LIC’s ₹47,000 Cr in Fresh Investments Push Portfolio to ₹15.18 Lakh Cr

Amidst volatility in the Indian stock market and aggressive selling by foreign investors, Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) emerged as a steady hand. During the March 2025 quarter, LIC made significant equity purchases worth over ₹47,000 crore, offering much-needed support to domestic markets. Alongside mutual funds and retail investors, LIC played a key role in cushioning the blow from foreign capital outflows. Source: Moneycontrol

Let’s take a closer look at how LIC reshaped its equity portfolio during the quarter.

LIC’s Portfolio Snapshot

As of the March 2025 quarter (Q4), LIC held stakes in 351 stocks, a marginal decline from 352 in the previous quarter. The total value of its equity holdings stood at ₹15.18 lakh crore, down from ₹15.88 lakh crore in Q3. During this period, LIC increased its holdings in 105 stocks, trimmed its stake in 86 companies, exited or reduced its stake below 1% in 15 companies, and added 13 new stocks. Source: Moneycontrol

Fresh Addition to LIC’s Portfolio	Net Buying (in Crore)	Stocks Removed from LIC’s Portfolio	Net Selling (in Crore)
IRFC	1814.9	Macrotech Developers	-1347.2
Jindal stainless	640.2	ICICI Securities	-485.6
KPIT Technologies	484.8	Piramal Pharma	-396.7
Punjab & Sind Bank	419.6	Paradeep Phosphates	-191.6
BLS International Services	178.8	Kaveri Seed Company	-73.3
JTL Industries	95.2	Texmaco Rail & Engeenering	-68.2
Enviro Infra Engineers	50.7	Gateway Distriparks	-40.0
Quality Power Electricals	50.1	Suraj Estate Developers	-22.6
Avalon Technologies	49.0	Divgi Torqtransfer systems	-18.4
Jai Corp	35.3	Yuken India	-12.2
Bombay Dyeing & Mfg.	21.0	SV Global Mill	-4.6
Praveg	32.7	Aban Offshore	-4.6
		Reliance Home Finance	-2.5
		Binny Mills	-1.5

13 New Additions in the Portfolio

Among the newly added stocks in LIC’s Q4 portfolio is IRFC, which acquired a 1.05% stake for ₹1,815 crore. This was followed by investments in Jindal Stainless and KPIT Technologies, with stakes of approximately 1.24% and 1.32%, valued at around ₹640 crore and ₹485 crore, respectively. Additionally, LIC received shares worth ₹3,325 crore in ITC Hotels, representing a 9.22% stake, as part of the demerger from ITC Ltd.

Major Investments by LIC

Among its key acquisitions in Q4, LIC notably raised its stake in Hero MotoCorp, investing ₹4,968 crore and increasing its shareholding from 5.53% to 11.84%. Its second-largest investment was in Reliance Industries Ltd, where it bought shares worth ₹3,675 crore, taking its stake up from 6.52% to 6.74%. 

LIC also made substantial investments in Larsen & Toubro (₹2,975 crore), Asian Paints (₹2,466 crore), Hindustan Unilever (₹2,361 crore), and Bajaj Auto (₹1,983 crore). Additionally, LIC increased its holdings by over ₹1,000 crore each in Bharat Electronics, Nestle India, LTIMindtree, Britannia Industries, and ITC.

LIC Increases Stake in Existing Holdings
	No. of Shares ( in Crore)			Net Buying (in Crore)
	March 2025 quarter	Dec 2024 quarter	Difference
Hero Motocorp	2.4	1.1	1.3	4967.8
Reliance Industries	89.4	86.4	3.0	3674.9
Larsen & Toubro	18.0	17.1	0.9	2975.2
Asian Paints	7.9	6.9	1.1	2466.3
Hindustan Unilever	14.1	13.1	1.0	2361.5
Bajaj Auto	0.7	0.4	0.2	1983.2
SBI	82.9	80.7	2.2	1652.9
Patanjali Foods	2.8	1.9	0.9	1638.3
Tata Motors	11.6	9.4	2.2	1577.2
Maruti Suzuki India	1.5	1.4	0.1	1493.4
HCL Technologies	13.1	12.3	0.8	1441.6
Indraprastha Gas	13.2	6.4	6.8	1332.9
Bharat Electronics	13.8	9.2	4.6	1269.8
Nestle India	4.5	4.0	0.5	1187.1
LTMindtree	2.3	2.1	0.2	1136.9

LIC Trims Holdings in Key Financial and Tech Stocks

On the divestment front, LIC reduced its stake in ICICI Bank by ₹1,987 crore, bringing its holding down to 6.8% from 7.14%. In the technology sector, it trimmed its investments in Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, and Wipro, offloading shares worth ₹1,652 crore, ₹1,625 crore, and ₹1,234 crore, respectively. 

