Early Gains

Market by Sectors

2015-04-30T14:05:00.001+05:30

Chemicals	Pharma and Health
Consumer	Energy
Finance/Banks	Metals
Industrials	Transport and Trading
Autos	Infrastructure
Textiles	Technology
Media and Telecom	Commodities ETFs (US Exchanges)
Indices and Pivotal Stocks	NI 15
NIFTY STOCKS	JUNIOR NIFTY STOCKS

TOP MUTUAL FUNDS INDIA - BEST PERFORMERS
(Relative Score takes into account 5-year performance)

Top Dividend Yield Mutual Funds in India

2011-12-25T22:50:00.002+05:30

Best Gilt Funds in India Mutual Funds

2011-12-25T16:35:00.001+05:30

Best Large Cap Funds in India (Mutual Funds)

2011-12-25T12:54:00.004+05:30

Best Performing and Top Long Term Debt Funds in India

2011-12-24T18:42:00.005+05:30

AUM of at least 100 crores Performance over different periods of time are taken into account. Source of data: moneycontrol.com

Best Midcap and Smallcap mutual funds in India

2011-12-12T21:07:00.006+05:30

Best Performing Debt Funds and Income Funds among Top Debt Mutual Funds in India

2011-11-27T12:05:00.006+05:30

Top 10 Large Cap Mutual Funds in India

2011-11-21T22:31:00.005+05:30

The Top 20 and Best Performing Ultra Short-term Debt Funds in India

2011-11-13T20:00:00.004+05:30

Interest rates could stabilize over the next 6 months. Short –term funds had a good run this year on account of RBI’s monetary policy.

There is a likelihood of a pause, and these Ultra Short-term Debt Funds schemes may not be as attractive going forward. The higher returns seen in this category may not sustain for more than 3-6 months.

We will cover the medium/long-term income funds in another post. The following table ranks the ultra short-term debt funds based on a longer term horizon. Only funds with AUM over 100 crores have been considered for this analysis.

Birla Sunlife Floating Rate Fund, JM Money Manager, Birla SL Ultra Short Term, BNP Paribas Money Plus, and Kotak Floater are the top five. These funds are clocking close to 9% this year, and couple of these might provide 10%. That’s awesome considering the performance of the equity markets. Investors can ride this wave while slowly starting to increase exposure to medium/long-term or gilt and dynamic bond funds.

FUND	CRISIL RANK	AUM (Rs Cr)	1mo	3mo	6mo	1yr	3yr	5yr	EARLYGAINS RANK
Birla SL FRF - LTP - RP	Rank 1	130.17	0.7	2.3	4.7	8.8	7.8	8.2	1
JM Money Manager Fund -SPP	Rank 3	753.16	0.8	2.3	4.6	8.9	6.8	7.7	2
Birla SL Ultra Short Term -RP	Rank 1	265.97	0.7	2.3	4.5	8.7	6.5	7.6	2
BNP Paribas Money Plus - RP	Rank 3	133.17	0.7	2.1	4.3	8.6	7	7.7	4
Kotak Floater LTP	Rank 3	4031.15	0.7	2.2	4.6	8.9	7	7.7	5
Principal NTF - Conservative	Rank 3	403.75	0.7	2.2	4.6	8.9	6.7	7.6	6
Reliance Floating Rate	Rank 5	1218.58	0.7	2.1	4.5	8.7	6.8	7.6	7
JM Money Manager Fund -SP	Rank 2	203.22	0.8	2.4	4.8	9.4	7.5	7.8	8
Tata Floater Fund	Rank 2	4672.52	0.7	2.3	4.6	9	6.9	7.6	8
Principal NT - Moderate Plan	Rank 2	185.29	0.7	2.2	4.2	8.6	6.5	7.4	10
HDFC Float Rate Inc-STP RP	Rank 2	640.13	0.7	2.1	4.3	8.4	6.5	7.3	11
DWS Ultra STF - RP	Rank 3	117.07	0.7	2.2	4.5	8.5	6.5	7.3	12
Kotak Flexi Debt	Rank 5	188.42	0.7	2.1	4.4	8.2	6.1	7.1	13
HDFC CMF-Treasury Advg	Rank 1	6598.17	0.7	2.1	4.3	8.4	6.5	7.2	14
Birla SL Saving Fund - RP	Rank 3	575.92	0.7	2.2	4.5	8.6	6.5	7.2	15
L&T Freedom Inc -STF -G	Rank 3	545.58	0.7	2.2	4.5	8.8	6.5	7.2	16
ICICI Pru Floating RP - A	Rank 1	380	0.7	2	4.1	8	5.9	6.9	17
JM Money Manager Fund -RP	Rank 3	288.74	0.8	2.4	4.9	9.5	6.7	7.2	18
UTI Floating Rate -STP-RP	Rank 3	482.16	0.6	1.9	4	8.1	6.6	7.1	18
Birla Sun Life Cash Manager	Rank 4	713.11	0.7	2.2	4.4	8.4	6.3	7	20

