TCS share price hits 52-week low, market cap slips below ₹10 lakh crore for first time since December 2020

TCS share: IT major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) share price tumbled over 5% to hit its 52-week low of ₹2,752.75 in intra-day deals on Thursday, February 12, 2026 amid the broader AI-led tech selloff.

This marked the first instance since December 2020 that the market capitalisation of the IT major slipped below the ₹10 lakh crore level. At the time of filing this report, its market value stood at ₹9.97 lakh crore.

Private sector lender ICICI Bank overtook TCS to become the fifth-largest Indian company by market capitalisation on February 12. This development comes a day after State Bank of India (SBI) surpassed the IT major to claim the fourth position. ICICI Bank’s market capitalisation stood at ₹10.09 lakh crore.

Meanwhile, Reliance Industries continued to be India’s most valuable company, with a market capitalisation of ₹19.7 lakh crore, followed by HDFC Bank and Bharti Airtel.

The decline came following weakness in Wall Street technology stocks. The decline followed a stronger-than-expected US January jobs report, which failed to lift investor sentiment amid persistent concerns over artificial intelligence–led disruption in traditional IT services.

Back home, Nifty IT shed over 4% in intra-day deals today with all contituents in the red. Coforge, Infosys, HCL Tech, Persistent Systems, Tech Mahindra shed over 4% each.

Reasons for the fall

US job growth surprised on the upside in January, while the unemployment rate fell to 4.3%. The data signalled labour market resilience, potentially allowing the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates unchanged for longer as it monitors inflation. The stronger data also pushed the US dollar higher, dampening hopes of near-term rate cuts. Investors are now awaiting key US inflation data due on Friday for further clarity on the policy outlook.

US equities closed lower on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 66.74 points, or 0.13%, to 50,121.40. The S&P 500 edged down by less than one point to 6,941.47, while the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.16% to 23,066.47. Microsoft shares fell 2.2%, emerging as the biggest drag on the S&P 500, while Alphabet declined 2.4%. The S&P 500 software index dropped 2.6%, even as broader markets ended largely flat.

Should you still buy IT stocks?

Offering a contrarian view on the sharp sell-off in IT stocks, Pranay Aggarwal, Director and CEO of Stoxkart, said the recent market reaction appears driven more by sentiment than fundamentals.

“While fears of disruption to outsourcing revenues have triggered aggressive selling, this looks like short-term anxiety rather than structural damage, as AI also expands opportunities in implementation, oversight and higher-value services,” Aggarwal said.

He believes the Indian IT sector is more likely to evolve than weaken as artificial intelligence adoption accelerates. According to Aggarwal, automation will challenge labour-intensive business models, forcing companies to pivot toward AI-led services, digital transformation, cloud, cybersecurity and higher-value consulting. He noted that IT firms are already converting smaller AI projects into larger mandates, while overall industry growth is still seen in the 6–7% range, supported by rising demand for specialised digital skills.

Disclaimer: The views and recommendations made above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, and not of Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.