Axis Bank shares rose 4 per cent on Thursday despite the private lender posting a 26 per cent year-on-year drop in net profit for the September quarter, as brokerages shrugged off the earnings miss and reaffirmed bullish stance on the stock, citing operating performance and steady asset quality trends.
The lender reported 26 per cent decline in net profit at ₹5,090 crore in Q2FY26. Its net interest income rose by 2 per cent to ₹13,745 crore
Analysts largely maintained positive ratings on the stock, citing underlying fundamentals and stable asset quality. Global brokerage CLSA kept an outperform rating with a ₹1,400 price, highlighting confidence in Axis Bank’s earnings resilience despite near-term pressure.
HSBC retained its buy rating with a higher target of ₹1,460, and Emkay Global echoed the sentiment with a ₹1,400 target.
Nomura and Jefferies also maintained buy calls, setting their targets at ₹1,440 and ₹1,430 respectively.
Motilal Oswal reiterated neutral rating at a revised target price of 1,300 per share. The brokerage stated that the asset quality improved sequentially as GNPA/NNPA ratios improved and slippages moderated q-o-q, driven by a sequential decline in both core and technical slippages. Business growth has gained traction, with deposits expected to grow at a healthy rate, while the bank aims to outperform systemic credit growth by 300bp CAGR over the medium term.
Motilal noted that the bank maintained its through-cycle margin guidance of 3.8 per cent, even as it remains watchful of further repo rate cuts in the coming months.
HDFC Securities, maintaining add at a revised target price of 1,265, believes that the bank lacks a handle on its growth and asset quality parameters and continues its perennial search for portfolio stability, which is likely to delay any re-rating.
Meanwhile, Nuvama Institutional Equities retained hold call at an unchanged target price of ₹1,180. However, it recommended switching to ICICI Bank for a more sustainable and less volatile business model and higher CASA growth, in view of the repeated volatility in credit cost and a weak loan mix.
At 10 am, the stock traded 2.5 per cent positive on the NSE at ₹1,199.10, hitting an early high of ₹1,216.90 against the previous close of ₹1,169.60
Published on October 16, 2025