Source of Data: Moneycontrol.com

Best Performing Floating Rate Funds returning over 9%

2011-11-06T14:04:00.002+05:30

The policy-tightening cycle might be near its end.

FUND		Can Robeco Float Rate-STP
L&T Short Term FRF
SBI Magnum Income - FRP - LTP
HDFC Float Rate Inc-LTP
SBI Magnum Income - FRP - SPBP
Tata Floater Fund
Principal NTF - Conservative
Kotak Floater LTP
ICICI Pru Floating Rate -D
Kotak Floater STP
Birla SL FRF - LTP - RP
Reliance Floating Rate
Principal NT - Moderate Plan
Birla SL FRF - STP - RP
HDFC Float Rate Inc-STP RP
Tata Money Market Fund - RP
Templeton FRIF (RP)
IDFC MMF-Invest. - RP A
ICICI Pru Floating RP - C
HSBC FRF - LTP (RP)
ICICI Pru Floating RP - A
ICICI Pru Floating RP - B
Tata Floating Rate - LTP
LIC NOMURA Floating Rate

The best place to park money right now is in ultra short-term mutual funds.
Here are some top ultra short-term funds providing handsome returns.
Many of these best performing funds have to holding period of 45-90 days to avoid exit load (0.5-1%).

The table provides 3-month returns for ultra short-term debt mutual funds.


Fund	NAV (Date)	Returns(%)	Return as on

Sundaram SD Short-term	17.27 (29-Sep)	3.84	9/29/2011
Religare Short-term Plan A	13.73 (29-Sep)	2.76	9/29/2011
Religare Short-term Plan B	13.86 (29-Sep)	2.62	9/29/2011
Pramerica Short Term Income	1,070.05 (29-Sep)	2.46	9/29/2011
JP Morgan India Short Term Income	11.17 (29-Sep)	2.45	9/29/2011
Peerless Short Term	11.31 (29-Sep)	2.43	9/29/2011
Peerless Ultra Short Term Super Inst	11.21 (29-Sep)	2.41	9/29/2011
Sundaram Flexible Fund Short Term Inst	16.16 (29-Sep)	2.41	9/29/2011
Religare Credit Opportunities Inst	11.50 (29-Sep)	2.41	9/29/2011
DWS Short Maturity Premium Plus	10.61 (29-Sep)	2.40	9/29/2011
source: valueresearchonline.com

Top Performing Floating Rate Mutual Funds (Debt Funds)

2011-09-30T19:39:00.006+05:30

It’s not clear when the policy-tightening cycle will end. This is the time to lock some money in fixed income instruments such as bonds and fixed deposits. Floating rate instruments give a market related rates of return without much added price volatility. The interest rates are high, interest payments in floating rate instruments also go higher. Here are floating rate mutual funds (debt funds) that have done well recently with increasing rates.

