ICICI Prudential AMC shares are set to list on Friday following a Rs 10,603-crore initial public offering that attracted strong investor demand. Ahead of the market debut, a domestic brokerage has initiated coverage with a buy rating and projected upside of up to 39%.
IPO Draws Heavy Demand Ahead of Market Debut
The ICICI Prudential AMC shares of one of India’s largest mutual fund managers will make their stock market debut on Friday, Dec. 19, after a blockbuster IPO.
The Rs 10,603-crore IPO closed Tuesday after being subscribed thirty-nine times the shares on offer, according to data released by the company and stock exchanges. The issue was open from Dec. 12 to Dec. 16 at a price band of Rs 2,061 to Rs 2,065 per share.
Allotment of shares is expected to be finalized late Wednesday, while listing is slated for the BSE and the NSE on Friday. The strong subscription reflects robust investor appetite for asset management companies amid rising equity participation and sustained inflows into mutual funds.
ICICI Prudential AMC is jointly owned by ICICI Bank Ltd. and Prudential Plc of the United Kingdom, and manages assets across equity, debt and hybrid products for retail and institutional investors.
Brokerage Initiates Coverage With Buy Call
Ahead of the listing, PL Capital Institutional Equities initiated coverage on ICICI Prudential AMC with a buy rating and a target price of Rs 3,000 per share.
The target implies an upside of nearly 39% from the IPO price, which analysts pegged at about Rs 2,165 per share. The brokerage cited the company’s operating performance, strong parentage and distribution strength as key drivers.
“ICICI AMC has shown the best performance in the one-year bucket, while being ranked consistently among the top three in the three-year bucket since February 2022,” PL Capital said in a research note.
The brokerage added that ICICI Bank provides access to a vast distribution network of 7,246 branches, along with integration into the bank’s digital platforms, giving the asset manager a competitive edge in acquiring and retaining customers.
PL Capital also said ICICI Prudential AMC could eventually command a valuation premium to HDFC Asset Management Co., citing better distribution reach and diversification with comparable profitability metrics.
Growth Outlook and Valuation Expectations
PL Capital projects strong medium-term growth for ICICI Prudential AMC shares, driven by higher equity inflows and market share gains.
“Over FY25 to FY28, we expect 23% and 21% compound annual growth in equity and overall average assets under management compared with 20% and 19% for the industry,” the brokerage said.
The firm expects this growth to translate into revenue, operating expenditure and core income compound annual growth rates of about 18%, 17% and 18.5%, respectively. Core profit after tax to average assets under management is expected to range between twenty-six and twenty-seven basis points, in line with peers.
At the upper end of the IPO price band, ICICI Prudential AMC shares are valued at about twenty-seven times earnings, representing a discount of around 17% to HDFC Asset Management. Based on this, PL Capital applied a multiple of thirty-eight times September 2027 core earnings per share to arrive at its Rs 3,000 target price.
Market observers said post-listing performance of ICICI Prudential AMC shares will depend on broader market sentiment, equity inflows and the company’s ability to sustain growth in an increasingly competitive asset management landscape.
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