekhan in Q1 result update.
Meanwhile, S&P Global Ratings expects L&T Finance's risk profile to improve, as the company shifts toward more diversified retail lending. Economic growth will also aid recovery of legacy wholesale and security receipt exposures.
'In our base case, L&T Finance will have strong retail loan growth of about 35 per cent for fiscal 2026 and 15 per cent for fiscal years 2027 and 2028. The company will also continue to shrink its wholesale loans. In addition, we expect yields to moderately decline over the forecast horizon as the company increases its secured lending portfolio,' the rating agency said in rationale.
India's robust medium-term growth potential and large, diversified economy should continue to support NBFCs' business prospects and profitability in the medium term. Easing domestic interest rates, moderate inflation and improved system liquidity should buffer against global economic uncertainty, particularly as India's NBFCs are mostly domestically focused, said Fitch Ratings.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Mint
20 minutes ago
- Mint
Indian shares inch lower as Kotak earnings drag financials, trade deal delay weighs
By Bharath Rajeswaran and Vivek Kumar M (Reuters) -Indian shares inched lower on Monday as weak results from Kotak Mahindra Bank weighed on sentiment, while uncertainty over trade talks with the U.S. added to overall caution. The Nifty 50 fell 0.16% to 24,798.9 points and the BSE Sensex lost 0.2% to 81,325.4 as of 10:03 a.m. IST. The broader small-caps and mid-caps lost 0.3% and 0.2%, respectively. Negotiations between India and the United States remained deadlocked over tariff cuts on agriculture and dairy products, dimming hopes of an interim deal ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump's August 1 deadline. This is in contrast to a framework trade agreement struck between the U.S. and European Union over the weekend, easing fears of a bigger trade war between the two allies, which account for almost a third of global trade. High-weightage financials and private banks lost 0.2% and 1%, respectively, dragged by a 7% fall in Kotak Mahindra Bank after it posted a drop in quarterly profit. The IT index lost 0.5%, with Tata Consultancy Services shedding 1.6% after it announced plans to reduce its workforce by 2% in fiscal year 2026. The Nifty 50 and 30-stock Sensex have logged four consecutive weekly losses due to weak earnings, foreign outflows and uncertainty over the U.S.-India trade deal. "A dull earnings season and the lingering delay in the India-U.S. trade deal have clearly cast a shadow on market sentiment. With valuations still stretched across the board, investors are understandably treading with heightened caution," said G Chokkalingam, founder and head of research at Equinomics Research. Among individual stocks, Mphasis gained 2.4% on posting quarterly results in-line with estimates and on strong deal bookings, which has boosted the IT company's revenue growth outlook. SBI Cards and Payment Services lost 3.7% after missing profit estimates in the June quarter. (Reporting by Vivek Kumar M and Bharath Rajeswaran; Editing by Eileen Soreng and Mrigank Dhaniwala)


Mint
20 minutes ago
- Mint
Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders share price dips ahead of Q1 results today. Opportunity to buy?
Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders share price slipped over 1% on Monday's session ahead of its Q1 results 2025 today. In its filing with the exchange, the company mentioned that its board of directors is set to convene on July 28, 2025 to review and approve the unaudited financial results for the quarter ending on 30 June 2025. Seema Srivastava, Senior Research Analyst at SMC Global Securities, said that Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders is likely to report positive quarterly numbers with a robust growth outlook, buoyed by strategic momentum in India's defence shipbuilding. Srivastava noted that the company recently initiated keel laying for its first Next Generation Offshore Patrol Vessel (NGOPV) for the Indian Coast Guard—highlighting its expanding technical capabilities with AI and drone integration, which is likely to support its earnings and margins. Also, earlier management projected mid single digit to low double digit revenue growth for FY26, alongside healthy profit before tax margins around 15% a signal of operational discipline and improved execution compared to FY25. After a challenging Q4 FY25 characterised by one off provisioning effects, Q1 is seen as a potential turning point for margin recovery and stabilisation, explained Seema. 'Investors will track order pipeline developments closely, particularly around submarine projects (P75 additional and P75I) and coastal patrol builds that support India's strategic maritime needs and forward margins,' added Srivastava. Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders experienced a 51% decline in consolidated net profit for Q4FY25, reporting ₹ 325 crore compared to ₹ 663 crore from the same period last year. In the same quarter, the company's revenue from operations reached ₹ 3,174 crore, reflecting a 2.3% increase from ₹ 3,103 crore reported in the previous year's corresponding quarter. The profit after tax (PAT) dropped 60% sequentially from ₹ 807 crore in Q3FY25, while revenue from operations saw a slight rise of 1% when compared to the ₹ 3,144 crore reported for the October-December quarter of FY25. Q4 expenses surged by 20% to ₹ 3,114.11 crore, up from ₹ 2,604 crore in the same quarter of the previous financial year. This also represented a 31% increase from the ₹ 2,367 crore registered in Q3FY25. The rise in expenses was attributed to several factors, including the cost of materials consumed, procurement of base and depot spares, finance costs, and employee benefit expenses. Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders share price today opened at ₹ 2,886.70 apiece on the BSE, the stock touched an intraday high of ₹ 2,907.80 apiece, and an intraday low of ₹ 2,844.10. According to Rajesh Bhosale, Equity Technical and Derivative Analyst at Angel One, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders share price has witnessed a sharp correction over the past two months, sliding from 3700 to 2900. The momentum remains weak unless clear bullish reversal signs emerge. The next crucial support lies near 2750, which aligns with the golden Fibonacci retracement level and the May swing low. Given the oversold conditions, some respite could be expected around these levels. On the upside, 3050 remains a stiff resistance, coinciding with the 89 EMA and 20 DEMA. Disclaimer: The views and recommendations above are those of individual analysts, experts and broking companies, not of Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decision.

The Hindu
20 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Markets fall in initial trade dragged by Kotak Bank, trade deal uncertainty
Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty declined in early deals on Monday (July 28, 2025) dragged down by heavy selling pressure in Kotak Mahindra Bank and uncertainty related to the India-US trade deal. Persistent foreign fund outflows and weak trends in Asian markets also hit investors' sentiment. The 30-share BSE Sensex dropped 369.58 points to 81,093.51 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty declined 104.3 points to 24,732.70. From the Sensex firms, Kotak Mahindra Bank tumbled nearly 7% after the company on Saturday reported a consolidated net profit of ₹4,472 crore for the June quarter, and flagged stress on the retail commercial vehicle portfolio due to adverse macroeconomic conditions. The profit in the year-ago period was ₹7,448 crore, but it had included gains of over ₹3,000 crore on its stake sale in the general insurance arm, while the net profit for the March quarter stood at ₹4,933 crore. Tata Consultancy Services, Bharti Airtel, Infosys and Eternal were also among the laggards. However, Tata Motors, Bajaj Finserv, UltraTech Cement and Power Grid were among the gainers. "Negative news and triggers have pushed the Nifty to a one-month low, and market sentiments continue to be unfavourable. While trade deals with Japan and EU, thought to be difficult initially, have happened, the much expected India-US trade deal is even now hanging fire. This has impacted market sentiments," VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited, said. Vijayakumar further added that the sharp cut in the IT index has been dragging the market down, and there is no respite in this in view of the 2 per cent cut in its global workforce announced by TCS. FII selling of ₹13,552 crore in the cash market last week has added to the weakness in the market, he said. In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi, Japan's Nikkei 225 index and Shanghai's SSE Composite index traded lower while Hong Kong's Hang Seng quoted in positive territory. The US markets ended higher on Friday. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹1,979.96 crore on Friday, according to exchange data. Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.29% to $68.64 a barrel. On Friday (July 25, 2025), the Sensex tanked 721.08 points or 0.88% to settle at over a month's low of 81,463.09. The Nifty dropped 225.10 points or 0.90% to a month's low of 24,837.