Punjab National Bank Share Price Today (5 December 2025): RBI Rate Cut, PSB Merger Buzz and 2026 Targets for PNB Stock

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment or trading advice. Markets are risky; do your own research or consult a licensed adviser before investing.

PNB share price today: RBI policy day bounce

Punjab National Bank (PNB) shares closed at ₹121.08 on the NSE on Friday, 5 December 2025, up 1.30% from the previous close of ₹119.53. Intraday, the stock traded between ₹119.27 and ₹121.85, with volumes of about 1.57 crore shares, broadly in line with its average daily volume of ~1.57 crore. ^[1]

Over the last 52 weeks, PNB has traded in a range of ₹85.46–₹127.80, putting today’s close roughly 5% below its 52‑week high and more than 40% above its 52‑week low. ^[2]

Intraday market trackers showed PNB among the stronger PSU bank movers: at around 10:34 a.m., it was quoting near ₹121.60, up 1.71%, as public-sector lenders rallied after the RBI’s 25 bps repo rate cut to 5.25% and a neutral policy stance. ^[3]

Market analytics platform MarketsMojo flagged “exceptional trading volume” in PNB on the day, with more than 1.08 crore shares traded by mid-morning, and noted that the stock was outperforming both the PSU bank space and the Sensex on a one‑day basis. ^[4]

Macro backdrop: RBI rate cut lifts banks, especially PSUs

The RBI Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on 5 December cut the repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.25%, its first move after two consecutive pauses, while retaining a “neutral” stance. The decision came against the backdrop of GDP growth at 8.2% in Q2 FY26, a six‑quarter high, and concerns about rupee weakness. ^[5]

Rate‑sensitive pockets reacted quickly:

The Nifty PSU Bank index climbed around 0.8%, outperforming the broader Nifty and Bank Nifty.
Market reports highlighted Punjab National Bank and State Bank of India among the key gainers in the banking pack following the policy announcement. ^[6]

Lower policy rates typically help banks through:

Cheaper funding costs over time.
Potential pickup in credit demand, particularly in retail, housing and SME segments.
A tailwind for public-sector banks, which are often central to government-led credit growth and infrastructure financing.

PNB’s move higher on a heavy‑news macro day is thus closely tied to this easing cycle narrative.

A volatile week: from FDI jitters to rate‑cut relief

The RBI‑driven bounce comes right after a rough mid‑week session for PSU banks:

On 3 December 2025, PSU bank stocks fell sharply after the government clarified there was no proposal to raise foreign direct investment (FDI) limits in public sector banks beyond the current 20%.
The Nifty PSU Bank index dropped about 3.2%, with Indian Bank down as much as 7% and PNB and Canara Bank falling more than 4% intraday. ^[7]

At the individual stock level, MarketsMojo recorded that:

On 3 December, PNB hit an intraday low of ₹121.65, down about 3% during the session and roughly 5% below its 52‑week high at that point.
Despite the short‑term pressure, the stock was still up strongly over 3‑ and 5‑year horizons, significantly outperforming the benchmark indices. ^[8]

Putting the last fortnight together:

PNB repeatedly hit new 52‑week highs around ₹126–127.8 in late November and early December. ^[9]
The FDI‑related sell‑off triggered a brief correction, but the RBI rate cut and continued PSU‑bank optimism have helped stabilize the stock back near the ₹120–122 zone.

For investors, this pattern underscores that policy headlines (FDI, mergers, provisioning rules) are as important as fundamentals in driving near‑term PNB moves.

Fundamentals in focus: Q2 FY26 results and asset quality

PNB’s latest reported quarter is Q2 FY26 (July–September 2025), and the numbers are central to the current valuation story.

Profitability

According to exchange filings and syndicated coverage:

Standalone net profit for Q2 FY26 came in at about ₹4,904 crore, up ~14% year‑on‑year vs ₹4,303 crore in Q2 FY25. ^[10]
Operating profit rose to about ₹7,227 crore, up ~5.5% YoY. ^[11]
Total income for the quarter was roughly ₹36,214 crore, up 5.1% YoY; for H1 FY26, income grew about 10.3% YoY to ₹73,445 crore. ^[12]

However, there is a nuance that matters for bank‑stock specialists:

Net interest income (NII) in Q2 FY26 declined ~5% YoY to ₹10,469 crore, while the global net interest margin (NIM) slipped to 2.60% from 2.92% a year earlier, reflecting funding‑cost pressure and competitive lending rates. ^[13]

In short: headline profit is growing, but core margin metrics are under mild pressure, something brokerages are watching carefully.

