HDFC Life shares drop 5% after Q2 results: Should you buy, sell or hold?

The shares of HDFC Life Insurance Company dropped around 5 percent to hit an intraday low of Rs 726 apiece on October 16 after the company released its results for the July-September quarter of the financial year 2026.

The company released its results for Q2 FY26 in the post market hours of October 15. The stock later recovered some losses and was trading over 2 percent lower at Rs 743.40, as seen at 1.50 pm on Thursday.

HDFC Life Q2 results:

HDFC Life Insurance Company reported a 3 percent year-on-year increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 448 crore for the quarter ended September 2025, as against the Rs 435 crore net profit reported in the same period last year.

The insurer's total premium income rose 15 percent year-on-year to Rs 34,162 crore, driven by growth across both new business and renewal segments. New business premium grew 12 percent to Rs 16,222 crore, while renewal premium surged 18 percent to Rs 17,940 crore. HDFC Life's Assets Under Management (AUM) stood at Rs 5 lakh crore during the quarter under review, rising 11 percent year-on-year to Rs 3,59,999 crore.

Should you buy, sell or hold?

Jefferies kept a 'Buy' call on the stock, with a target price of Rs 930 per share. This implies an upside potential of more than 22 percent over the stock's previous closing price. The brokerage said that Q2 VNB rose 8 percent YoY, slightly ahead of estimates with better margin.

Growth expected to improve from December quarter as base normalizes, buy margins will likely dip slightly in H2FY26 due to GST impact before normalising from FY27.

CLSA kept an 'Outperform' call on the stock, with a target price of Rs 910 per share. This implies an upside potential of nearly 20 percent from the stock’s previous closing price.

PL Capital also held a 'Buy' call on the stock, with a target price of Rs 900 per share. This implies an upside potential of more than 18 percent from the stock's previous closing price. The domestic brokerage expects FY26E margin to trend lower at 24 percent. However strong growth in retail protection volume and improved margin profile in ULIP is likely to offset some of the drag. "While we have trimmed our VNB margin estimates for FY26/FY27E, we remain confident of delivery on growth," it added.

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