Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), India’s largest domestic institutional investor, has seen the value of its portfolio rise by nearly Rs 1.8 trillion as the market staged a recovery from its April 2025 lows.
From Rs 13.65 trillion as on April 7, 2025, when the markets hit their recent low, the value of LIC’s well-diversified 206-stock portfolio has risen to Rs 15.43 trillion as on May 16, 2025, marking Rs 1.78 trillion mark-to-market gains.
The public sector insurer’s stake in 203 companies was valued at Rs 16.63 trillion as on September 30, 2024, data shows.
Meanwhile, the benchmark indices, Nifty 50 and BSE Sensex, have rallied 13 per cent from their lows touched on April 7, 2025.
The gain calculation in LIC’s portfolio compares changes in value between April 7, 2025 and May 16, 2025 in NSE 500 stocks where LIC holds over 1 per cent stake, according to the shareholding pattern data on March 31, 2025.
RIL, ITC among key gainers
LIC’s top equity holding in terms of value, Reliance Industries (RIL), has been one of the biggest contributors to its portfolio, with the stock’s 25 per cent surge adding Rs 26,515 crore in value.
ITC, in which LIC had the highest holding in percentage terms, has seen Rs 5,759 crore value addition.
LIC held 15.52 per cent stake in the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) company at the end of the March 2025 quarter.
A significant part of the appreciation came from over 25 per cent rally in share prices of Mahindra & Mahindra (Rs 5,801 crore), Adani Ports and Economic Zone (Rs 5,192 crore), Tech Mahindra (Rs 3,267 crore), Jio Financial Services (Rs 2,472 crore), Hindustan Aeronautics (Rs 2,036 crore), Tata Motors (Rs 1,750 crore) and Bharat Electronics (Rs 1,268 crore).
These stocks accounted for 12 per cent of LIC’s total value appreciation.
According to G Chokkalingam, founder and head of research at Equinomics Research, investor focus on largecap stocks in the last few weeks was driven by the need for safety amid turbulent times.
This, he believes, could change soon.
“In the medium term, beyond one or two quarters, there is a possibility of the largecap segment coming under pressure.
"With substantial moderation in trade war between the US and China and geopolitical tensions abating, investors may choose to allocate more to the small and midcap segments,” he said.
Meanwhile, the top 10 public sector undertakings (PSUs) contributed Rs 14,989 crore in this portfolio value surge.
Defence sector stocks Hindustan Aeronautics, Bharat Electronics, Bharat Dynamics and Cochin Shipyard have seen their market value appreciate by 28-52 per cent between April 7 and May 16, data shows.
Upside triggers
At a broader level, rebound in the Indian equity markets has been led by positive signals from the US regarding a potential trade agreement with India amid de-escalation of geopolitical conflict with Pakistan.
This brought back foreign institutional investor (FII) flows to Indian shores.
FIIs, who were sellers in the first three months of 2025, had offloaded equity worth Rs 1.16 trillion during this period.
They turned buyers in April with purchases worth Rs 4,243 crore.
This change in FII strategy accelerated in May with a big buying of Rs 27,451 crore through May 16.
“At 23x one-year forward earnings, Nifty is not cheap. Earnings growth has disappointed, and the economy is seeing a cyclical slowdown.
"Given that the economy has a chance of accelerating and we might enter an earnings upgrade cycle next year, investment in equities merits caution,” said R Venkataraman, managing director at IIFL Capital.
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