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Informist, Thursday, Apr. 17, 2025

By Anjana Therese Antony

MUMBAI – Long positions were added in the derivatives chain of ICICI Bank ahead of its quarterly results due Saturday. The bank is set for top-notch performance with robust loan growth, solid asset quality, and leading returns, Motilal Oswal Financial Services said in its pre-earnings report. Premiums on deep out-of-the-money call options of ICICI Bank surged and those on put contracts tumbled, indicating that the stock is likely to rise further after the results.

Shares of ICICI Bank closed 3.7% higher at INR 1,406.70 Thursday on the National Stock Exchange. The stock has risen over 8% in the last seven days and 32% in 52 weeks. Premiums on INR 1,410-INR 1,500 call options expiring next week increased over 350% and those on INR 1,400-INR 1,260 put options fell 58-70%. The highest open interest addition was at INR 1,420 call and INR 1,400 put strikes. 

For the quarter ended Mar. 31, the lender is expected to post over 10% on-year growth in net profit at INR 117.91 billion and its revenue is seen rising more than 9% to INR 208.44 billion, according to the average of estimates from 16 broking firms. On a sequential basis, the bottom line would be largely flat, while the top line is expected to rise a little over 2%, as per the estimates. The bank's net interest margin is expected to be steady, largely because of a reduction in the cash reserve ratio and lower slippages on quarter, Elara Securities said in its earnings preview report.

ICICI Bank's stock, which has the second-highest weightage of 8.95% in the Nifty 50, alone pushed the benchmark index higher by 0.3% Thursday. The 50-stock index closed 1.8% higher at 23851.65 points. The BSE Sensex ended 2% higher at 78553.20 points. The near-term support for the Nifty 50 is pegged at 23650-23500 points and resistance at 23920-24000 points. The fall in the fear gauge India VIX indicated the easing of near-term nervousness in the market. The volatility index closed nearly 3% lower at 15.4675, down for the fourth straight session. 

"Foreign investors were likely net buyers Thursday and most probably would have reduced their short positions (in index futures)," a derivatives analyst at a domestic broking firm said. Foreign investors had reduced their short positions to 72% Wednesday from 75% last week. They were net buyers in the domestic market Wednesday, buying shares worth INR 39.36 billion.

Some analysts said the equity market has mostly factored in the risks associated with US tariffs and believe investors would turn their primary focus to the March quarter corporate results and management comments on business outlook.

--Nifty 50 Apr closed at 23848.90, up 415.40 points; 2.75-point discount to spot index

--Nifty 50 May closed at 23960.00, up 414.20 points; 108.35-point premium to spot index

--Nifty 50 Jun closed at 24060.10, up 404.10 points; 208.45-point premium to spot index

HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Reliance Industries, State Bank of India, Bharti Airtel, Infosys, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finance, Wipro, Kotak Mahindra Bank, IDFC FIRST Bank, Larsen & Tourbo, Eternal, and Tata Consultancy Services were the most active underlying stocks Thursday.  End

Edited by Rajeev Pai

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