Mumbai: Foreign investors continued to pare exposure to financials in the first half of May, pulling out ₹17,960 crore from the sector, nearly 47% of the overall foreign outflows during the period, amid concerns over tighter banking margins and India’s lower appeal compared to other emerging markets.

“Banks are facing headwinds from higher bond yields, which could impact treasury income, while implementation of Expected Credit Loss (ECL) norms, requiring higher provisioning, is expected to keep return ratios volatile in the near term,” said Pankaj Pandey, head of retail research at ICICI Securities.

Between January and April, overseas investors dumped more than ₹91,000 crore worth of financials, a sector with the highest foreign ownership in India.

The Bank Nifty has fallen nearly 7% over the past month, compared with a 4% decline in the benchmark Nifty.

“The valuations in the banking space remain reasonable, and the foreign outflows in the sector are due to these investors wanting to cut exposure to India as a whole, as they find better bets in the rest of the emerging markets,” said Siddarth Bhamre, head of research, Asit C Mehta Intermediates. “They cannot reduce weightage in India without selling banking stocks.”

Overall, foreign investors sold shares worth ₹38,443 crore across 19 sectors in the first half of May, according to NSDL data. Oil & gas saw outflows of ₹6,885 crore, while telecom stocks witnessed selling worth ₹2,542 crore, extending the pressure seen in April.
Overseas investors bought shares worth ₹11,395 crore across four sectors, with nearly 60% of the inflows directed in the services sector. “The services sector, which includes Adani Group stocks such as Adani Ports and Adani Enterprises, performed well after resolving issues related to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC),” said Pandey.Pandey said that the MSCI rebalancing next week could draw some foreign inflows, but that is a one-time event.

NEW YORK — IonQ Inc. (NYSE: IONQ) shares climbed sharply in morning trading Thursday, May 21, 2026, rising $5.54 or 10.56% to $58.01 as investor enthusiasm continued for the quantum computing company after its record first-quarter performance and raised full-year guidance.

The stock has shown strong momentum in recent sessions following IonQ’s May 6 earnings report, which exceeded expectations and highlighted accelerating commercial adoption of its trapped-ion quantum systems.

IonQ reported record GAAP revenue of $64.7 million for the first quarter ended March 31, 2026, representing 755% year-over-year growth and surpassing the midpoint of its prior guidance range by 30%. The results were driven by system sales, cloud utilization and expansion of its quantum platform.

The company raised its full-year 2026 revenue guidance to between $260 million and $270 million. It also reported remaining performance obligations (RPO) of $470 million, up 554% year-over-year.

CEO Niccolo de Masi highlighted the strong demand: “With $64.7 million in revenue, we have once again significantly outperformed our guidance range, exceeding the midpoint by 30%. As a result, we are raising our revenue expectations for the full year to $270 million at the high end, based upon the strong and growing demand for our leading quantum computers, as well as the commercial impact of our entire quantum platform.”

COO and CFO Inder Singh added that approximately 60% of revenue came from commercial customers and 35% from international customers. The company noted continued strength in its Tempo system demand and pipeline.

IonQ has achieved several technical and commercial milestones in 2026. In April, it announced a photonic interconnect breakthrough enabling networked quantum systems and was selected for DARPA’s Heterogeneous Architectures for Quantum (HARQ) program. It also opened a new quantum computing R&D lab in Boulder, Colorado.

The company is pursuing fault-tolerant quantum computing and has published technical reports outlining its development roadmap. IonQ’s trapped-ion technology is positioned as a leading approach for scalable, high-fidelity quantum systems.

Market capitalization exceeded $12 billion in recent trading. The stock has experienced significant volatility characteristic of the emerging quantum sector but has trended higher on positive news flow and sector-wide government support.

Broader quantum computing stocks, including Rigetti Computing and D-Wave Quantum, also showed gains amid renewed sector interest following U.S. government funding announcements totaling $2 billion across multiple companies.

IonQ operates as a full-stack quantum platform provider, offering cloud access to its systems, on-premise installations and enterprise solutions. It serves government, academic and commercial clients across industries including finance, pharmaceuticals and logistics.

The company maintains a strong cash position and continues to invest heavily in research and development while scaling commercial deployments. It has emphasized both technical milestones and revenue growth as key metrics for long-term success.

Analysts have issued varied price targets, with several firms maintaining positive outlooks based on execution against roadmap goals and commercial traction. The stock’s performance reflects high expectations for quantum technology’s future impact on computing, optimization and simulation.

No new corporate announcements were released on May 21. Trading volume remained elevated as investors reacted to continued positive sentiment around IonQ’s Q1 results and strategic progress.

IonQ’s next major update is expected with its second-quarter 2026 earnings in late July or early August. Management has focused on delivering consistent progress toward fault-tolerant systems while expanding commercial revenue streams.

The quantum computing sector continues to attract attention as governments and enterprises invest in the technology’s potential applications. IonQ positions itself as the only publicly traded pure-play quantum platform company with commercially available systems.

Investors will monitor technical milestones, new customer wins and execution against raised guidance in the coming quarters. The stock’s movement on May 21 underscores ongoing market interest in quantum computing leaders amid broader technology sector dynamics.

Mumbai: Life Insurance Corp reported a 23% year-on-year rise in consolidated net profit for the March quarter at ₹23,467 crore, driven by strong premium growth, higher investment income and improved operating performance.

