The shares of NHPC jumped more than 5% as the offer for sale (OFS) through which the government is selling up to 6% stake in the company opens for retail investors today, after an overwhelming response from non-retail investors on the first day of subscription.

The government on Tuesday decided to exercise the green shoe option in the 6% stake sale in NHPC after the OFS was oversubscribed 3.47 times on the first day. “Offer for Sale in NHPC Limited received enthusiastic response from investors and was oversubscribed 3.47 times on the first day. Allocation will be on a price priority basis. The government has decided to exercise the entire green shoe option. Retail investors and employees get to bid on 3rd June 2026,” Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) Secretary Arunish Chawla said in a post on X.

Also Read | NHPC OFS subscribed nearly 3.5 times on Day 1, Govt to exercise green shoe option

All about NHPC’s OFS

NHPC announced on Monday that the government aims to sell 3% of the company’s total paid-up equity capital as part of the base offer, along with an oversubscription option to sell an additional 30 crore shares, taking the total potential offer size to 60.27 crore shares or 6% equity. At the floor price of Rs 71 per share, this would be worth more than Rs 4,279 crore.The shares of NHPC had crashed over 6% on Tuesday as the OFS floor price of Rs 71 per share implied a discount of nearly 8% to Monday’s closing price, weighing on investor sentiment. However, the strong interest from institutional investors may have boosted confidence.

The government owned more than 67% stake in the PSU company as of March 31, 2026. The share sale by its promoter is being conducted through a separate window mechanism on BSE and the National Stock Exchange in accordance with the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s OFS guidelines.
NHPC’s OFS comes days after the government divested some of its stake in state-run miner Coal India through an offer for sale at a floor price of Rs 412 per share. The government owned more than 63% stake in the PSU company as on March 31, 2026.

Also Read | NHPC shares tumble 5% as govt’s OFS worth up to Rs 4,300 crore opens at 8% discount. Check details

NHPC share price

NHPC shares have fallen around 7% in one week and 9% in one month. The stock is down more than 5% in 2026 so far. In the longer term, the shares of the PSU have fallen 12% in one year, but gained more than 74% in three years and 190% in five years.The company currently has a market capitalisation of more than Rs 75,709 crore. The stock’s P/E ratio stands at 17.

What lies ahead for NHPC shares?

For a long term, dividend oriented investor comfortable with a low yield utility, the entry at a discount is attractive, said Abhinav Tiwari, Research Analyst at Bonanza. NHPC’s earnings can be lumpy and seasonal (hydro depends on water flows), capex is heavy and project timelines often slip, he added.

“The stock does not appear particularly cheap on current valuations. However, the Rs. 71 level provides a reasonable margin of safety, as it is close to the stock’s 52-week low and limits downside risk relative to the current market price. Although its expanding project pipeline and capacity additions are positive long term drivers, current valuations already factor in a strong recovery. Returns will depend heavily on successful execution and improvement in operational profitability,” the analyst further said.

Technical view on NHPC

Virat Jagad, Senior Technical Research Analyst at Bonanza, said the NHPC’s recent sharp decline on exceptionally high volumes suggests aggressive selling activity and a breakdown of short-term support near Rs 78. He placed the immediate support near Rs 72–73, while resistance is seen around Rs 78–80.

“A sustained move above Rs 80 would be required to improve the technical outlook and open the possibility of a recovery towards Rs 84–86,” he added.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

The Bank of England is encouraging people to choose their favourites

The British public is being asked to pick their favourite mammals, birds, amphibians, insects and fish to appear on future banknotes. A buff-tailed bumblebee, European hedgehog and barn owl are among the creatures that could feature under plans by the Bank of England.

The central bank is working with a panel of wildlife experts from across the UK on the new design, which follows a public consultation last year. The shortlisted critters are all native to the UK and could be used on £5, £10, £20 and £50 notes.

“We are keen to hear your views, which will be an important consideration in making our final decision on the design,” the Bank of England said.

“The denominations (£5, £10, £20, £50) will need to be easy to tell apart. It is important that there are four distinct animals across all four denominations and that they represent different environments from across the UK.”

The list has been grouped into three categories, which cover a variety of species and environments. Members of the public can choose up to two animals from each category.

The mammals

• bottlenose dolphin
• brown hare
• European hedgehog
• grey seal
• pine martin
• red fox

The birds

• Atlantic puffin
• barn owl
• common kingfisher
• Eurasian curlew
• great spotted woodpecker
• white-tailed eagle

The amphibians, insects and fish

• Atlantic salmon
• basking shark
• buff-tailed bumblebee
• common frog
• Emperor dragonfly
• marsh fritillary butterfly

The bank said it may not necessarily choose the four animals that receive the highest number of responses. Andrew Bailey, the bank’s governor, will make the final decision while “taking into account” the public’s feedback.

“I very much hope the public will enjoy engaging in our consultation to choose the animals to feature on our next series of banknotes,” said Victoria Cleland, the bank’s chief cashier.

“The shortlisted animals demonstrate the rich variety of wildlife we have to celebrate in the UK.”

It will be a number of years before the next series of notes is launched. It is a detailed, multi-year process to design, test and print the notes, ensuring they are high-quality, resilient, accessible and incorporate the latest anti-counterfeiting technology.

The next series will still include a portrait of the monarch. Representation of the Home Nations will also be an important feature in the design, the Bank of England said. Mackerel, red squirrels, otters and osprey already feature on Royal Bank of Scotland banknotes.

The outcome will be announced at the end of 2026.

The public can vote via the consultation form, by emailing enquiries@bankofengland.co.uk or writing to Banknote Imagery Consultation, Notes Directorate, Bank of England, Threadneedle Street, London, EC2R 8AH.