As a result, its revised stakes now stand at 10.45% in Infosys (down from 10.58%), 4.63% in TCS (from 4.75%), and 2.67% in Wipro (from 3.08%). Additionally, LIC scaled back its positions in several other companies, including Pidilite Industries, Divi’s Laboratories, Coromandel International, Bajaj Finserv, JSW Energy, Bajaj Finance, and HDFC Bank, with divestments ranging between ₹300 crore and ₹800 crore.

LIC Reduces Stake in Existing Holdings
	No. of Shares ( in Crore)			Net Selling (in Crore)
	March 2025 quarter	Dec 2024 quarter	Difference
ICICI Bank	39.4	41.0	-1.6	-1987.0
Infosys	38.8	39.7	-0.9	-1652.5
TCS	16.8	17.2	-0.4	-1624.0
Wipro	28.0	32.2	-4.2	-1233.9
Pidilite Industries	1.7	2.0	-0.3	-791.0
Divi’s Laboratories	1.5	1.6	-0.1	-605.3
Coromandel International	0.5	0.7	-0.2	-417.4
Bajaj Finserv	4.1	4.3	-0.2	-338.5
JSW Energy	11.5	12.1	-0.6	-318.6
Bajaj Finance	1.7	1.8	0.0	-313.5
HDFC Bank	36.1	36.3	-0.2	-309.1
Jubilant Foodworks	1.2	1.7	-0.5	-307.7
SRF	1.4	1.5	-0.1	-247.3
Lupin	0.9	1.0	-0.1	-206.4
Tata Power	9.4	10.0	-0.6	-199.8

LIC’s Rs 47,000 Crore Equity Buying: Why It Matters

The scale of LIC’s equity purchases over Rs 47,000 crore in one quarter is significant for multiple reasons:

1. Market Stabilization Role

LIC stepped in when FIIs turned net sellers due to global economic concerns, including interest rate uncertainty and geopolitical tensions. Such buying helped prevent deeper market falls and injected confidence among domestic investors.

2. Support for Mid and Small-Caps

Many of the stocks in which LIC accumulated shares were in the mid-cap and small-cap segments. These segments often face higher volatility during FII outflows, so LIC’s buying likely helped stabilize prices and support valuation levels.

3. Long-Term Investment Strategy

Unlike many short-term institutional players, LIC typically invests with a long-term horizon. It’s buying signals long-term confidence in the fundamentals of Indian companies, encouraging retail and mutual fund investors to follow suit.

Disappearance of 15 Companies

The 15 companies from which LIC’s name disappeared from the shareholding data include Aban Offshore, Binny Mills, Divgi Torqtransfer Systems, Futura Polyesters, Gateway Distriparks, Kaveri Seed Company, Macrotech Developers, Paradeep Phosphates, Piramal Pharma, Reliance Home Finance, Suraj Estate Developers, SV Global Mill, Texmaco Rail & Engineering, and Yuken India Ltd.

These exits could be attributed to factors such as weak performance or governance issues within some companies, sector-specific challenges, or a strategic redeployment of funds into stocks with stronger growth potential.

March 2025: A Volatile Quarter in Indian Markets

Indian markets witnessed notable volatility in Q4, with benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty registering declines of 0.9% and 0.5%, respectively. The broader BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices saw steeper corrections, falling over 10.6% and 15.5%. The March 2025 quarter was marked by:

• Fears of global rate hikes and geopolitical risks drive high market volatility.
• Heavy FII selling, with foreign investors pulling out capital across emerging markets.
• Fluctuating bond yields and inflation data are creating uncertainty.

During this period, foreign investors pulled out more than ₹1.18 lakh crore from equities, while domestic institutional investors stepped in, making net purchases worth over ₹1.86 lakh crore. Their continued buying kept the market from slipping into deeper corrections. LIC alone emerged as a key buyer during the dips, reflecting its role as a market anchor in times of uncertainty.

What This Means for Investors and the Market

LIC’s actions during the March 2025 quarter offer several takeaways for retail investors and market watchers:

1. Follow the Long-Term Trend

LIC’s consistent investment even during volatile phases shows that market downturns are often opportunities, not threats, for long-term investors.

2. Diversification Is Key

With over 351 stocks in its portfolio, LIC demonstrates the power of diversification across sectors and market caps. This reduces risk and improves the stability of returns.

3. Fundamental Strength Over Hype

LIC tends to stick with fundamentally strong companies, particularly those with consistent earnings, strong balance sheets, and good corporate governance. Investors can take cues from such preferences.

Looking Ahead

To sum up, LIC’s equity investment activity in the March 2025 quarter reveals a carefully thought-out strategy to capture value amidst market uncertainty. The insurer’s net equity buying worth over Rs 47,000 crore, accumulation in 105 stocks, introduction of 13 new names, and strategic exits all point to an agile yet fundamentally grounded investment approach.

As a trusted long-term investor, LIC’s actions impact its portfolio and influence broader market sentiment. For retail investors and mutual funds, LIC’s moves offer important cues on navigating volatility with patience, discipline, and a clear eye on long-term value.

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