ICICI Bank gains 3%, hits new high as brokerages raise target price

Shares of ICICI Bank rallied 3 per cent to Rs 525, also its new high on the BSE on Wednesday, after brokerages retained their ‘buy’ rating on the stock while raising 12-month target price in anticipation of strong earnings going forward. The private sector lender's stock surpassed its previous high of Rs 520, hit on November 28, 2019.

With today’s gain, ICICI Bank has rallied 32 per cent in the past three months, as compared to 11 per cent gain in the S&P BSE Sensex.

According to report, foreign brokerage UBS raised its target price for the stock to Rs 620 from Rs 570, while Nomura raised the target to Rs 645 from Rs 610.

Analysts at Motilal Oswal Securities, too, raised the target price of ICICI Bank to Rs 625 per share.

“ICICI Bank appears firmly positioned to deliver healthy sustainable growth, supported by continued investments in technology and expansion in its digital offerings. The bank has navigated well through a challenging macro environment with limited exposure to newly surfaced stressed names. It has in fact built one of the highest provisioning coverage in the banking sector,” the brokerage firm said in company update.

Over the past few years, the bank has been reporting strong growth in retail advances, supported by an impressive share of digital originations across key product lines. With asset quality issues getting sorted, ICICI Bank appears firmly positioned to deliver healthy sustainable growth, led by continued investments in technology and further expansion in digital offerings, it said.