Bajaj Finance: Up 4000% in last 10 years but negative in 2024 so far, should you buy the stock?

livemint.com:

₹7,229.10, the scrip is almost 12 percent away from its record high of ₹8,192.00, hit on October 6, 2023. But, it has recovered 25 percent from its 52-week low of ₹5,780, hit on April 12, 2023. Meanwhile, in the long term, shares of Bajaj Finance have delivered over 4000 percent return to their shareholders in the last 10 years.

In the December quarter,Bajaj Finance posted a 22.40 percent year-on-year (YoY) rise in its consolidated net profit at ₹3,638.95 crore as against ₹2,973 crore in the same period last fiscal. Meanwhile, its revenue from operations during the quarter under review grew 31.28 percent to ₹14,161.09 crore versus ₹10,787.25 crore in the corresponding period last year. The NBFC's assets under management (AUM) jumped 35 percent to ₹3,10,968 crore as of December 31, 2023 from ₹2,30,842 crore in Q3FY23.

Meanwhile, its net interest income rose 29 percent in the quarter under review to ₹7,655 crore as compared to ₹5,922 crore in the same period last year. The lender's asset quality also improved in Q3FY24 with its gross NPA (non-performing asset) and net NPA at 0.95 percent and 0.37 percent, respectively. Its GNPA and NNPA were 1.14 percent and 0.41 percent in the corresponding period last fiscal.

Despite such a stellar long-term return, the stock has been underperforming in recent times. Will its performance improve? Here's what technical and fundamental experts say: After a significant rise in the recent past, the stock price of Bajaj Finance currently remains in a consolidation phase. When we look at the weekly chart, the primary trend continues to be bullish.