Bharti Airtel Surpasses HDFC Bank to Become India's Second Most Valuable Company

Bharti Airtel Dethrones HDFC Bank to Become Second Most-Valued Company in India

Bharti Airtel has surpassed HDFC Bank to become the second most-valued company in India in terms of market capitalisation (m-cap), after Reliance Industries. As of Monday, 18 May, the cumulative m-cap of Bharti Airtel's stock stood at ₹11.90 lakh crore in intraday trade, compared to ₹11.80 lakh crore for HDFC Bank. Reliance Industries' m-cap remains at over ₹18.11 lakh crore.

Bharti Airtel shares experienced a significant jump of nearly 3% in intraday trade on the BSE on Monday, looking poised to extend gains for the fourth consecutive session. The stock opened at ₹1,909.35, against its previous close of ₹1,904.60, and rose 2.6% to an intraday high of ₹1,953.95.

Over the past four consecutive sessions, the stock has surged more than 11%, while on a monthly scale, it is up nearly 4% so far in May, following a 6% rise in April. Earlier in April, Bharti Airtel surpassed HDFC Bank to become the fifth most-valued firm in m-cap in India.

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Bharti Airtel shares hit a 52-week low of ₹1,745 on 13 May, after previously hitting a 52-week high of ₹2,174.70 on 21 November last year.

The company reported a 10.5% quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) increase but a 33.5% year-on-year (YoY) decline in its Q4FY26 consolidated net profit to ₹7,325 crore. The YoY fall in profit was largely due to a high base in the year-ago period, when the company received a tax credit of ₹2,892 crore. It also recognised a charge of ₹3,161 crore for regulatory and government levies during the quarter.

| Financial Performance Comparison | | --- | --- | | Q4FY26 Net Profit | ₹7,325 crore | | QoQ Increase | 10.5% | | YoY Decline | 33.5% | | Q4FY25 Net Profit | ₹10,990 crore |

Brokerage firm Motilal Oswal Financial Services maintained a buy call on the stock with a target price of ₹2,180. The firm tweaked its estimates for FY26 actuals and built in nearly 2.4% equity dilution to account for nearly 16.3% AAF stake purchase.

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Technical experts note that the stock is correcting at this juncture. They believe one can stay invested if the stock remains above the ₹1,750-odd levels.

Vipin Kumar, AVP- Equity Research and PMS at Globe Capital Market, pointed out that Bharti Airtel's share price has been going through a congestion zone of ₹1,750 to ₹1,900 for the last 12 weeks. Last Friday, it breached this congestion range on a closing basis to the higher side. Moving forward, Kumar expects Bharti Airtel to move north and test the ₹2,100 level in the near term.

Aditya Thukral, Founder and Analyst of AT Research and Risk Managers, highlighted that Bharti Airtel has been in a structural bull market since October 2018. However, the stock is experiencing a correction from the high of ₹2,174 made in November 2025. Despite the rally over the past few days, the stock still seems to be in a corrective phase, and another leg of correction may be seen over the next few months.