LIC shares soar 6% on plans to enter health insurance market

Shares of state-owned insurance giant Life Insurance Corp soared 6% in intraday trade on Friday on reports that the company is planning to enter the health insurance market.

The stock is currently trading at Rs 1,046 on NSE, up 4.55% over its previous close. The shares hit an intraday high of Rs 1,064 before retreating a bit.

According to news reports, the state-owned insurer is planning to acquire one of the standalone health insurance companies in India to capture the growing market.

LIC is a market leader in the Indian life insurance business with an overall market share of 58.87% in the first year premium income, as of March 2024.

The company's assets under management (AUM) stand currently at Rs 51.21 lakh crore at the end of March quarter.

"We intend to focus our strategic interventions to maximize our market share across categories. At the same time, our sharp focus on various parameters which create superior value for all stakeholders shall continue, as demonstrated," Mohanty had said earlier.

In the recent fourth quarter, LIC reported a net profit of Rs 13,782 crore, which was up by 4.5% year-on-year (YOY). The total premium income for FY24 stood at Rs 4.75 lakh crore and the total individual business premium for the same period increased to Rs 3.03 lakh crore.

The Value of New Business (VNB) registered a growth of 5% YOY to Rs 9,583 crore for the year ended March 2024 and the net VNB margin increased 60 bps to 16.80.

(Disclaimer: The views expressed by experts are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of The Economic Times)