MFs betting on financials & consumer durables

The month of April 2021 was not so great for the broader markets. S&P BSE Sensex registered negative returns of 1.47 per cent while S&P BSE 500 generated modest returns of 0.45 per cent. However, it was the metal index that outshined other indices. S&P BSE Metal index recorded 24.19 per cent of returns. On the flip side, it was the S&P BSE Realty index, which was the worst hit, giving negative returns of 7.57 per cent in the month of April 2021. All in all, looking at the buying & selling activity of the mutual funds, it seems that mutual funds are net buyers in the financial sector. 

As we can see, apart from the financial sector (where net buying amounted to Rs 5,489.35 crore) mutual funds also bet on consumer durables, followed by energy, infrastructure & textile sector with net buying of Rs 2,433.20 crore, Rs 1,279.33 crore, Rs 953.49 crore, and Rs 319.15 crore, respectively. 

Note: Net buying and net selling is calculated by subtracting the total selling from the total buying done in a particular sector in the month of April 2021. If the value is positive then it is considered as net buying and if negative, then net selling. 

As we can see in the above table, mutual funds were net sellers in the FMCG sector, where selling amounted to Rs 2,151.44 crore. Apart from FMCG, mutual funds were also net sellers in the technology, travel, metals, and retail & other services sector with net selling of Rs 740.41 crore, Rs 237.55 crore, Rs 223.51 crore, and Rs 217.45 crore, respectively. However, the surprising thing to notice here is that, where metal stocks are rallying, mutual funds were the net sellers in the metal sector.