Here's why Union Bank of India shares rose 3% to hit 52-week high on Feb 18

The rally followed the lender's disclosure that it has been assigned an ESG rating of 81.3 (CareEdge - ESG 1+), indicating strong performance across environmental, social and governance parameters

Shares of Union Bank of India advanced on Wednesday, February 18, 2026, after the public sector lender announced a rating update from Care ESG Ratings.

 

Following the development, the stock rose 2.69 per cent to hit a 52-week high of ₹193.99 apiece on the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) during intra-day trade. The counter, however, pared some gains and was trading at ₹193.10, up 2.23 per cent from its previous close of ₹188.89 at 2:35 PM. The benchmark Nifty50 was up 56 points, or 0.22 per cent, at 25,781.

 

A combined 24.5 million equity shares, valued at ₹463 crore, had changed hands on the NSE and the BSE during the session so far. The bank’s market capitalisation stood at ₹1,47,412.56 crore on the NSE as of February 18.

 

The northward movement followed the lender’s disclosure that it has been assigned an ESG rating of 81.3 (CareEdge – ESG 1+), indicating strong performance across environmental, social and governance parameters.

 

Care ESG Ratings noted that the bank maintains board-approved policies on business ethics, anti-corruption, whistleblower protection and code of conduct, many of which extend to suppliers and vendors. The rating also factors in its ISO/IEC 27000-certified cybersecurity framework, zero data breach record and regular internal audits.

 

“Overall, UBI’s ESG rating of 81.3 reflects the bank’s leadership position in managing ESG risk through best-in-class disclosures, policies and performance,” the rating agency said.

 

Separately, the lender said it will participate in the ‘Annual Flagship Investor Conference – Chasing Growth 2026’ organised by Kotak Securities Limited on February 26, 2026, in Mumbai.

 

Earlier, on January 14, the bank reported a 9 per cent year-on-year rise in standalone net profit at ₹5,017 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2025, compared with ₹4,603.63 crore in the year-ago period. The lender's net interest income (NII) edged up 1 per cent to ₹9,328 crore from ₹9,241 crore a year earlier.

 

Overall business, meanwhile, grew 5.04 per cent year-on-year during the quarter, with gross advances rising 7.13 per cent and total deposits up 3.36 per cent.