FUND	AUM (Rs Cr)	NAV	1wk	1mo	3mo	6mo	1yr
Tata Floating Rate - LTP	2.97	14.93	0.1	0.6	2.4	4	7.2
Birla SunLife Floating Rate - LTP	129.73	17.60	0.2	0.8	2.3	4.7	8.5
HDFC Floating Rate Inc-LTP	1,024.56	17.7	0.2	0.8	2.3	5.1	9
Kotak Floater LTP	3,990.71	16.3	0.1	0.7	2.3	4.6	8.6
Tata Floater Fund	5,375.28	15.33	0.2	0.7	2.3	4.6	8.7
Principal NTF - Conservative	830.34	16.22	0.2	0.7	2.3	4.6	8.5
Canara Robeco Float Rate-STP	239.45	15.93	0.2	0.8	2.3	4.8	9.1
L&T Short Term FRF	1.32	14.88	0.2	0.7	2.3	4.6	8.7
SBI Magnum Income - FRP - SPBP	250.80	15.88	0.1	0.7	2.3	4.7	8.9
Reliance Floating Rate	1,824.90	16.16	0.1	0.7	2.2	4.7	8.4

Birla Sunlife and HDFC’s floating rate funds are good bets.

Returns are absolute returns as of September 29, 2011.

Source of Data: Moneycontrol.com

Top Mutual Funds in Best Performing Equity Mutual Funds in India

2011-06-25T09:30:00.003+05:30

Do you want to ride the high short-term interest rates? Here are some selected new mutual fund instruments.

2011-06-18T07:10:00.010+05:30

With rates near cycle highs, investing in best fixed maturity plan FMP, short-term mutual funds, ultra short-term mutual funds and related fixed income instruments may be a better option. Equity investments at this stage require at least a 2-3 year horizon.
The following are new and selected short-term, ultra short-term, FMP mutual funds being offered by various AMCs as of June 18 2011.

For FMPs, the schemes focus on generating income and / or capital appreciation by investing in debt and money market instruments having maturity in line with the maturity of the scheme.

For new equity funds, think about whether you want to invest in schemes that already exist in the market.

Mutual Fund	HDFC Mutual Fund
Scheme Name	HDFC FMP 370D June 2011 (3)
Objective of Scheme	The investment objective of the Plans under the Scheme is to generate income through investments in Debt / Money Market Instruments and Government Securities maturing on or before the maturity date of the respective Plan(s).
Scheme Type	Close Ended
Scheme Category	Income
New Fund Launch Date	16-Jun-2011
New Fund Earliest Closure Date	22-Jun-2011
New Fund Offer Closure Date	22-Jun-2011
Indicate Load Separately	Entry Load : Not Applicable Exit Load : Not Applicable
Offer Price (Rs.)	10
Minimum Subscription Amount	5000
For Further Details Please Visit Website	www.hdfcfund.com

Mutual Fund	Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund
Scheme Name	Birla Sun Life Short Term FMP - Series 18
Objective of Scheme	The scheme seeks to generate income by investing in a portfolio of fixed income securities maturing on or before the duration of the scheme.
Scheme Type	Close Ended
Scheme Category	Income
New Fund Launch Date	16-Jun-2011
New Fund Earliest Closure Date
New Fund Offer Closure Date	22-Jun-2011
Indicate Load Separately	Entry Load: Nil Exit Load: Nil No redemption/repurchase of units shall be allowed prior to the maturity of the scheme. Investors wishing to exit may do so through stock exchange mode.
Offer Price (Rs.)	Rs. 10 per unit
Minimum Subscription Amount	Rs. 5,000/- and in multiples of Rs.10/- thereafter
For Further Details Please Visit Website	www.birlasunlife.com

Mutual Fund	IDFC Mutual Fund
Scheme Name	IDFC Fixed Maturity Plan - Yearly Series 43
Objective of Scheme	to seek to generate income by investing in a portfolio of debt and money market instruments maturing on or before the maturity of the scheme. There is no assurance or guarantee that the objectives of the scheme will be realized.
Scheme Type	Close Ended
Scheme Category	Income
New Fund Launch Date	17-Jun-2011
New Fund Earliest Closure Date
New Fund Offer Closure Date	22-Jun-2011
Indicate Load Separately	Entry Load: Nil Exit Load: Nil
Offer Price (Rs.)	Rs. 10/- per Unit
Minimum Subscription Amount	Rs 10000 and multiples of Re 10/-
For Further Details Please Visit Website	www.idfcmf.com

