Stocks like Reliance Industries (RIL) and Bharti Airtel also recorded strong gains, each adding ₹90,000 crore in market capitalisation among NSE500 companies during the same period. Other notable gainers include Kotak Mahindra Bank and Bajaj Finserv, which added over ₹70,000 crore to their market valuation.
However, these gains follow a sharp selloff in the December quarter. Bajaj Finance had declined 11.4% during the December quarter, while Reliance and Bharti Airtel saw their stock prices drop by 18% and 7%, respectively.
Interestingly, despite the recent rally, chartists anticipate further upside in Bajaj Finance stock. According to CLSA’s top chartist Laurence Balanco, non-banking financial companies like Bajaj Finance are experiencing significant multi-year breakout trends, fueling interest and momentum in the Indian market. In an interaction with CNBC-TV18, Balanco observed, “I expect a major multi-year trading range breakout in Bajaj Finance.”
Earlier this week, Bajaj Finance shares surged to a record high of ₹9,260.05 on the NSE following the company’s decision to appoint its long-serving Managing Director and CEO, Rajeev Jain, as Vice Chairman for the next three years.
Morgan Stanley, which included Bajaj Finance in its Asia Pacific Ex-Japan and Global Emerging Markets focus list, sees a strong investment outlook for the non-banking lender. The foreign brokerage believes that Rajeev Jain’s elevation has resolved months of speculation and uncertainty about his future. “With the management transition settled, credit costs expected to decline, a favorable interest rate cycle on the horizon, and easing regulatory risks, the outlook appears promising.”
Goldman Sachs, meanwhile, has raised its target price for Reliance Industries. The global brokerage has set a 12-month target of ₹1,640, implying a 28% upside from current levels. It expects Reliance’s retail segment to grow 6.5% year-on-year in the March quarter of FY25, recovering from an 8.5% decline in Q2 and a 5.7% increase in Q3.
“We expect the company’s core EBITDA for the March quarter to remain largely flat sequentially. However, investor focus is likely to be on growth trends in the retail segment and Jio’s revenue performance,” Goldman Sachs noted in an investor report.
