Niva Bupa Health Insurance Company shares rallied more than 10% in early trade on Monday following the company's strong quarterly results. According to reports from The Hindu BusinessLine, the stock traded at ₹85.18 on the NSE at 10:14 am, hitting a high of ₹89.77 from the previous close of ₹81.29. The significant rally reflects investor confidence in the company's robust financial performance and operational improvements.
The company delivered impressive financial results with net profit jumping 67% year-on-year to ₹345 crore for the March quarter, compared with ₹206 crore in the corresponding period last year. As reported by The Hindu BusinessLine, total income during the quarter rose to ₹2,078 crore from ₹1,565 crore a year ago, while total expenses increased to ₹1,795 crore from ₹1,470 crore. The strong profit growth was aided by robust operational metrics and improved business fundamentals.
Gross written premium grew strongly to ₹2,880 crore in Q4FY26 from ₹2,079 crore in the year-ago quarter, reflecting continued momentum in policy sales and market share gains. According to the company's results, the combined insurance service ratio (CISR) improved 160 basis points to 101.4% despite higher retail and group loss ratios. The operating expenses ratio declined sharply to 36.5% from 39.2% in FY25, demonstrating effective cost management.
The company announced the elevation of Ankur Kharbanda, currently executive director and chief business officer, to the role of executive director and deputy chief executive officer with effect from May 8, 2026. As reported by The Hindu BusinessLine, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Krishnan Ramachandran attributed the company's market share gains and improved claim settlement ratio to customer trust and focus on delivering superior health insurance experiences. Management is targeting a CISR of 99% by FY29 through tighter cost control measures.
Morgan Stanley maintained its equal-weight rating on the stock and raised the target price to ₹91 from ₹84. According to the brokerage's analysis reported by The Hindu BusinessLine, the company reported a strong IFRS profit beat driven by lower operating expenses and improvement in the combined insurance service ratio. However, recent analysis reveals significant valuation concerns, with the stock trading at ₹81.27 commanding a market capitalisation of ₹14,745 crores. The price-to-book ratio of 3.95x implies investors are paying nearly four times the accounting book value for each share, while the EV/EBITDA multiple of 1,483.48x appears extraordinarily elevated given the company's minimal EBITDA generation relative to enterprise value.
