RBL Bank: Time for a test — tracking the stock rally

Shares of RBL Bank fell over four percent from the previous close on the BSE on Tuesday. The stock hasn’t done well over the last few trading sessions. It has come off quite a bit and is now resting at a trend line.

The high for RBL Bank shares was on January 6, 2023, when it reached nearly Rs 190 and on Monday it closed at Rs 167 almost exactly at the rising trend line from the low of Rs 74 on June 24, 2022.

Since the low, the shares have been on a rising trend line with multiple touch points. It would be noteworthy to see where the stock will break below the level of bounce back. A strong closing above Rs 167 or below it will confirm the trend for the stock.

Brokerage firm JP Morgan has downgraded the shares of RBL Bank to 'underweight' from 'neutral' and the target price has been raised to Rs 150 from Rs 125. According to the brokerage firm, the elevated opex levels could also likely keep Return on Equity which is the rate of return that the owners of common stock of a company receive on their shareholdings in single digits over next two years.

Loan growth for the bank in the October-December quarter rose 15 percent from the corresponding period a year ago which is the highest in 12 quarters broad based across wholesale and retail segments.

The bank's gross non-performing assets increased marginally by 0.5 percent at Rs 2,468.7 crore in the third quarter of this fiscal, from the previous quarter's Rs 2,456.6 crore. The gross NPA percent came in at 3.6 percent, down by 19 basis points from the previous quarter.

However, gross and net slippages for the bank in the quarter continued to remain elevated at 3.9 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively, partly driven by slippages in restructuring back, added JP Morgan.