Shares of IndusInd Bank dropped over 3% on Wednesday after a fresh whistleblower complaint was sent to the Prime Minister’s Office and several regulators, including the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), seeking an investigation into alleged insider trading, governance failures, and shortcomings in forensic and audit reviews at the private lender.

The complaint, a copy of which was seen by The Economic Times, was also sent to the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO), National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA) and other agencies. The shares of the private lender tumbled to Rs 884.05 apiece on Wednesday morning after the report.

The whistleblower alleged insider trading by Samir Agarwal, former zonal head of eastern India at IndusInd Bank, along with manipulation of financial records, evergreening of microfinance loans, suppression of audit findings, and attempts by senior management and board members to conceal irregularities. It was alleged that Agarwal generated gains of around Rs 46 crore via share transactions worth nearly Rs 815 crore by family members and related entities using confidential information just before key developments became public.

IndusInd Bank rejects whistleblower’s claims

Responding to The Economic Times’ queries, IndusInd Bank said that it “rejects the assertions” made by the whistleblower, adding that all concerns have been “duly examined” and “appropriate actions” taken in line with internal policies and regulatory requirements. It said it had proactively reported certain matters to authorities and, with the matter under review, it would not comment further.

This comes after the bank last year disclosed issues related to the accounting of internal derivative trades, sending the stock to a tailspin and resulting in several managerial exits including then CEO Sumant Kathpalia.

IndusInd Bank share price

IndusInd Bank shares have fallen around 5% in one week and more than 3% in one week. The stock has gained around 11% in one month, but declined over 31% in three years and 12% in five years.

The private bank currently has a market capitalisation of nearly Rs 68,947 crore. The stock’s P/E ratio stands at around 80x.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

Shares of FMCG major ITC dropped nearly 3% to hit a fresh record low on Wednesday, with Motilal Oswal Financial Services remaining cautious on the stock after steep tax hikes on cigarettes.

ITC shares dropped to a fresh 52-week low of Rs 275.50 apiece on NSE in the morning trading hours of Wednesday. The stock is currently among the top losers on Sensex and Nifty, following the IT stocks, which crashed up to 7%.

Why are ITC shares falling today?

Motilal Oswal Financial Services, in its latest note, highlighted that the cigarette industry is witnessing one of its most disruptive regulatory resets after the implementation of GST 2.0, effective from February 1, 2026. The revised taxation framework has resulted in around 60-65% surge in cigarette taxes for ITC, implying the need for around 35% hike in MRPs (at historical mix), it further said, adding that this was the steepest hike seen historically and a sharp departure from the largely stable tax regime maintained during 2018-25.

The domestic brokerage highlighted that the transition has also been unusual due to the one-month gap between the announcement (January 1) and the implementation (February 1), compared to the typical immediate or near-immediate execution seen historically. To tackle the high taxes, ITC has adopted a calibrated and phased price hike strategy instead of taking an upfront full tax pass-through, with the objective of limiting the shift toward illicit cigarette markets and retaining market share among legal players, it added.

Motilal believes the current phase can be viewed in two stages. The first stage represents a transitionary adjustment period wherein ITC is gradually taking price increases to eventually reach tax-neutral levels. The second stage, according to the brokerage, is likely to emerge once the full tax increase is absorbed into retail prices and the competitive equilibrium between legal and illicit trade stabilises.

How will tax hikes impact ITC’s earnings?

“We expect volatility in cigarette volumes and EBIT to moderate from the initial transitionary phase. In this normalized phase, ITC’s product portfolio, innovation pipeline, and premiumization strategy will play a critical role in rebuilding the growth momentum and defending its market positioning. Given the MRP revisions are still underway, the outlook for ITC’s cigarette business remains uncertain. We do not rule out any possibility for further earnings cuts. That said, the extent of consumer acceptance for revised prices will be a key monitorable. We model 15% revenue decline and 19% dip in EBIT in the cigarette business in FY27,” the domestic brokerage said.

Meanwhile, ITC’s non-cigarette business continues to exhibit structural improvement, according to Motilal, which sees FMCG as a key growth driver. “Positive catalysts such as improving FMCG performance and paperboard margin normalization are overshadowed by the cigarette earnings headwind stemming from illicit competition, constrained pricing flexibility, and the inevitable volume-versus-margin trade-off that defines ITC’s near-term trajectory,” it added.

Also read: Cigarette business weakness drags ITC margins in March quarter

Tax hikes may weigh on ITC’s near-term volume

The domestic brokerage highlighted that recent tax hikes could weigh on ITC’s near-term volume, keeping growth subdued. It expects cigarette volume to decline 10% in FY27 and to remain flat in FY28. On the EBIT front, the high price differential after the tax increase constrains pricing flexibility, making it challenging to drive earnings growth, it added.
“We model 15% revenue decline and 19% dip in EBIT in the cigarette business for FY27. We model a negative EBIT CAGR of ~8% for the cigarette segment over FY26-28E,” Motilal said, adding that competitive pressure from illicit cigarettes will weigh on the formal cigarette industry.

ITC share price

The domestic brokerage has a ‘Neutra;’ rating for the shares of ITC, with a target price of Rs 300 apiece, implying an upside potential of nearly 6% from the stock’s previous closing price of Rs 283.25 apiece on NSE.
ITC shares have fallen more than 5% in one week, 12% in one month and around 24% so far in 2026. The stock is down more than 33% in one year. In the longer term, ITC shares fell more than 37% in three years but gained over 32% in five years.
Also read: Why stock market is crashing today?

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

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