15 Stocks Where Heavy FII Selling Could Put Pressure on Share Prices
Jefferies report highlights 15 large-cap stocks where foreign investor ownership remains much higher than domestic institutional holdings.
Quick Summary
Jefferies identified 15 large-cap stocks where FII holdings remain higher than DII ownership as of March 2026. Stocks including HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Finance and GMR Airports could face pressure if foreign investors continue selling, as domestic institutions have not increased holdings enough to offset the outflows.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) have been continuously reducing their exposure to Indian equities over the last several months. While Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) such as mutual funds and insurance companies have absorbed a large part of this selling in the broader market, there are still several large-cap stocks where foreign investors continue to hold a much bigger share than domestic institutions.
According to a report by Jefferies, around 15 stocks still have a very high FII-to-DII holding ratio as of March 2026. This means that if foreign investors continue to sell, these companies may face pressure because domestic institutions have not meaningfully increased their ownership in these names.
Since September 2024, FIIs have pulled out nearly $53 billion from Indian equities. FY26 alone recorded outflows of around $21 billion, making it one of the biggest yearly sell-offs by foreign investors.
Stocks Where FII Holdings Remain Much Higher Than DIIs
|
Stock |
FII Holding (Mar’26) |
DII Holding (Mar’26) |
|
GMR Airports |
20% |
5% |
|
Torrent Pharma |
16% |
6% |
|
JSW Steel |
25% |
11% |
|
HDFC AMC |
24% |
11% |
|
Eicher Motors |
27% |
13% |
|
Marico |
24% |
12% |
|
Hero MotoCorp |
31% |
16% |
|
Apollo Hospitals |
43% |
22% |
|
Hindalco Industries |
34% |
19% |
|
Adani Enterprises |
11% |
7% |
|
HDFC Bank |
52% |
32% |
|
Bajaj Finance |
21% |
13% |
|
Bharti Airtel |
28% |
19% |
|
Wipro |
11% |
7% |
|
ICICI Bank |
52% |
37% |
Source: ACE Equity, Jefferies, ETMarkets
Among these companies, GMR Airports Infrastructure has the biggest gap between foreign and domestic institutional ownership. FIIs currently hold 20% in the company, while DII ownership stands at only 5%.
Torrent Pharma and JSW Steel also continue to see higher foreign ownership compared to domestic institutions. In financial stocks such as HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Bajaj Finance, FIIs still own a large portion of shares despite strong participation from domestic investors in the broader market.
Why Are These Stocks Important?
The concern is not only about foreign investors selling shares. The bigger issue is that domestic institutions have not increased their holdings enough in these companies to balance the outflows.
Over the last one year, DIIs have aggressively invested in several sectors and companies, helping Indian markets remain relatively stable despite continuous foreign selling. DII ownership in BSE 500 companies has now reached record levels, while FII ownership has fallen to multi-year lows.
However, this shift has not happened evenly across all stocks. In these 15 companies, foreign ownership still remains much higher than domestic ownership, which could lead to sharper moves if global funds continue reducing exposure to India.
Why Foreign Investors Remain Cautious on India?
Jefferies believes valuations continue to remain one of the key concerns for foreign investors. Despite recent corrections, Indian markets still trade at a premium compared to many other emerging markets.
At the same time, countries like Taiwan and South Korea are attracting strong global flows due to rapid growth in semiconductor and technology companies such as TSMC and Samsung Electronics.
Jefferies also noted that many global emerging market funds are currently underweight on India compared to their benchmark allocations.
Which Stocks Are Seeing Strong DII Support?
Not all stocks are facing pressure.
Jefferies identified several companies where domestic institutions now hold more shares than FIIs.
Some notable names include:
-
Kotak Mahindra Bank
-
Godrej Consumer Products
-
Siemens
-
JSW Energy
-
Mankind Pharma
-
InterGlobe Aviation
These stocks may face relatively lower pressure from future FII selling because domestic investors already have stronger ownership.
Conclusion
Indian markets have seen a major change in ownership trends over the last few years, with domestic investors playing a much larger role than before. Even so, some large-cap stocks still remain heavily influenced by foreign institutional ownership.
If FII selling continues in the coming months, stocks where domestic participation remains relatively low compared to foreign holdings could remain under pressure.