Promoter Shareholding in Listed Companies Reaches Three-Year High of 41.93% in September Quarter

Promoters of private sector companies increased their stakes for the second consecutive quarter, pushing combined shareholding to 41.93 per cent as of September 30, 2026. Meanwhile, domestic mutual fund ownership reached a record high, while Foreign Institutional Investors continued to reduce their exposure to Indian equities.

Promoters of private sector companies increased their stake in listed firms for the second consecutive quarter, taking their combined shareholding to a three-year high of 41.93 per cent as of September 30, 2026. The data was released by the PRIME Database Group.

The shareholding of private promoters rose from 41.34 per cent in the June quarter to 41.93 per cent in the September quarter, indicating a gradual recovery following several years of a downward trend. Private promoters were net buyers of shares worth Rs 6,595 crore during the September quarter, marking their fourth consecutive quarter of net buying. In the previous quarter, they had purchased shares worth Rs 36,336 crore, which was the highest net buying in four years.

Promoter ownership had been on a declining path since December 2021, when their combined shareholding stood at 45.15 per cent. The share of Indian private promoters dropped from 36.89 per cent in December 2021 to 32.21 per cent in March 2026. During the same period, foreign promoters' share increased marginally from 8.25 per cent to 8.36 per cent. However, both categories recorded an increase in the September quarter, with Indian private promoters rising to 32.92 per cent and foreign promoters increasing to 9 per cent.

Pranav Haldea, Managing Director of PRIME Database Group, noted that the continuous rise in promoter ownership could suggest that the market is nearing a bottom. According to Haldea, promoter buying is consistently viewed as a positive sign, even though promoter selling can occur for various reasons.

Concurrently, domestic mutual funds continued to expand their holdings in Indian equities. Their shareholding in NSE-listed companies reached a fresh all-time high of 11.82 per cent in the September quarter, up from 11.58 per cent in the previous quarter. This marks the 13th consecutive quarter of growth in mutual fund ownership.

In contrast, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) further reduced their exposure to Indian equities. Their shareholding declined to a 14-year low of 15.57 per cent as of September 30, 2026, dropping from 15.91 per cent in the June quarter. As a result of these shifts, the gap between mutual funds and FII ownership narrowed by 58 basis points during the quarter to 3.75 percentage points, having more than halved over the past two years from 8.09 percentage points in September 2024.

Overall, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) increased their shareholding in NSE-listed companies to an all-time high of 19.31 per cent in the September quarter, compared with 19.16 per cent in the previous quarter. This overall increase occurred despite a decline in the shareholding of insurance companies, which fell from 5.18 per cent to 5.05 per cent during the same period.

"The steady increase in promoter shareholding alongside rising domestic mutual fund ownership highlights a strong underlying confidence in the domestic market. When promoters actively buy back stakes and DII participation strengthens despite FII outflows, it points to a maturing domestic investment ecosystem. For entrepreneurs and businesses navigating the broader capital markets, these shifting ownership patterns reflect a resilient domestic liquidity foundation that is steadily shaping equity valuations." — Dr. Shishir Gupta, Founder & CEO, StartupLanes