LIC buys Maruti Suzuki shares worth Rs 68 crore, insurer's stake in automaker crosses 5%

State-run insurer and India's largest institutional investor, Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), bought 51,750 shares of automaker Maruti Suzuki on June 3, effectively taking its stake in India’s largest carmaker above the 5% ownership threshold.

In an exchange filing, LIC announced that it bought the shares through a market purchase, which would be worth nearly Rs 67.61 crore at Maruti Suzuki’s previous closing price of Rs 13,064 apiece on the NSE. Before the transaction, LIC held 1.57 crore shares or a 4.989% stake in the automaker. After the latest purchase, LIC owns a 5.006% stake in Maruti Suzuki.

This comes as Maruti Suzuki shares declined nearly 3% in one month and around 22% in 2026 so far. In the longer term, the shares of the automaker gained 8% in one year, over 36% in three years and nearly 81% in five years.

Maruti Suzuki launches India's first flex-fuel car

Maruti Suzuki on Thursday launched what it called India's first flex-fuel passenger car. Speaking at the launch event, Managing Director and CEO Hisashi Takeuchi said the introduction of the flex-fuel Wagon R marked more than the debut of a new vehicle and represented "a new chapter in India's energy journey."

Speaking about India's dependence on imported crude oil, Takeuchi said the country needed energy solutions that were "cleaner, affordable, scalable, and based on India's own strengths. India has two national objectives: First, reduce dependence on imported crude oil. Second, reduce carbon emissions. Flex-fuel meets both. It is truly Atmanirbhar and clean.”

LIC bought shares worth around Rs 18,500 crore (nearly $2 billion) in several companies, including Bajaj Finance, Bharti Airtel and others, during the January-March quarter of the financial year 2026, even as markets crashed due to several headwinds, including the Iran-US war, AI-led disruption worries and more. The state-run insurer had bought shares of Maruti Suzuki worth Rs 1,374 crore during Q4 FY26.

The shares of LIC, meanwhile, fell more than 3% in one week and 7% in 2026 so far. The stock declined 17% in one year, but gained over 33% in three years.

Also read: Maruti Suzuki to invest Rs 925 crore by FY31 towards green energy initiatives

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