Indian Bank's stock just smashed through its 5-year high around ₹761 – actually way past it now, hitting over ₹930. It's exploding like a firecracker at Diwali, up 77% in a year. But should you jump in, or hold your horses?
What's Behind This Breakout?
Charts don't lie. Multiple EMA crossovers – 5-day, 10-day, even 20-day – lit up bullish signals last week. Think of it like a runner finally breaking the tape after years of training. Strong Q3 profit at ₹3,147 crore, up 8% YoY, fueled the push. Deposits climbed to ₹737,000 crore, advances to ₹572,000 crore. Banking sector heat from rate cuts and loan growth? Yeah, that's the spark.
Key Numbers for Newbies:
Market cap sits at ₹125,000 crore – solid mid-tier PSU bank status. P/E ratio? Around 10.4, cheaper than the banking industry's average of 9-10, but wait, peers like Canara hit 6.8. Book value ₹593, dividend yield 1.74% – pays ₹16.25 last year, nice for steady folks.
ROE shines at 17.1%, beating many rivals. Debt? Banks live on it – borrowings ₹41,000 crore, but deposits dwarf that. Debt-to-equity? High like most lenders, around 11-12 historically, no red flag. Profit growth? Killer 67% CAGR over 5 years. Cash flow flipped positive at ₹17,396 crore operating last year. YoY profit jumped 35% to ₹11,264 crore. Impressive, right? But NPAs dipped to 2.23% gross – cleaner books help sleep better.
Started in 1907 in Madras by V. Krishnaswamy Iyer and buddies like R.S.K.S.S.R.M. Gopala Krishnan. Tiny ₹1 lakh capital, but aimed big – Indian-owned bank when Brits ruled finance. Nationalized in 1969, merged Allahabad Bank in 2020. Now 6,000 branches, Chennai HQ. Survived pandemics, bad loans – tough old bird.
How They Make Money?
Classic bank stuff. Retail loans (home, car, personal), corporate/wholesale, treasury. Deposits fund cheap loans, NIM at 2.87%. Add cards, insurance, MSME help. Digital push – apps, ATMs everywhere. Government owns 83%, so stable but policy-tied. Like your corner shop, but scaled up for crores.
Price Predictions – Dream or Real?
Analysts guess 2026 around ₹1,168. By 2030? Could hit ₹4,700 if growth holds. Stretch to 2035, maybe double that on 15% CAGR – say ₹10,000? Pure speculation, economy-dependent. 2040? Wild west, ₹20,000+ if PSUs boom. But downturns happen – remember 2020 crash? I'm no guru, but at this P/E, upside looks tasty if NPAs stay low.