The Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has decreased its stake in ICICI Bank Ltd to below the 5% level after conducting a number of market transactions, just ahead of the Q3 earnings report set for tomorrow, Saturday, January 17.
The state-owned insurer divested 12.70 crore shares of ICICI Bank through market sales, reducing its ownership from 6.737% to 4.731% of the bank’s total equity capital.
Prior to the sale, LIC owned 46.51 crore shares of ICICI Bank, which accounted for 6.737% of the overall voting capital. Following the sale, its stake now stands at 33.81 crore shares, representing 4.731%. The transactions took place between December 24, 2020, and January 13, 2026, according to the disclosure.
Additionally, LIC stated that it is not part of the promoter or promoter group of ICICI Bank.
Shares of ICICI Bank, and LIC were trading flat on Friday’s session. LIC shares opened at ₹826 apiece on the BSE, the stock touched an intraday high of 830.5 apiece, and an intraday low of ₹821.40 per share. Rajesh Bhosale, Equity Technical and Derivative Analyst at Angel One, said the stock remains in a downtrend, forming a lower top–lower bottom structure. Although prices have entered the oversold zone and positive divergence is visible, the absence of clear reversal signals suggests that underperformance may persist.
The next key support is placed around ₹800, while ₹850–860 acts as an immediate stiff resistance zone, believes Rajesh Bhosale.
ICICI Bank shares opened at ₹1,415 apiece on the BSE, the stock touched an intraday high of ₹1,420.60, and an intraday low of ₹1,402.40. According to Bhosale, the stock has been witnessing volatile moves over the last couple of weeks but continues to trade above its recent breakout and the 200-day SMA.
“Strong support is placed in the ₹1,390–1,380 zone; a decisive break below this could trigger further downside. On the upside, ₹1,430–1,440 remains an immediate resistance, and only a sustained move above this zone is likely to revive momentum in the primary uptrend,” said Bhosale.
Additionally, Mahesh M Ojha, AVP — Research at Kantilal Chaganlal Securities, mentioned that ICICI Bank shares have shown solid consolidation from their present levels. The shares of this private bank found strong support around ₹1,328, with potential upside levels of 1424-1440-1460-1500 or more. Mahesh said that we can anticipate upward movement in these levels accordingly.
ICICI Bank – Q3 results preview
Seema Srivastava, Senior Research Analyst at SMC Global Securities, explained that ICICI Bank Q3 results tomorrow are expected to be moderately +ve, supported by healthy core banking performance and steady credit growth.
Srivastava believes the bank is likely to report mid-single-digit year-on-year growth in profit, driven primarily by an improvement in net interest income as loan growth remains robust across retail and business banking segments.
Also,Seema highlighted that the net interest income is expected to rise on the back of sustained demand for loans and stable net interest margins, even as competition for deposits and funding costs remain elevated.
Further, she noted that the NIMs are likely to remain broadly steady during the quarter, providing consistency to core earnings. Non-interest income is expected to offer limited support, with fee income remaining stable while treasury gains are likely to be muted due to market conditions.
“Despite this, overall earnings are expected to remain resilient, aided by strong operating fundamentals. Asset quality trends are expected to remain comfortable, with slippages and credit costs staying under control and no major stress anticipated across loan portfolios,” explained Srivastava.
According to Seema, key areas to monitor include management commentary on loan and deposit growth trends, margin outlook amid a changing interest rate environment, and expectations for credit growth and profitability in the coming quarters.
ICICI Bank – Q2 results snapshot
ICICI Bank’s consolidated profit for the quarter ending in September rose by 3.2% to ₹13,357 crore. The bank had announced a consolidated net profit of ₹12,948 crore during the same period last year.
On a standalone basis, the second largest private sector bank recorded a 5.2% increase in its post-tax profit, reaching ₹12,359 crore, compared to ₹11,746 crore in the previous year’s quarter.
The core net interest income grew by 7.4% to ₹21,529 crore, driven by a 10.6% rise in advances. The bank experienced a slight decline in its net interest margin, which fell to 4.30% from 4.36% in the same period last year.
Non-interest income, excluding treasury performance, experienced a 13.2% increase, reaching ₹7,356 crore, while treasury income witnessed a significant decline, dropping to ₹220 crore compared to ₹680 crore during the same quarter last year.
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