“Pursuant to Regulation 30 of the SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015, this is to inform you that the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance vide Office Memorandum dated December 20, 2023, has decided in the public interest, to grant one-time exemption to Life Insurance Corporation of India to achieve 25% Minimum Public Shareholding (MPS) within 10 years from the date of listing i.e., till May 2032 under Rule 19A (6) of the Securities Contract (Regulations) Rules (SCRR) 1957,” LIC said in a regulatory filing.
In May 2022, the government had sold 3.5% stake in LIC IPO, which was an entirely (offer for sale) worth around Rs 21,000 crore. It remains India’s largest IPO to date.
The stock is now down around 19% from its IPO issue price of Rs 949 per share. LIC shares ended 0.5% higher at Rs 764.55 on the BSE on Thursday.
However, in the last few weeks the stock has seen fresh buying interest. In the last one month alone LIC is up 25%.
The latest round of buying the heavyweight counter comes after brokerages upgraded the counter with buy calls. A part of the investor optimism is also being attributed to the launch of the new Jeevan Ustav scheme, which is a life insurance plan launched with lifetime guaranteed returns.
“The company continues to diversify its product mix with a focus on enhancing the nonpar share of products. Life insurance density and penetration age continues to be lower in India vis-à-vis other developing economies. With the gradual rise in domestic household savings, the share of life insurance in incremental household financial savings is expected to increase steadily. LIC, as the market leader and a trusted name among the populace, is best positioned to benefit in the long-term,” Geojit Financial said.Last month, the brokerage had raised its price target on LIC to Rs 823, based on 0.65x FY25E embedded value (EV) per share.
In Q2FY24, LIC’s gross premium income fell 18.7% YoY to Rs 107,947 crore, mainly due to a 43.4% YoY drop in single premium to Rs 37,955 crore. Its first-year premium grew 9.3% YoY to Rs 10,032 crore, while renewal premium rose 6.1% YoY to Rs 59,961 crore.
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