Mutual Fund	Reliance Mutual Fund
Scheme Name	Reliance Dual Advantage Fixed Tenure Fund - I - Plan L
Objective of Scheme	The Scheme seeks to generate returns and reduce interest rate volatility, through a portfolio of fixed income securities that are maturing on or before the maturity of the Scheme along with capital appreciation through equity exposure.
Scheme Type	Close Ended
Scheme Category	Income
New Fund Launch Date	10-Jun-2011
New Fund Earliest Closure Date
New Fund Offer Closure Date	24-Jun-2011
Indicate Load Separately	Entry Load - NIL, Exit Load - NIL
Offer Price (Rs.)	10/- per unit
Minimum Subscription Amount	Rs. 5,000/- per option and in multiples of Re. 1 t
For Further Details Please Visit Website	www.reliancemutual.com

The best performing Large-Cap Mutual Funds India

2011-06-04T21:00:00.021+05:30

The best performing Mutual Funds in Dividend Yield Mutual Funds India

2011-05-17T12:21:00.005+05:30

Intra-day trading, long-term capital gains, short-term capital gains and losses from a income tax perspective

2011-05-16T08:32:00.003+05:30

An active investor or trader need to be mindful, knowledgeable, and smart about income tax implications from such activities. Trading in shares may be treated as business income (speculative) or as capital gains (investment) depending on the situation.

Intra-day trading (and Futures and Options trading by individuals) is considered speculative business activity. From a tax standpoint, intraday trading will be handled under the head, ‘Profit from business and profession’. The income is added to your regular business/professional income and attract maximum tax as per your income tax slabs.

Delivery-based trading and trading from investment purposes are treated based on the time horizon (short-term or long-term). If shares are held for less than 12 months before selling, the gain or loss arising from that transaction is classified as Short Term. If shares are held for more than 12 months before selling, the gain or loss arising from that transaction is classified as Long Term.

How to treat such earnings?
Short-term Capital gains (STCG) and Long-term Capital gains (LTCG) apply when shares are held with a motive of investment and delivery-based trading. STCG or LTCG cannot be combined or adjusted with earnings from intra-day trading.

How to treat such losses?
Intra-day losses (from speculative business) can be set-off only against intra-day gains. Such losses can be carried forward for four assessment years and be offset only against gains from speculative business.
Capital losses from delivery-based trading can be set off against gains from investments, depending on whether they are short-term or long-term. Long-term capital loss can be set off only against LTCG and cannot be adjusted against any other other heads of income. On the other hand, short-term capital loss can be set off against STCG or LTCG. Also, unadjusted losses can be carried forward for eight assessment years.

So, declare the losses, actively square off short-term losses, and use the 4-year/8-year window to reduce taxes due to losses. One can also have two portfolios to differentiate intra-day and investment activities. The intra-day trading earnings will be combined with business income, and investment earnings can be treated as capital gains.

What about tax treatment on equity and debt mutual funds? Stay tuned.

New Mutual Fund Offers From Birla, Reliance & Tata AMC.

2011-05-13T08:30:00.001+05:30

The following are the new Mutual Fund offers From Birla, Reliance, Quantum, & Tata AMC.

Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund

Birla Sun Life Fixed Term Plan - Series DA

Birla Sun Life Gold ETF

Birla Sun Life Short Term FMP - Series 14

Quantum Mutual Fund

Quantum Gold Savings Fund

Reliance Mutual Fund

Reliance Fixed Horizon Fund - XIX - Series 19

Tata Mutual Fund

Tata Fixed Maturity Plan Series 34 Scheme A ( 366 days maturity)

The best performing Midcap Mutual Funds

2011-05-11T08:01:00.007+05:30

New mutual funds FMP, fixed income, being offered by various AMCs May 2011 - Reliance, Birla SBI, ICICI and more...

2011-05-10T22:16:00.000+05:30

The following are new mutual funds being offered by various AMCs as of May 10 2011.

For FMPs, the schemes focus on generating income and / or capital appreciation by investing in debt and money market instruments having maturity in line with the maturity of the scheme.

For new equity funds, think about whether you want to invest in schemes that already exist in the market.

With rates near cycle highs, investing in FMP/fixed income instruments may be a better option. Equity investments at this stage require at least a 2-3 year horizon.

