HDFC Life's Q3FY26 results: Net profit rises marginally to ₹421 crore

The company's expenses rose 30.03 per cent YoY to ₹4,532.68 crore, with net commission expenses rising 17.55 per cent YoY to ₹2,272 crore

HDFC Life Insurance on Thursday posted 1. 4 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) growth in net profit to ₹421 crore in Q3FY26 from ₹415 crore in the corresponding period the previous year.

 

The marginal hike was aided by growth in premium, even as the company made a provision of nearly ₹100 crore to account for the new Wage Code.

 

“The life insurance sector saw acceleration in momentum during the third quarter, supported by recent policy reforms and a rising preference for protection-led solutions. The GST exemption acted as a meaningful catalyst, particularly for the protection segment, improving affordability and driving a pickup in demand... the number of policies recording double-digit growth during the quarter,” Vibha Padalkar, managing director and CEO of HDFC Life, said.  

 

 

“We expect this momentum to sustain into Q4, supporting a balanced and healthy full-year outcome.”

 

The annualised premium equivalent (APE) was up 11.34 per cent Y-o-Y to ₹3,974 crore. APE is the sum of annualised first year regular premiums and 10 per cent weighted single premiums and single premium top-ups.

 

“Post the New Labour codes that have come, we have taken the full impact in the quarterly and nine-monthly profits. On a normalised basis, without the labour code impact, the profit has grown by 15 per cent. We have taken ₹106 crore impact on the revenue book and the profit & loss (P&L) impact is ₹98 crore,” said Niraj Shah, chief financial officer (CFO), HDFC Life Insurance.

 

Its value of new business (VNB) increased 2.7 per cent Y-o-Y to ₹955 crore in Q2 against ₹930 crore in the year-ago period. VNB is the present value of all future profits to shareholders measured at the time of writing the new business contract. The insurer’s VNB margin, a measure of profitability, contracted to 24.03 per cent as compared to 26 per cent last year.

 

The investment income of the insurer surged to ₹10650.74 crore as opposed to ₹192.09 crore. The expenses of the company rose by 30.03 per cent Y-o-Y to ₹4532.68 crore, with net commission expenses rising 17.55 per cent Y-o-Y to ₹2,272 crore.

 

“We have put clawbacks in place for distributors. Last year, we had put in place clawbacks for the traditional products, after the surrender value change. Now we have put clawbacks in place for unit-linked products as well,” Shah said.

 

In Q3FY26, the solvency ratio of HDFC Life stood at 180 per cent as compared to 188 per cent. The persistency ratio of the insurer for the 13th month persistency ratio stood at 85 per cent as on December 31, 2025, as compared to 87 per cent in the year-ago period. The 61st month persistency ratio stood at 63 per cent as against 61 per cent in the year-ago period.