On this page ▾
Kotak Mahindra Bank and LIC are valued in different ways.
Kotak Mahindra Bank is valued on excess return and LIC on embedded value, because the two businesses do not work the same way. Below, each is set out on its own record and its own value drivers; the two fair values sit in the full valuations.
- Valuation method: Kotak Mahindra Bank on excess return; LIC on embedded value.
- Size: the two are worth roughly the same on the stock market.
- Record: LIC's filed history in the data used here is too short to compare year by year, so only Kotak Mahindra Bank's record is summarised: revenue went from FY2019 to FY2026 at about 13% a year.
- What to watch: return on equity versus capital at Kotak Mahindra Bank; embedded value at LIC.
| Kotak Mahindra Bank | LIC | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | ₹489 | ₹399 |
| Market cap | ₹4.86L Cr | ₹5.05L Cr |
| P/E | 22.6 | 8.1 |
| P/B | 2.68 | 2.86 |
| Fair value 🔒 sign in | ₹0,000 | ₹0,000 |
| Upside 🔒 sign in | +00% | +00% |
| Valued on | Excess return | Embedded value |
01Two businesses
From finance company to full financial group
Kotak Mahindra Bank grew out of a finance company founded by Uday Kotak in 1985 and became a bank in 2003. Alongside lending and deposits, the group runs one of India's larger broking and investment-banking businesses, a life insurer, an asset manager and a car-finance arm.
India's life insurer, still by a distance
Life Insurance Corporation of India is the country's largest life insurer by a wide margin. It was the only life insurer until private companies were allowed in from 2000, and the Government of India still owns the overwhelming majority of its shares after the 2022 IPO.
02The records side by side
LIC's filed history in the data used here is too short to compare year by year, so only Kotak Mahindra Bank's record is summarised: revenue went from FY2019 to FY2026 at about 13% a year.
Full ten-year tables and charts are on each company's page: Kotak Mahindra Bank · LIC.
03What each price assumes
Work backwards from each share price and you can see what buyers are taking for granted — the rate each company must sustain to justify what it costs, against what its own record supports.
LIC is not valued on a single growth or return rate that can be solved back from its price.
04What decides each one's value
- Return on equity versus capitalKotak holds more capital per rupee of loans than most peers, which caps its return on equity unless growth picks up.
- The deposit franchiseLow-cost current and savings deposits are the cheapest funding a bank can have; keeping them is central to its margins.
- Embedded valueThe present value of profits from policies already written, plus net assets — the starting point for valuing any life insurer.
- Value of new businessHow much value each year's new policies add. LIC's margins on new business have been below private peers', and lifting them is the main lever.
05What could go wrong
- Regulatory actionThe 2024 RBI restriction showed how quickly technology lapses can stall growth.
- Slower growth than peersCaution can mean losing share in a strong credit cycle.
- Losing share to private insurersPrivate life insurers have taken market share steadily since they were allowed in.
- Government ownershipFurther share sales by the government, or pressure to invest in state priorities, can weigh on the price.
06Which is better value?
Sign in free to see which trades further below its worth
- ✓Both fair values per share — each on the method that fits the business
- ✓Every step of both workings — growth, margins and cost of capital, with sources
- ✓Bull, base and bear cases — for each company
- ✓Downloadable reports — the full write-up for each, yours to keep
08Questions people ask
Is Kotak Mahindra Bank or LIC better value?
That turns on how far each share trades from its estimated fair value. Both figures, with every step of the working, are in the full valuations, free to view once you sign in. On the public numbers, Kotak Mahindra Bank trades at 22.6 times earnings and 2.68 times book value, and LIC at 8.1 times earnings and 2.86 times book value — but multiples alone mislead when two businesses work differently, which is why each is valued on the method that fits it.
What is the difference between Kotak Mahindra Bank and LIC?
Kotak Mahindra Bank grew out of a finance company founded by Uday Kotak in 1985 and became a bank in 2003. Life Insurance Corporation of India is the country's largest life insurer by a wide margin.
Are Kotak Mahindra Bank and LIC valued the same way?
No. Kotak Mahindra Bank is valued on excess return and LIC on embedded value, because forcing one model onto both would misstate at least one of them.