Source: AMFI

Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund

Birla Sun Life Fixed Term Plan - Series DA

Birla Sun Life Fixed Term Plan - Series DB

Birla Sun Life Short Term FMP - Series 14

Deutsche Mutual Fund

DWS Fixed Term Fund - Series 82 (DFTF - 82)

ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund

ICICI Prudential Fixed Maturity Plan - Series 56 - 1 Year Plan F

Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund

Kotak FMP Series 46 (370 Days)

Kotak FMP Series 47 (24M)

Quantum Mutual Fund

Quantum Gold Savings Fund

Reliance Mutual Fund

Reliance Dual Advantage Fixed Tenure Fund - I - Plan K

Religare Mutual Fund

Religare Fixed Maturity Plan - Series VII - Plan A to F - Plan C (369 Days)

SBI Mutual Fund

SBI DEBT FUND SERIES 180 DAYS 18

Sundaram Mutual Fund

Sundaram Equity Plus

Tata Mutual Fund

Tata Fixed Maturity Plan Series 33 Scheme B ( 90 days maturity)

Investor Education: Study Operating Profit Margin Ratio before you buy a stock

2011-05-06T08:00:00.027+05:30

Operating Profit Margin is essentially operating profit/net sales. Operating profit (also known as EBIT) is net sales - operating expenses (input costs, processing costs, and costs that vary). You can find these numbers in a company's income statement. Operating profit margin is calculated before taking into account depreciation and tax. Hence, it's a nice measure of how a company is performing in a particular macro economic environment. If the cost of production goes up, margins can be squeezed, and companies will have a hard time to compete effectively. Consumer discretionary items like autos and capital goods are suffering now because of high input costs.

Companies that can pass on these added costs to consumers without affecting their sales can be leaders in that space and can retain their profitability. If they cannot pass it on, their margins get affected. Companies with superior operating profit margin have a better chance to be profitable in various economic environments.

When buying a stock, compare the operating margins with it peers. Check out the table below that compares the operating margin of the top 3 auto companies in India. Which one is better?

Ticker	Audited	MCap	Total Assets	Net Sales	Adj PAT	Op Margin	Adj Net-Margin	ROCE	Adj P/E(TTM)	P/Book	Debt/MCap
BAJAJ-AUTO	2010	37,648.6	4,266.9	11,508.5	1,784.4	15.7%	15.5%	57.1%	15.1	12.9	0.0
HEROHONDA	2010	31,954.0	3,531.1	15,758.2	2,081.8	15.7%	13.2%	81.4%	16.0	9.2	0.0
TVSMOTOR	2010	2,532.3	1,868.6	4,363.1	111.5	0.5%	2.6%	8.2%	13.1	2.9	0.4

Source:capital4

The escalating input costs has adversely affected TVS Motor's operating performance. Hence the stock has performed poorly lately. TVS's operating profit margin is much lower than Hero Honda & Bajaj Auto. The input costs continue to remain high and TVS is expected to underperform in the short term. Bajaj Auto has a better adjusted net margin than Hero Honda. Note that Hero Honda has a much better ROCE than its peers (More on how to use ROCE in another post.)

It's important to monitor operating margins every quarter to see as to how companies adjust to changing economic scenarios. Net profit margins, which take into account all costs including income tax is the stringent way to assess profitability. Operating margins give a nice view on the operational efficiencies of the company.

Company Fixed Deposits in excess of 12%. But watch out!

2011-05-05T09:00:00.003+05:30

In an earlier post, Company Fixed Deposits as a higher risk-higher reward instrument was profiled. Now some companies are giving rates in excess of 12%. Did you know that these companies pay 1-2% commissions to agents who pitch these unsecured FD products to you. In essence, these companies are paying some 15% for your funds. They are doing this because they are not able to tap secured loans from banks due to various reasons.

As mentioned earlier, investors should realize that these FDs are more risky that bank FDs and offer no capital protection. Some of these companies have been raising their unsecured loans by a significant amount. TV18, for example, has over 500 crores in unsecured loans in its sheet. While I don't expect TV18 to disappear overnight, there is a significant risk in these investments. Investors should look at the CRISIL credit rating (or equivalent) of these companies before giving the money to the agent.

