ICICI Bank shares gained on Monday after the country's second largest private sector lender by market value reported a strong set of quarterly results. The ICICI Bank stock ended higher by Rs 5.5 or 0.7 percent at Rs 752.8, having risen to as high as Rs 762.2 apiece during the session.

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Nomura, Macquarie and Credit Suisse raised their target prices for ICICI Bank shares after the earnings announcement. At Friday's closing price, Macquarie's target price of Rs 1,000 indicates a 28.5 percent upside in the stock.

On Saturday, ICICI Bank reported a net profit of Rs 7,018.7 crore for the January-March period, up 59.4 percent compared with the corresponding period a year ago.

Its net interest income (NII) increased 20.8 percent to Rs 12,604.6 crore, up 20.8 percent on a year-on-year basis.

Analysts in a CNBC-TV18 poll had estimated the lender's net profit at Rs 6,629.7 crore and NII at Rs 12,621.2 crore.

The lender reported improvement in its asset quality as well.

Its net non-performing assets (NPAs) came down to Rs 6,960.9 crore in the fourth quarter of the financial year ended March 2022 from Rs 7,343.9 crore in the previous three months.

Net NPAs as a percentage of total loans were at 0.76 percent in the January-March period, as against 0.85 percent in the previous quarter.

Loans and deposits saw double-digit growth. Domestic advances increased 17 percent on a year-on-year basis, and total deposits saw a jump of 14 percent.

Market expert Prakash Diwan told CNBC-TV18: "One of the most interesting guidelines from one of the brokerage reports I read was 'we found the next HDFC Bank'. That was really telling," he said.

"If you go through the fine print, it's a lot of retail and a lot of SME loans, which is not something which you rely on when you want to expand your book. But ICICI Bank has done that. Credit quality is very much under control, and, in fact, it's been improving. In this quarter, they have definitely proven that they would probably fill that gap very well," he said.

Macquarie has an 'outperform' rating on ICICI Bank with a target price of Rs 1,000. Its target price indicates a 33.8 percent upside in the stock.

The brokerage said ICICI Bank delivered a strong all-round performance. "With the bank consistently delivering quarter after quarter, we believe the search for next HDFC Bank finally is over... Margins continue to surprise positively," it said.

Goldman Sachs has a 'buy' rating on ICICI Bank with a target price of Rs 938.

It said ICICI Bank is well positioned to structurally repeat a superior RoA of closer to 1.9 percent. Its return on equity will continue to drive the valuation higher, according to the brokerage.

Credit Suisse has an 'outperform' call on ICICI Bank. It raised its target price to Rs 870 crore. The brokerage continues to believe that ICICI Bank will deliver strong earnings, and the lender remains among its top picks.

Nomura has a 'buy' call on ICICI Bank with a raised target price of Rs 960. The core pre-provisioning operating profit growth and asset quality trends are intact, according to the brokerage.

It, however, said that the sustainability of core pre-provision operating profit (PPOP) growth is key.

BofA Securities has kept a 'buy' rating on ICICI Bank with a target price of Rs 960. The bank's strong performance in the January-March period sets the path to 16 percent return on equity in the financial year ending March 2023, it said.

The lender saw strong growth across the retail and SME segments led by its digital business, it added.

CLSA has a 'buy' rating on ICICI Bank with a target price of Rs 1,050. The brokerage said the lender's impeccable performance continues, with a consistent delivery of sector-best growth in loans.

The brokerage lifted its earnings estimate for ICICI Bank by 1-3 percent over the financial year ending March 2023 and the calendar year 2024.

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First Published:Apr 25, 2022 10:17 AM IST