HCL Technologies shares fell on Thursday after Citi retained its ‘sell’ rating on the IT services major, citing its valuation premium to large-cap peers even as the brokerage acknowledged progress in artificial intelligence (AI) and opportunities in the data-centre business.
The HCL Tech stock was down 1.5 percent at Rs 1,211 in morning trade, making it the top loser on both the Nifty 50 and Nifty IT indices. The stock has fallen around 26 percent so far in 2026, compared with a 10.3 percent decline in the Nifty 50.
Citi maintained its ‘sell’ call on HCL Tech with a target price of Rs 1,110 per share, implying downside of around 10 percent from Wednesday’s closing price. At the prevailing price, HCL Technologies had a market capitalisation of just under Rs 3.29 lakh crore. It has an adjusted P/E multiple of 18.4x, according to NSE data.
The brokerage said the demand environment for HCL Tech remained largely unchanged, with the business seeing the usual seasonal trends. While advanced AI represents a new total addressable market (TAM) and HCL Tech is making good progress in the segment, Citi remains cautious on the stock because its valuation premium to large-cap IT peers persists.
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