COMPANY	RATING	Min. Deposit Amount	INTEREST RATE
COMPANY	RATING	Min. Deposit Amount	6	12	24	36
Jaiprakash Associates Ltd.		20000	10.50	10.50	11.00	11.50
Ansal Properties & Infrastructure Ltd		50000	11.50	12.00	12.25	12.50

The best performing Mutual Funds in Liquid and Ultra Short-Term Mutual Funds

2011-05-04T08:30:00.004+05:30

Liquid funds, money market funds, ultra short-term Mutual Funds are good for parking surplus funds that is likely to be deployed elsewhere in less than 2-3 months. Liquid mutual funds hold securities with maturities of less than 91 days. Liquid mutual funds provide opportunity to earn returns higher than savings bank account. Ultra short-term bond funds can hold securities of maturity longer than 91 days and hence can provide marginally higher returns than liquid funds. Money in a liquid fund can be redeemed within a day. Tax on dividend income is 25 per cent for liquid funds and 12.5 per cent for other debt funds. Capital gains tax is applicable on liquid funds and indexation benefits apply for debt funds.

When considering investing in debt schemes, it's important to consider the average maturity profile of the portfolio (published in AMC website). To reduce the risk of volatility, the investor's holding period for the fund should be close to the fund's average maturity profile.

How have Liquid Funds performed? The following are the best performing Liquid mutual funds ranked based on risk adjusted performance. These funds have produced annual returns in the 7-8% range, which is much better than your bank account. LIC MF Liquid Fund, HDFC Cash Management Fund and HDFC Liquid Fund have performed very well over short as well as longer period of time. So, check your savings account balance and park your money in these funds instead.

FUND	AUM (Rs Cr)	NAV	1wk	1mo	3mo	6mo	1yr	2yr	3yr	5yr
LIC MF Liquid Fund	8,053.79	18.05	0.1	0.7	2	3.8	6.7	11.7	21.8	41.8
HDFC Cash Management	2,403.08	20.63	0.1	0.7	2.1	3.9	6.8	11.7	21.2	40.9
HDFC CMF-Treasury Advg	5,782.69	21.40	0.1	0.7	2	3.8	6.7	11.6	20.9	40.6
Principal Cash Management	731.77	15.36	0.1	0.7	2	3.9	6.7	11.3	20.8	40.2
HDFC Liquid Fund	539.17	19.51	0.1	0.7	2	3.8	6.6	11.2	20.5	39.8
Birla Sun Life Cash Manager	234.81	24.01	0.1	0.7	2	3.7	6.5	11.1	20.2	38.8
UTI Money Market Fund	125.00	2,742.94	0.1	0.7	1.9	3.7	6.3	10.9	20.5	38.9
SBI Magnum Insta Cash	3,320.77	21.92	0.1	0.7	2	3.9	6.8	11.1	20.2	38.8
IDFC Liquid Fund	478.73	1,392.95	0.1	0.8	2.3	4.2	7.2	11.9	19.5	38.4
Reliance Liquid Fund TP	727.57	23.58	0.1	0.7	2	3.8	6.4	11.1	20.4	38.5
Birla SL Cash Plus - RP	202.46	26.07	0.1	0.7	1.9	3.7	6.1	10.1	19	37.7
Templeton Treasury MA	199.33	2,419.35	0.1	0.7	1.9	3.7	6.4	10.6	19.8	38.1
UTI Liquid Cash Plan	354.99	1,588.70	0.1	0.7	1.9	3.7	6.3	10.5	19.5	37.9
ICICI Pru Liquid Plan	406.55	236.96	0.1	0.6	1.9	3.6	6.1	10	18.8	37.3
L&T Liquid	238.58	19.60	0.1	0.7	2	3.8	6.4	10.7	19.8	37.7
DSP-BR Liquidity Fund	163.65	23.42	0.1	0.7	2	3.8	6.7	10.4	18.9	35.8
HSBC Cash Fund	102.55	15.79	0.1	0.6	1.8	3.3	5.7	8.1	15.4	33.1
IDFC Cash Fund	102.26	17.52	0.1	0.7	1.9	3.7	6.4	10.6	19.3	34.6
Reliance Liquid - Cash	638.21	16.00	0.1	0.7	2.1	3.9	6.4	8.9	15.5	29.5