Bank Stocks Gain Anew

Bank stocks rose afresh today as investors continued to accumulate the shares following expectations on the budget front.

However, the State Bank of India (SBI), Vysya Bank and Corporation Bank shares stood out, easing after bouts of profit-taking.

The J&K Bank share (up 8.91 per cent at Rs 69.65), Dena Bank (up 7.4 per cent at Rs 6.50), Global Trust Bank (up 7.56 per cent at Rs 24.20), Bank of India (up 9.15 per cent at Rs 23.25) UTI Bank (up 7.31 per cent at Rs 35.25), Federal Bank (up 7.01 per cent at Rs 67.20), Bank of Baroda (up 2.76 per cent at Rs 48.40), ICICI Bank (up 8.24 per cent at Rs 99.80) and HDFC Bank (up 1.55 per cent at Rs 228.65), were among the gainers.

There are also high expectations that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will cut lending rates further. Besides, bank stocks are now being re-rated as investors find their valuations attractive.

Corporation Bank has gained 34.8 per cent in five trading sessions from Rs 105.80 on February 1 to Rs 142.65 on February 8.

Volumes in the period soared to over 10 lakh shares from just 23,899 shares on February 1.

The scrip, however, eased today by 5.50 per cent to Rs 137.50 on profit taking. SBI fell 1.37 per cent to close to Rs 245.15, chiefly due to profit-taking.

The Federal Bank share, on the other hand, has gained 35 per cent in the last 6 sessions from Rs 48 on February 1 to the current Rs 65.

The accumulation on the counter is evident from the surge in volumes which was 4,100 shares on February 1 to the current 43,000 shares (in just about two hours of trading today).