HDFC trims initial gains, settles in red

Shares of HDFC pared initial gains and settled in the negative territory even as the mortgage lender posted around 13 per cent rise in consolidated net profit for the quarter ended December.
On BSE, the stock ended the day at Rs 1,368.90, down 0.13 per cent from previous close. Intra-day, it touched a high of Rs 1,378.
The scrip settled at Rs 1,371.45 on NSE, down 0.16 per cent from previous close. It had touched a high of Rs 1,379.40 in the intra-day trade.
On the volume front, over 25 lakh shares of the company were traded on bourses.
The mortgage lender today reported a 12.80 per cent rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 2,728.66 crore for the third quarter ended December. The profit for October-December of 2015-16 stood at Rs 2,419 crore.

The asset quality of the lender came under strain during the quarter, with gross NPA rising to 0.81 per cent (Rs 2,341 crore in absolute terms) compared with 0.72 per cent in the year-ago period.

The non-performing loans of the individual portfolio stood at 0.65 per cent while that of the non-individual portfolio read 1.16 per cent.
"HDFC Ltd's third quarter results were broadly in line with expectations. Loan growth was marginally better than expected on the back up higher growth from the non individual loans. GNPAs saw a marginal rise and consequently there was rise in provisions," Angel Broking said in a report.

"With lending rates now becoming attractive, the individual loan book should see pickup in demand in the coming quarters. Though the fundamentals remain strong for the company, owing to rich valuations the stock might remain range bound in the near term," it added.