Shares of HDFC Life Insurance fell in early trade on Friday, a day after the private insurer reported its fourth-quarter results showing a Value of New Business (VNB) margin miss, with the stock down 3.37 per cent to ₹610.20 on the NSE at 10.05 am, touching an intraday low of ₹606.20.

The stock opened at ₹618.95 against a previous close of ₹631.50 and has traded 30.14 lakh shares so far, with total traded value at ₹184 crore. The stock’s year-to-date decline has now widened to 18.69 per cent, significantly underperforming the Nifty 50’s 7.24 per cent fall in the same period. It is also trading well below its 52-week high of ₹820.75 hit in June 2025, though above its recent 52-week low of ₹555.10 touched on April 2.

Buy orders slightly outnumber sell orders at 57.94 per cent versus 42.06 per cent, suggesting some dip-buying interest at lower levels.

Brokerages have trimmed estimates but broadly maintained their constructive outlook. Motilal Oswal reiterated a Buy rating with a revised target price of ₹760, cutting VNB margin estimates by 150 basis points for FY27, citing the 4QFY26 margin performance. JM Financial maintained an Add rating, raising its target modestly to ₹670 from ₹644, noting the stock trades at 1.8x and 1.6x March 2027 and March 2028 embedded value per share respectively — substantially below historical averages.

HDFC Life reported a 4QFY26 VNB margin of 24 per cent, below analyst estimates of around 24.8 per cent, weighed down by the GST transition impact of approximately 110 basis points and higher fixed cost absorption. For the full year FY26, APE grew 8 per cent to ₹16,640 crore while VNB grew just 2 per cent to ₹4,030 crore. The company’s Embedded Value stood at ₹62140 crore, up 12 per cent year-on-year. The board has also recommended a final dividend of ₹2.10 per share, with a record date of June 19, 2026.

Management has guided for VNB growth to outpace APE growth in FY27, with the GST impact expected to stabilise by the first half of the year.

Published on April 17, 2026