Over the years, that option has been ICICI Bank. The private lender has replaced preferred street HDFC Bank for almost a decade. Analysts are praising the rising star, and it looks like Pean is far from finished. Analysts are seeing a rise of up to 54 percent in the counter.
The most bullish is foreign brokerage CLSA, which says the lender is well-positioned to benefit from the digital push. Analysts at the firm say the lender has successfully improved its income statement and quality. CLSA There is a price target of Rs 1,100 over the counter.
Other analysts have similar comments.
At the recently concluded Analyst Day event, the management of ICICI Bank showcased its industry-first digital offerings for retail and SME/corporate customers, cementing its journey from a traditional bank to a full-scale “Banktec”. does. “The bank has removed product-linked executive positions and KRAs as a focus on customer-level ROE through cross-selling with an overlaying goal of risk-adjusted core profitability at the bank level. We expect the bank to achieve 21 per cent core operating profit growth and 14-17 per cent ROE in FY 2011-24,” said Anand Dama of Emkay Global, who attended the event.
According to him, the lender’s biggest strength was its strong technology product portfolio. “ICICI’s performance in the current cycle has been well ahead of its peers in terms of growth, asset quality and margin delivery. While some banks are still focusing on fine-tuning their back-end technology, ICICI, with its early-stage investments, is now focusing on industry-first technological front-end offerings,” said Dama, Which has a target of Rs 950 on the counter.
During the September quarter, the company’s asset quality, which was largely under control, showed the first signs of turning the tide for good. Credit growth to retail has been better than expected and NIM spread has improved indicating that costs were under control and cost of credit was unlikely to see any increase.
The bank’s digital focus was also evident from the fact that it did not add any branches and ATMs to its network in FY2011. In fact, both showed a decline. As on March 31, 2021, the number of branches stood at 5,266 as against 5,324 as on March 31, 2020. The number of ATMs fell from 15,688 to 14,136 during this period.
The bank has also been a proven outperformer in terms of stock market returns. The stock has gained 107% in the last three years. It has risen 43 per cent in the last one year.
Prakhar Agarwal, Edelweiss Financial, said, “We have always maintained ICICI as one of the liability champions of Indian banking.” “This, along with balance sheet comfort as well as high provisioning and capitalization – have undeniably played a role in our selection as the top pick of the region. A combination of existing relationships, structural/cultural changes and leveraging the digital edge. A focused approach is the cornerstone of ICICI’s enduring franchise.”