The National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) delivered robust second quarter results with consolidated profit after tax surging 23% year-on-year to ₹2,578 crore in Q2FY27, compared with ₹2,098 crore in Q2FY26. However, quarter-on-quarter, net profit declined 17.4% from the previous quarter's performance. The exchange's consolidated revenue from transaction charges rose 9% to ₹3,035 crore, driven by higher trading volumes in cash market and equity options segments. Consolidated total income increased 9.5% YoY to ₹4,554 crore, while earnings per share (EPS) on a non-annualised basis increased to ₹10.41 compared with ₹8.48 in Q2FY26. According to The Hindu BusinessLine, revenue from operations grew 10.6% year-on-year to ₹4,066.8 crore in Q2FY27, though it declined nearly 10.8% sequentially. Total expenditure declined 51% YoY to ₹1,161 crore in Q2 FY27 from ₹2,354 crore in the corresponding quarter last year, partly due to a ₹1,297 crore SEBI settlement provision recognised in the year-ago quarter. Excluding this provision, expenses would have increased 10% year-on-year, as per management during the post-earnings call.
The National Stock Exchange has announced comprehensive changes to its trading framework, with revised closing auction session and extended derivatives trading hours taking effect from December 7, 2026. According to The Economic Times, the exchange issued two separate circulars on November 6, following the Securities and Exchange Board of India's (SEBI) October 15 review of the Closing Auction Session, market timings and settlement methodology for derivatives contracts. The Closing Auction Session will now operate from 3:30 pm to 3:40 pm on all trading days, with a structured schedule including reference price calculation, order entry periods, and final trade confirmation. Stock derivatives trading will continue until 3:45 pm on all trading days, while index derivatives will continue until 3:45 pm on regular trading days, with expiry day contracts stopping at 3:30 pm. The exchange has also revised the methodology for determining closing prices using volume-weighted average price (VWAP) and updated settlement price calculations for expiring contracts. Between 3:31 pm and 3:36 pm, members will be allowed to enter, modify and cancel both market and limit orders, while from 3:36 pm until 3:40 pm, only limit orders will be permitted. Order matching and trade confirmation will take place between 3:40 pm and 3:45 pm, followed by a transition period until 3:50 pm, with the post-close session running from 3:50 pm to 4 pm. The CAS duration will be shortened to 10 minutes with the reference price identified using VWAP of trades executed between 3:15 pm and 3:30 pm, and the applicable price band during CAS will be +/-3% from the reference price.
NSE's commodity derivatives segment has experienced exceptional growth with commodity options premium turnover jumping nearly 10-fold to around ₹8,300 crore in October 2026 from ₹880 crore in January 2026. According to CNBC TV18, Sriram Krishnan, Chief Business Development Officer at NSE, said the exchange is expanding its product portfolio and strengthening its commodity derivatives business, with a focus on Electronic Gold Receipts (EGR), which were launched in May 2026. The exchange expects activity on the platform to pick up, particularly during the festive season, as investors look for alternatives to physical gold. NSE aims to use the EGR platform, backed by domestically recycled gold, to contribute towards reducing India's gold imports. The exchange is looking to build on this momentum by introducing new products and strengthening its presence in the commodity derivatives segment.
Under the revised framework, futures price bands for stock and index futures will be reset at 3:30 pm between 3:30 pm and 3:45 pm, with the price bands set at 3% above or below their respective reference prices. As per The Economic Times, the reference price will be based on the VWAP of trades in the respective futures contracts between 3:15 pm and 3:30 pm. If no trades take place during this period, the last traded price of the contract during the day will be used. For index futures, the theoretical price will be based on the latest available underlying index value at 3:30 pm, while for stock futures, the theoretical price will be based on the underlying stock's cash-market price at 3:30 pm. The exchange clarified that the reference prices for the cash and futures segments will be calculated independently and may differ, even though the applicable price bands will be aligned at 3%. Outstanding orders outside the revised price bands will be cancelled, though the application of revised price bands and cancellation of such orders would take effect sequentially and not necessarily instantaneously at 3:30 pm.
In a significant strategic move, NSE's board approved the divestment of up to 40% stake in its wholly-owned subsidiary, National Coal Exchange of India Limited, through a secondary sale of equity shares during its board meeting on Tuesday, November 3. The decision marks a step towards bringing down NSE's ownership in the coal exchange subsidiary, which is currently fully owned by the exchange. As per The Economic Times, NSE will dilute a portion of its ownership in the subsidiary following the proposed divestment. The company has not yet disclosed the proposed transaction's valuation, potential buyers or the timeline for completing the stake sale. Further disclosures under Regulation 30 of the SEBI Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements (LODR) Regulations, 2015, will be made once the terms of the proposed transaction are finalised or any other disclosable event occurs.
NSE shares were trading at ₹1,803.80 on the NSE at 10:47 am following the strong quarterly results, reflecting positive market sentiment. The stock, which had a market capitalisation of ₹4,46,985 crore, is expected to remain in focus as investors assess the company's performance. Multiple brokerages have maintained bullish ratings with target prices ranging from ₹2,050 to ₹2,200. Kotak Institutional Equities initiated coverage with a Buy rating and target price of ₹2,200, highlighting NSE's dominant position with 93% share in the cash equity market and nearly 65% share in index options premium turnover. JP Morgan maintained its Overweight rating with a target price of ₹2,130, while Macquarie maintained its Outperform rating with a target price of ₹1,975. Emkay Global maintained its Buy rating with a target price of ₹2,050, expecting CAS amendments effective December 2026 to boost cash market participation and trading volumes.