Asset quality

Where PNB has clearly improved is on bad loans:

Gross NPA ratio fell to 3.45% as of September 2025, down from 4.48% a year earlier.
Net NPA ratio improved to 0.36% versus 0.46% in September 2024. ^[14]

In earlier commentary this year, PNB’s management has targeted a sub‑3% gross NPA ratio in FY26 – which would be a record low for the bank – backed by a step‑up in recoveries and write‑back of legacy stressed assets. ^[15]

Growth and business scale

Screener and company data show:

Global business (deposits + advances) grew about 10.6% YoY to roughly ₹27.9 trillion as of September 2025. ^[16]
Global deposits increased 10.9% YoY to around ₹16.17 trillion, while savings and current deposits grew 4.2% and 9%, respectively. ^[17]

Management commentary suggests credit growth of 11–12% in FY26, with a deliberate tilt toward RAM – Retail, Agriculture and MSME – where PNB aims to push the loan book share to about 58% in FY26, up from 56% in FY25, to cushion margin volatility from big-ticket corporate loans. ^[18]

Valuation snapshot: PNB still trades near book value

On popular data platforms, PNB currently screens as a large‑cap PSU bank with modest valuation multiples:

Market cap: ~₹1.40 trillion.
Current price: around ₹121–122 (intra‑day on 5 December). ^[19]
Book value per share: ~₹124.
Price‑to‑book (P/B): roughly 0.98×.
Trailing P/E: around 8.2×.
Dividend yield: ~2.3–2.4%. ^[20]

Screener highlights a few key positives and negatives:

Pros (structural): ^[21]

Stock trades just under book value, attractive versus private‑sector peers.
Net profit has compounded at about 111% per year over the last five years, reflecting the post‑COVID clean‑up and recovery.
The bank has maintained a ~19% dividend payout, signalling willingness to return capital as profits normalize.

Flags (risks):

Contingent liabilities remain very large (∼₹6.9 trillion), not unusual for a big PSU bank but still a watch point.
Historically low average ROE over 3–5 years, although the latest ROE is now ~15%, pointing to a more normalized return profile.

In valuation terms, PNB is no longer a distressed, deep‑value play, but still cheaper than most private banks and trades near the middle of the PSU pack.

Mega PSB merger blueprint: PNB is one of the four “core” banks

One of the biggest medium‑term narratives for PNB is the government’s proposed mega public‑sector bank (PSB) consolidation.

A Moneycontrol exclusive and subsequent summaries indicate that the Finance Ministry is working on a blueprint to reduce the number of PSBs from 12 to just 4 by FY27, with: ^[22]

State Bank of India (SBI)
Punjab National Bank (PNB)
Bank of Baroda (BoB)
A merged Canara–Union Bank entity

as the likely four surviving large state‑owned lenders.

Key points of this blueprint:

Smaller PSBs such as Indian Bank, UCO Bank, Bank of Maharashtra, Central Bank of India and others could be absorbed into SBI, PNB or BoB over time. ^[23]
Objectives include stronger balance sheets, operating efficiency, rationalised branch networks and globally competitive scale.

For PNB shareholders, the implications are two‑sided:

Potential positives

A larger merged PNB franchise could enjoy better operating leverage, stronger cross‑sell, and more clout in corporate and infrastructure lending.
Historically, successful PSB mergers (like PNB’s earlier absorption of Oriental Bank of Commerce and United Bank) have eventually led to re‑rating once integration issues are worked through. ^[24]

Execution risks

Integrating multiple mid‑sized PSBs can strain capital ratios, technology systems and HR.
There is likely to be a long period of headline risk and elevated volatility as plans move from blueprint to Cabinet approvals and then to on‑ground execution.

As of 5 December 2025, this remains a policy plan, not a notified scheme, but it is already shaping how the market values PNB and its peers.

New ECL rules: ₹9,000 crore provisioning hit, spread over years

Another structural change for banks is the Expected Credit Loss (ECL) framework that the RBI plans to roll out from April 2027, with a transition period until 2031.

PNB has been one of the first PSBs to quantify the impact:

Management estimates an additional provisioning requirement of around ₹9,000 crore (₹90 billion) over the transition period. ^[25]
This equates to roughly 0.85 percentage points of capital ratio (CRAR), with current CRAR around 17.2%, leaving the bank well above regulatory minimums even after the hit. ^[26]

ECL is fundamentally a risk‑management upgrade: instead of recognising provisions only when loans go bad, banks must model expected losses forward‑looking and provide earlier.

For PNB, the key takeaway is that:

The absolute number (₹9,000 crore) looks big, but
Spread over several years, management believes it can be absorbed through profits without aggressive capital raising. ^[27]

Nonetheless, ECL is likely to cap near‑term earnings upgrades for the sector, including PNB, and remains a valuation overhang markets will price in.