The insurer, also India’s biggest institutional investor, cautioned that prolonged geopolitical tensions could weigh on savings flows and economic activity. LIC had reported a net profit of ₹19,039 crore in the year-ago period. The board also recommended a final dividend of ₹10 per share for FY26.

For the full year, FY26 LIC posted a profit after tax of ₹57,453 crore, up 19% from ₹48,320 crore in FY25, while net premium income rose 10% to ₹5.38 lakh crore from ₹4.90 lakh crore a year earlier.

LIC expects macroeconomic uncertainty arising from the ongoing West Asia conflict to have some impact across sectors, including life insurance savings, however, it will continue targeting double digit growth in new business premium income.

“It is expected that every sector of the country will be impacted by the ongoing crisis,” said R Doraiswamy, MD and CEO, LIC. “Naturally, when people experience some difficulty, savings, and that too savings through life insurance, can certainly have an impact, but we will try our best to continue to move towards our targeted growth rate.”

First-year premium income rose 17% year-on-year to ₹13,009 crore in the March quarter, while renewal premium income increased 14% to ₹82,233 crore. Single premium collections climbed 22% to ₹70,119 crore.
Investment income, a key earnings driver for LIC, rose around 17% to ₹1.09 lakh crore during the quarter from ₹93,443 crore a year ago. However, the gains were partly aided by a change in accounting policy implemented in the fourth quarter, which contributed around ₹11,000 crore to growth in investment income. The insurer’s solvency ratio improved to 2.35 at the end of FY26 from 2.11 a year ago.LIC also said it continues to focus on non-participating savings and protection products. Protection business registered a growth rate of nearly 29% during the year, helped partly by customers opting for higher sum assured products.

The share of foreign institutional investor ownership in LIC has risen recently to over 0.3% as of March 31, 2026, from 0.22% at the time of the IPO allotment. Shares of LIC closed flat ₹800.70 when BSE benchmark index fell 0.24%.

NEW YORK — Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: PLTR) shares traded at $137.21, up 0.06 or 0.044%, in morning trading on Thursday, May 21, 2026, as investors continued to digest the company’s record first-quarter performance and upward revision to full-year guidance.

The stock closed at $137.15 on May 20. It has experienced significant volatility in 2026 but has remained elevated following robust earnings reported on May 4.

Palantir reported first-quarter 2026 revenue of $1.633 billion, an 85% increase from the prior year and above consensus estimates. U.S. revenue grew 104% year-over-year to $1.282 billion, while U.S. commercial revenue surged 133% to $595 million.

CEO Alex Karp stated in the earnings release: “Palantir’s Rule of 40 score has soared to 145%. We grew 85% last quarter—our highest-ever year-over-year growth rate—by more than doubling our U.S. business, and now we are raising our full-year revenue guidance to 71% growth.”

The company raised its full-year 2026 revenue guidance to $7.65 billion to $7.66 billion, representing 71% growth. It also increased its U.S. commercial revenue guidance to approximately $3.22 billion, or 120% growth.

Adjusted income from operations reached $984 million in the first quarter, representing a 60% margin. GAAP income from operations was $754 million, or a 46% margin. The company reported strong cash flow with adjusted free cash flow of $925 million.

Palantir closed 206 deals of at least $1 million, 72 deals of at least $5 million, and 47 deals of at least $10 million during the quarter. International customers accounted for a growing portion of revenue.

The company continues to expand its artificial intelligence platform, including commercial adoption of its Gotham, Foundry and AIP offerings. Government contracts remain a core part of the business, with U.S. government revenue growing 84% year-over-year to $687 million.

Market capitalization stood near $310 billion in recent sessions. The stock has traded in a 52-week range reflecting strong investor interest in AI-driven software platforms. Analyst consensus remains largely positive, with several firms maintaining buy ratings and price targets above current levels.

Rosenblatt Securities maintained a buy rating with a $225 price target as of May 21. Other analysts have highlighted Palantir’s execution on commercial growth and technical advancements.

Palantir operates as a software company focused on big data analytics and AI. Its platforms are used by government agencies, large enterprises and organizations for mission-critical decision-making. The company has emphasized responsible AI deployment and has expanded partnerships across sectors.

No new corporate announcements were released on May 21. The next earnings report for the second quarter of 2026 is expected in early August. Management has focused on scaling commercial operations while maintaining strong government relationships.

Palantir was founded in 2003 and went public through a direct listing in 2020. It has grown significantly in recent years, driven by demand for AI and data analytics solutions. The company employs thousands worldwide and maintains offices in multiple countries.

Trading volume on May 21 was in line with recent averages in morning sessions. The stock has shown resilience amid broader market fluctuations, supported by consistent execution against financial targets.

Investors continue to monitor Palantir’s progress toward larger commercial contracts and its ability to sustain high growth rates. The company’s Rule of 40 score, which combines revenue growth and profitability margins, reached 145% in the first quarter.

Palantir has not provided specific second-quarter guidance details beyond the full-year outlook. It expects continued strength in both government and commercial segments.

The stock’s performance reflects ongoing market enthusiasm for AI-related companies with proven commercial traction and strong financial metrics. Palantir remains one of the more prominent publicly traded AI software firms.