LIC’s ‘Mega Shopping’ list
The quarter of September 2025 was very turbulent in the Indian stock market. When foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were pulling out their money from the Indian market and creating selling pressure, the country’s largest state-owned insurance company, Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), acted as a stabilizing force in the market. LIC bought heavily in domestic equities amid this weak environment. This step not only proved helpful in handling the market, but it also shows the confidence of LIC. According to the latest data, LIC has made a net investment of about Rs 21,700 crore in shares in this quarter.
Major reshuffle in portfolio
LIC has made significant changes in its investment portfolio in the September quarter. As per available information, the insurance giant has increased its stake in 76 listed companies, which indicates that LIC is quite confident about the future of these companies. Along with this, 13 new shares have also been included in its portfolio for the first time, on which LIC has made a new bet.
On the other hand, LIC has also reduced its stake in 81 companies. Apart from this, the name of LIC is no longer visible from the shareholding pattern of 31 companies. However, it is not entirely clear whether LIC has sold its entire stake in these companies, or whether its stake has fallen below the 1 percent limit that is required to be disclosed.
LIC’s confidence on these shares increased
If we look at the list of purchases of LIC, it becomes clear that its inclination has increased towards public sector banks and IT sector. In this quarter, LIC has made the biggest purchase in State Bank of India (SBI). The insurance company purchased 6.42 crore additional shares of SBI, the total value of which is approximately Rs 5,599 crore.
After this, it has strengthened its stake in pharma sector giant Sun Pharmaceuticals by increasing investment by Rs 3,226 crore and in IT company HCL Technologies by increasing investment by Rs 2,939 crore.
Other major companies favored by LIC include Pidilite Industries (₹2,234 crore), Coal India (₹2,119 crore), NTPC (₹1,992 crore), Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles (₹1,904 crore), Cipla (₹1,686 crore) and Tata Consultancy Services (₹1,654 crore).
Distance maintained from big private banks
While on one hand LIC made purchases in selected shares, on the other hand it reduced its stake in some big private banks and financial institutions. In the September quarter, LIC has made the maximum sale in HDFC Bank. The insurance company has reduced its holding in HDFC Bank by Rs 3,130 crore. After this comes ICICI Bank, from where stake worth Rs 2,338 crore was sold. Other big names in which LIC has reduced its stake include Larsen & Toubro (₹2,243 crore), Bharti Airtel (₹2,205 crore), Mahindra & Mahindra (₹2,149 crore), Maruti Suzuki (₹2,052 crore) and Kotak Mahindra Bank (₹1,994 crore).
These are the ‘new stars’ of LIC
Apart from increasing and decreasing stake, LIC has given place to 13 new companies in its portfolio. The biggest name among these new investments is that of BSE Limited. LIC bought 2.28 crore shares of BSE, worth Rs 4,637 crore. Apart from this, new investment of Rs 2,653 crore has been made in Yes Bank and Rs 2,424 crore in ABB India. Other newly added stocks include Varun Beverages (₹1,982 crore), Shriram Finance (₹1,492 crore) and Persistent Systems (₹819 crore).