AXISBANK vs ICICIBANK
Side-by-side comparison of Axis Bank Ltd. and ICICI Bank Ltd.. Descriptive only — not investment advice.
Axis Bank Ltd.
Banking
Quality Score: 62/100
ICICI Bank Ltd.
Banking
Quality Score: 71/100
At a glance
| Metric | AXISBANK | ICICIBANK |
|---|---|---|
| Quality Score | 62/100 | 71/100 |
| P/E (trailing) | 15.0 | 17.0 |
| Forward P/E | 10.0 | 14.0 |
| ROE | +13.2% | +16.4% |
| Profit margin | +35.4% | +24.9% |
| Debt-to-equity | — | — |
| Dividend yield | +0.08% | +0.87% |
| 1Y price return | +9.3% | -11.0% |
| From 52w high | -10.6% | -15.0% |
| Analyst rating1 = Strong Buy, 5 = Strong Sell | 1.27 | 1.25 |
Highlighted value = better on the metric (lower for P/E, D/E, drawdown, analyst rating; higher elsewhere). Descriptive only.
Snapshots
Axis Bank trades at ₹1,268.3, up 9.3% over 12 months, with a trailing PE of 15.03 and ROE of 13.15% — the lowest PE in its 6-stock Banking peer set and below ICICI Bank's ROE of 16.36%. The stock sits above its 200-DMA (₹1,227.63) but below its 50-DMA (₹1,293.7), with RSI at 43.82, and is 10.58% off its 52-week high. Five-year revenue growth is -11.2%, while 5-year earnings growth is +6.4%, reflecting a divergence between top-line and bottom-line trends.
ICICI Bank trades at ₹1,264.80, a PE of 17x trailing and 14x forward, with ROE of 16.36% and a 24.93% profit margin on 5-year revenue growth of 66.9%. The stock is 15% below its 52-week high, below the 50-DMA (₹1,301) and 200-DMA (₹1,370), and has declined 10.97% over the past 12 months despite an 8% YoY earnings increase in Q4 FY26.
Pros
- ✓Lowest PE among Banking peers at 15.03, compared to ICICI Bank at 16.96, HDFC Bank at 17.43, Bajaj Finance at 31.32, and Bajaj Finserv at 30.32 — a notable valuation gap on this metric.
- ✓Forward PE of 10 represents a significant compression from the trailing PE of 15.03, implying consensus earnings growth expectations embedded in current prices.
- ✓Profit margin of 35.41% is the primary driver of a positive earnings growth rate (+6.4% over 5 years) despite declining revenue, indicating cost discipline or improving credit provisions.
- ✓Analyst coverage is broad: mean rating of 1.275 across 40 analysts (1–5 scale, lower = more constructive).
- ✓Highest quality score among 6 banking-sector peers at 64, and second-ranked on both trailing PE (17x) and ROE (16.36%) within the peer set.
- ✓Forward PE of 13.96x represents a meaningful compression from trailing 17x, suggesting earnings-growth expectations are priced into a discount relative to trailing multiples.
- ✓Q4 FY26 profit of ₹13,702 cr marks 8% YoY growth with a ₹12/share dividend declared, and 5-year revenue has grown 66.9%.
- ✓Mean analyst rating of 1.25 across 40 analysts (1–5 scale, lower = more constructive).
Cons
- ✗ROE of 13.15% has exceeded 15% in only 1 of the tracked historical years, and the consistency score stands at 46, ranking 5th of 6 peers — below ICICI Bank (16.36%), Bajaj Finance (17.91%), and HDFC Bank (13.82%).
- ✗Five-year revenue growth of -11.2% represents the most concerning structural data point; even with positive earnings growth, a shrinking revenue base constrains long-run compounding capacity.
- ✗FCF was positive in only 2 of the available years, and the debt trend is flagged as rising; without D/E or capital-adequacy data, the full leverage picture remains opaque.
- ✗The stock has declined 5.26% over the past 3 months and trades below its 50-DMA, while sitting 10.58% below the 52-week high — a period of underperformance relative to its own recent history.
- ✗Price is below both the 50-DMA (₹1,301) and 200-DMA (₹1,370), with three resistance levels clustered between ₹1,371 and ₹1,417 — the stock has retraced 15.03% from its 52-week high.
- ✗ROE has exceeded 15% in only 3 of the years available, and FCF-positive years also number 3, indicating the quality record is not yet a long established track.
- ✗An executive director sold 59% of his holding in April 2026, which is a disclosure event worth tracking for any follow-on insider activity.
- ✗Debt trend is classified as rising; while rising liabilities are intrinsic to bank balance sheets, the absence of a precise D/E ratio limits the ability to benchmark leverage against peers quantitatively.
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