Shares of Axis Bank fell sharply in early trade on Friday after the private sector lender posted a muted set of numbers for the June quarter (Q1FY26), with a significant jump in provisions weighing on profitability. Several brokerages turned cautious, trimming price targets even as operating profit remained resilient.

At 9:30 AM, the stock was down over 4 per cent at Rs 1,111 on the NSE, reacting to the earnings report and weak investor sentiment.

Net profit stood at Rs 5,806 crore, down 4 per cent year-on-year (YoY) from Rs 6,034 crore.

Operating profit rose 14 per cent YoY to Rs 11,515 crore, and was up 7 per cent sequentially.

Net Interest Income (NII) grew just 1 per cent YoY to Rs 13,560 crore.

Net Interest Margin (NIM) for the quarter stood at 3.80 per cent.

Provisions and contingencies spiked to Rs 3,948 crore, from Rs 1,359 crore in Q4FY25.

Gross NPAs increased to Rs 17,765 crore, with the gross NPA ratio rising to 1.57 per cent from 1.28 per cent sequentially.

Net NPAs rose to Rs 5,066 crore, with a net NPA ratio of 0.45 per cent.

Several global brokerages revised their outlooks post the earnings:

Downgraded to Neutral from Overweight; target cut to Rs 1,265 from Rs 1,315

Maintains Buy; target reduced to Rs 1,370 from Rs 1,450

Buy rating retained; target raised to Rs 1,570 from Rs 1,555

Maintains Accumulate; target cut to Rs 1,350 from Rs 1,400

Keeps Neutral; target revised to Rs 1,285 from Rs 1,320

Maintain Buy/Outperform, with target at Rs 1,450

Buy rating; target cut to Rs 1,300

Macquarie and CLSA flagged higher credit costs as a key concern, while Goldman Sachs and Nomura see long-term potential supported by healthy operating metrics.

Zee Business Managing Editor Anil Singhvi issued a strong warning on Axis Bank, saying the results were below expectations and the analyst call lacked clarity or confidence.

“The results are extremely weak. Credit costs have risen sharply, and the commentary doesn’t inspire much confidence. This stock could be Friday’s main accident,” Singhvi said on air.

Sell Axis Bank Futures

Stop-loss: Rs 1,177

Targets: Rs 1,120, Rs 1,105, Rs 1,090

Market Guru Anil Singhvi estimated a 5–10 per cent near-term downside on the stock.

Axis Bank’s strong operating performance was overshadowed by a rise in provisioning and slower growth in core earnings. With several brokerages now neutral or cautious and technical experts like Singhvi turning bearish, investors may want to watch for further cues on asset quality and management commentary before taking fresh positions.