Veteran investor Rekha Jhunjhunwala sold over 1.07 crore Canara Bank shares during the April–June quarter, reducing her stake from 1.54% to 1.42%, according to the lender's latest shareholding data. As reported by The Economic Times, she held 12.92 crore shares representing 1.42% stake at the end of Q1 FY27, compared to 13.99 crore shares or 1.54% stake held at the end of Q4 FY26. The exact price at which she sold the shares and returns from the transaction remain undetermined.
The stake sale comes amid an 18% decline in Canara Bank's stock price in 2026, with shares falling over 4% in one month after delivering strong returns of 93% over three years and 316% in five years. According to The Economic Times, shares of the state-owned lender rose only 2% in the three months ended June 30, 2026. The bank's stock tumbled around 3% to trade at around ₹126 apiece on NSE on Tuesday afternoon.
The sale follows the bullish stance of Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, who first acquired a stake in the bank as part of his optimistic view on public sector banks. As reported by The Economic Times, Jhunjhunwala believed these lenders were deeply undervalued and poised to benefit from cyclical recovery in credit growth and improving asset quality. After his death in 2022, his wife Rekha Jhunjhunwala inherited his valuable stock portfolio, publicly holding 26 stocks with a net worth of over ₹51,412 crore, according to Trendlyne citing latest corporate shareholdings.
Canara Bank reported a consolidated net profit of ₹4,506 crore for the January-March quarter of FY26, marking a 10% year-over-year fall from ₹5,002 crore in the year-ago period, as reported by The Economic Times. The PSU lender's net interest income (NII) in Q4 FY26 was up 4% to ₹9,808 crore versus ₹9,442 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous financial year. As of March 31, 2026, the bank operated 10,097 branches including 3,200 rural, 3,025 semi-urban, 1,987 urban and 1,885 metro branches, along with 11,306 ATMs and recyclers.
