HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, ICICI, Kotak shares rise up to 3% ahead of Q1 earnings; Nifty Bank gains 500 pts. What to expect?

Shares of heavyweight private lenders including HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and others jumped up to 3% on Friday, pushing the Nifty Bank higher, ahead of their much-awaited Q1 earnings announcements scheduled for Saturday.

Kotak Mahindra Bank shares jumped nearly 3% to trade at Rs 386 apiece on the NSE, as seen at 12 pm. Federal Bank shares gained more than 2%, while those of HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank rose more than 1% each.

The gains pushed the Nifty Bank more than 500 points higher to 58,095. State Bank of India (SBI) and IndusInd Bank shares gained nearly 1% each, while those of Yes Bank, Bank of Baroda and others dropped around 1%.

What to expect from banks’ Q1 earnings?

As many as five heavyweight private banks, including HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, ICICI Bank and Yes Bank, are all set to announce their results for the April-June quarter of the ongoing financial year 2027 on Saturday (July 18), with analysts issuing mixed views on which stock investors may consider buying ahead of the Q1 earnings print.

Nomura in its note said that it expected banks under its coverage to report modest core-PPOP growth, led by soft NII growth and controlled opex, while seasonally higher credit costs keep PAT growth muted. It named ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank as its top picks.

The international brokerage said that reported loan growth has been strong for HDFC Bank and Yes Bank, but soft for Axis Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank. For ICICI Bank, Nomura expects loan growth to be strong. However, it overall expects net interest margins to moderate for the lenders.

Also read | Q1 Showdown: Analysts pick top bets as ICICI Bank, HDFC, Axis, Kotak, Yes Bank gear up for results this week”We expect Q1 FY27 to be another steady quarter with negative surprise, if any, coming from possible NIM contraction. Provisional numbers suggest solid performance on loan growth across banks (large/mid, public/private/SFB). Asset quality is holding up well across banks and products, with no discernible impact from the current crisis in the Middle East. We prefer frontline banks to others looking at the current macro set-up, which could see NIM pressures abating from hereon,” said Kotak Institutional Equities.

Technical view on Nifty Bank

Technically, Nifty Bank is expected to find immediate support near 56,800–57,000 zone, while the 58,200 level is likely to act as a key resistance, said Vatsal Bhuva, Technical Analyst at LKP Securities. Until a decisive breakout or breakdown occurs, the undertone is expected to remain neutral, making a buy-on-dips near support and sell-on-rise near resistance strategy favourable, the analyst added.“On the upside, 58,700 (June’s high) remains the immediate hurdle. A decisive close above this level would confirm a breakout from the ongoing consolidation and could trigger the next leg of the rally towards 59,300 and eventually 60,000 levels in the coming weeks,” said Bajaj Broking.

Also read | Reliance Industries shares jump 2% ahead of Mukesh Ambani-led company’s Q1 earnings. How to trade stock today?

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)