LIC Share Price Rises After Q1 Net Profit Jumps 23%; Should You Buy or Sell? See Motilal Oswal's Target Price

Shares of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) traded higher on Friday, August 7, after the state-owned insurance giant reported a robust set of earnings for the June quarter (Q1 FY27). Strong growth in profit, healthy premium collections and a sharp improvement in the profitability of new business lifted investor sentiment, helping the stock remain in positive territory during the session.

LIC Share Price Today on NSE After Strong Q1 Performance

LIC shares were trading at Rs 393.00 on the NSE at around 11:50 AM, up 1.41%, or Rs 5.45, from the previous close. The stock opened at Rs 393.45, touched an intraday high of Rs 396.85, and slipped to a low of Rs 391.10 before recovering.

The gains came after investors reacted positively to the insurer's June-quarter earnings, particularly the sharp improvement in profitability from newly sold insurance policies and the company's continued dominance in India's life insurance market.

LIC Q1 Results FY27: Profit Rises 23% on Higher Premium Collections

LIC reported a standalone net profit of Rs 13,492 crore for the April-June quarter, marking a 23% year-on-year increase from Rs 10,986 crore in the corresponding period last year.

The insurer's net premium income also increased 7% to Rs 1.27 lakh crore, supported by growth across both individual and group insurance businesses. Premium income from individual policies rose 6% to Rs 75,416 crore, while premium from group insurance policies grew 9% to Rs 51,834 crore.

LIC also sold 31.02 lakh individual policies during the quarter, compared with 30.4 lakh policies a year earlier, indicating steady customer demand despite increasing competition from private insurers.

LIC Continues to Dominate India's Life Insurance Market

The June-quarter performance also highlighted LIC's continued leadership in the domestic life insurance sector. According to the company, it accounted for 60.10% of India's first-year premium income during the quarter. Its market share stood at 38.89% in the individual insurance segment and an impressive 70.90% in the group insurance business, reflecting the insurer's strong institutional presence and extensive distribution network.

Higher-Margin Insurance Products Drive Strong Growth in LIC's New Business Profit

One of the biggest positives in LIC's quarterly performance was the sharp improvement in the profitability of new policies. The insurer's Value of New Business (VNB), which estimates the future profit expected from newly sold insurance policies, jumped 61% year-on-year to Rs 3,136 crore.

Its VNB margin improved significantly to 22.90%, compared with 15.40% in the year-ago quarter. This indicates that LIC is earning considerably higher profits from every new policy it sells, a metric that investors closely monitor while evaluating insurance companies.

The improvement was largely driven by a higher contribution from non-participating insurance products, whose share increased to 32.49% of individual business from 30.34% a year ago. These products generally carry better profit margins because insurers are not required to share investment gains with policyholders.

Should You Buy LIC Stock? Check Motilal Oswal's Recommendation & Target Price

Following the strong quarterly performance, brokerage firm Motilal Oswal reiterated its positive view on the stock. "We have increased our VNB margin estimates for FY27/28 considering the strong performance witnessed in 1QFY27 and rising contribution of non-par. We expect operating RoEV in the range of 11.5-12%. Reiterate BUY with a revised TP of INR480 (premised on 0.6x FY28E EV)," said Motilal Oswal.

The brokerage believes LIC's improving product mix, rising profitability from new business and sustained market leadership strengthen its long-term growth outlook.

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