What brokerages and analyst platforms are saying about PNB

Street targets and consensus view

Different platforms currently show a cluster of target prices in the ₹130–140 zone, with some caution about the recent rally:

Trendlyne compiles 8 reports from 5 analysts with an average target of about ₹136.2, implying roughly 12% upside from current levels (~₹121–122). ^[28]
Investing.com’s 19‑analyst consensus shows an overall “Neutral” rating on PNB, with an average 12‑month target of around ₹121, effectively flat versus today’s price, and a range of approximately ₹90–136. ^[29]

In other words, opinion is split: some models see modest further upside, while the broader sell‑side is signalling that a lot of the turnaround story is already in the price.

Brokerage calls

Recent detailed notes and media‑reported calls include:

Motilal Oswal (fundamental) – maintains BUY with a target of ₹135 (about 1.0× FY27E adjusted book value). The brokerage expects PNB to deliver about 1.03% RoA and 15.4% RoE in FY27, supported by improved asset quality and stable credit growth. ^[30]
Mirae Asset / Sharekhan (technical) – suggests buying PNB in the ₹121–122 zone with a stop loss at ₹115 and target of ₹135, citing a symmetrical triangle pattern above key moving averages and positive momentum indicators. ^[31]
Business Standard technical screen – lists PNB among PSU banks that can rally up to ~9–10%, assigning a technical target of ₹133, with support at ₹114–117 and resistance bands at ₹124 and ₹127. ^[32]
A swing‑trading note from MNCL Research suggests accumulating PNB between ₹110 and ₹118 for a short‑term upside towards ₹130–145, again leaning on a constructive chart setup. ^[33]

Across these views, a rough pattern emerges:

Most technicians see support in the ₹114–119 band.
Many fundamental houses cluster targets between ₹133 and ₹140.
Aggressive targets beyond that generally assume very smooth PSB mergers and strong credit cycle tailwinds.

Technical picture: consolidation near the top

Technical dashboards and price history paint PNB as a stock consolidating near its highs rather than in deep correction:

The stock is trading above its 50‑, 100‑ and 200‑day moving averages, signalling a positive medium‑ to long‑term trend. ^[34]
However, it has recently traded below its 5‑ and 20‑day moving averages, reflecting short‑term consolidation after a series of 52‑week highs in late November and early December. ^[35]
Over the past three to five years, PNB has delivered strong positive returns, but over a 10‑year horizon, it still lags the broader market, a reminder of the deep clean‑up phase it went through in the late 2010s and early 2020s. ^[36]

In short, trend followers still see PNB as being in a structural uptrend, but buy‑on‑dips rather than chase‑at‑highs remains the dominant technical narrative.

Key risks and triggers to watch in 2026

As of 5 December 2025, investors in Punjab National Bank stock are weighing several major drivers:

RBI rate path and margins
- Further rate cuts could support credit growth but also compress NIMs, especially if deposit rates stay sticky.
- PNB’s Q2 FY26 numbers already show NIM compression, so the focus is on whether loan‑book mix (RAM) and fee income can offset this. ^[37]
Mega PSB merger decisions
- Any formal Cabinet announcement or roadmap on PSB consolidation – naming which banks might be merged into PNB and on what timeline – will be a major stock catalyst, positive or negative, depending on perceived integration risk. ^[38]
ECL implementation details
- The RBI’s final ECL guidelines, modelling expectations and transition roadmap will determine how quickly the ₹9,000‑crore hit flows through PNB’s P&L. ^[39]
Asset‑quality trajectory
- Sustaining gross NPAs below 3% and net NPAs near 0.3–0.4% will be critical to justifying current and higher valuations.
- Markets will watch slippage trends in RAM segments as the bank tilts more heavily toward retail and MSME lending. ^[40]
Regulatory and FDI policy
- The FDI‑limit scare in early December, which knocked PSU banks by 3–7% in a single session, shows how sensitive the sector is to policy headlines. Any revival of proposals around higher foreign ownership or stake sales could again change the calculus. ^[41]

Bottom line: where PNB stands after the 5 December RBI policy

As of 5 December 2025, Punjab National Bank sits at an interesting intersection of macro tailwinds, structural reforms and policy uncertainty:

The stock is trading near the upper end of its 52‑week range, backed by improving profitability and asset quality. ^[42]
Valuations remain reasonable at ~0.98× book and ~8× earnings, leaving room for upside if PSB mergers and ECL transition are executed smoothly. ^[43]
Street opinion is divided: some brokerages see double‑digit upside toward ₹135–140, while broader consensus has shifted to “neutral” with more modest expectations. ^[44]

For investors tracking PNB stock into 2026, the thesis is no longer just about “turnaround from crisis.” It is about whether PNB can:

Lock in record‑low bad‑loan ratios,
Manage ECL and merger‑related shocks, and
Deliver sustainable 1%‑plus RoA and mid‑teens RoE in a more competitive, tech‑driven banking landscape.