SBI beats ONGC again; emerges as most-valued PSU unit

COUNTRY's largest lendr State Bank of India on April 19 yet again beat energy giant ONGC to become the country's most-valued PSU by market valuation.
In the past few days, a game of musical chair was being played out between SBI and ONGC for the title of most-valued PSU.
SBI on April 18 for the first time toppled ONGC as the most-valued PSU. The market capitalisation (m-cap) of SBI at the end of Thursday's trade stood at... Rs. 2,31,049.83 crore. This was Rs. 757.42 crore more than ONGC's valuation of Rs. 2,30,292.41 crore.
ONGC has been the country's most valued firm across private and public sectors for some time a few years ago, when it first toppled RIL from the top of the charts and then also TCS from the pole position.
Shares of SBI rose by 0.25 per cent to close at Rs. 284.90, while ONGC ended at Rs. 179.45, down 0.22 per cent on BSE.
In the top-10 ranking, SBI stands at sixth place and ONGC at seventh spot.
TCS is the most-valued Indian firm with a market valuation of Rs. 4,58,784.59 crore, followed by RIL (Rs. 4,45,237.53 crore), HDFC Bank (Rs. 3,74,631.37 crore), ITC (Rs. 3,39,397.88 crore), HDFC (Rs. 2,40,992.68 crore), SBI, ONGC, Infosys (Rs. 2,13,076.07 crore), IOC (Rs. 2,07,589.94 crore) and HUL (Rs. 1,98,276.07 crore).
Earlier, the shares of SBI closed at a 25-month high after merger, gaining for the ninth straight trading session.
The stock closed at Rs 296.70, a level last seen on 3 March 2015, up 1.21 percent from its previous close. In the last nine sessions, it has gained 10.9 percent and so far this year, it is up 18.8 percent. India’s benchmark Sensex index rose 0.21 percent to close at 29974.24 points.
On 1 April, State Bank of India (SBI) merged its five associate banks—State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur (SBBJ), State Bank of Hyderabad (SBH), State Bank of Mysore (SBM), State Bank of Patiala (SBP) and State Bank of Travancore (SBT)—and Bharatiya Mahila Bank (BMB) -- with itself.