Nestle India, Asian Paints, IndusInd Bank: Three Nifty 50 stocks hit 52-week lows today; what's driving the weakness?

IndusInd Bank has seen the sharpest fall from its 52-week high to its 52-week low.

Three Nifty 50 constituents Nestle India Ltd, Asian Paints Ltd, and IndusInd Bank Ltd hit their respective 52-week lows in trade on December 19 amid a sour market sentiment.

From their respective 52-week highs, the stocks have cumulatively erased Rs 2.2 lakh crore in investors' wealth, falling up to 44 percent, 34 percent and 23 percent each.

Here's a look at why these Nifty 50 majors have hit the lows in trade today.

IndusInd Bank

52-Week High: Rs 1,694.5

52-Week Low: Rs 948

Fall: 44%

Erosion in MCap: Rs 56,395 crore

Reason: IndusInd Bank's stock has seen continued weakness since its September quarter earnings, after the lender reported a poor set of numbers.

IndusInd Bank reported a significant drop in its consolidated net profit for Q2FY25, falling 39.5 percent on-year to Rs 1,331 crore. The bank’s net interest income (NII), a key indicator of profitability, saw a growth of 5 percent on-year to Rs 5,347 crore during the July-September quarter. However, the growth in NII was below market expectations.

IndusInd Bank's provisions and contingencies ballooned 87 percent YoY basis to Rs 1,820 crore from Rs 974 logged in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal, amid stress in its microfinance loan book.

Recently, global brokerage UBS maintained a neutral call on IndusInd Bank, reducing its target price to Rs 1,150 per share from Rs 1,350, citing concerns over rising non-performing loans (NPLs) and deteriorating portfolio quality.

Asian Paints

52-Week High: Rs 3,422.95

52-Week Low: Rs 2,265.35

Fall: 33.8%

Erosion in MCap: Rs 1.07 lakh crore

Reason: The fall in the stock comes after two senior management executives, Shyam Swamy and Vishu Goel, announced their resignations with immediate effect on December 17, 2024.

Further, the paints stalwart is likely to see slower growth compared to smaller competitors, especially with the entry of Birla Opus in the market. As Asian Paints has a higher indexation in larger cities - which have borne the brunt of an urban slowdown due to food inflation, higher housing rentals, low wage growth and high interest payments - it is seeing a larger impact. Further, it has to work off of a higher base compared to last year.

Nestle India

52-Week High: Rs 2,778

52-Week Low: Rs 2,147.4

Fall: 22.7%

Erosion in MCap: Rs 58,384 crore

Reason: The FMCG major's shares have been struggling on the bourses ever since it reported marginal fall in the September quarter profit. The fall was a result of a challenging external environment with muted consumer demand and high commodity prices especially for coffee and cocoa.

"Nestlé India’s elevated valuations has been a factor of execution prowess, price power,
strong parentage, and healthy return profile," said Emkay Global. However, since it was unable to deliver on the valuation front, the stock has been correcting over the past few weeks.

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