While participating in equity markets, one of the foremost dilemma faced by the investors is: “What strategy will work best in equity markets?” and “How does one beat markets, i.e Sensex or Nifty, consistently?” No matter what direction an investor takes, he or she is always looking for that extra edge that will provide the much-wanted extra returns.While the merits of value investing, contrarian investing, growth investing and momentum investing are well-documented, there is no clarity on the performance of a portfolio that primarily consists of debt-free companies.

Most long term equity investors will agree they get smitten when the company in which they hold shares declares issue of bonus shares. Very few investors will complain if the companies in which they are invested declare bonus issues. Historically, investors have created wealth in blue chip stocks such as Infosys, RIL, TCS, and Wipro that have issued bonuses from time to time. However, there is empirical evidence to suggest that wealth is also created in the stocks of companies that have not issued bonus shares at all.

The scrips in this column have been recommended with a 15-day investment horizon in mind and carry high risk. Therefore, investors are advised to take into account their risk appetite before investing, as fundamentals may or may not back the recommendations.

Indian stock market bulls had fought back the repercussions of Union Budget followed by Trump’s protectionist policies and trade war scare. The expected recovery in corporate earnings for Q4, favourable monsoon and expectations ahead of the Karnataka elections had brought in optimism in the markets, so much so that the benchmark indices had broken out of their psychological resistance levels. However, the political fall-out of the Karnataka elections and the concerns over rising crude oil prices washed off all the efforts of the bulls. Finally, the bears took the charge after BJP's fiasco in Karnataka and markets witnessed a steep fall. BJP’s failure to muster majority in Karnataka followed by the growing alliance of the Congress with the non-NDA parties weighed on the markets. On the global front, the crude oil prices hitting above USD 80/barrel and simultaneously the rising dollar turned out to be hiccups for the markets across the globe

This column gives you scrip chosen by the research team during the fortnight that is fundamentally strong and expected to give good capital appreciation over a time period of 1 year

This section gives a recommendation of a stock having stockmargin padding price below Rs 100 with sound fundamentals and expected to give handsome returns over a one-year time horizon

In the fortnight gone by, markets remained volatile due to political uncertainty in Karnataka after the state elections. The benchmark Sensex failed to close above its crucial support placed at 35,000. It reversed its gains on May 15 after hitting an intermediate top placed near 35,993. 

Markets have predictably reacted to the political development in Karnataka in the short term. Markets are also staring at the concerns over rising crude oil prices and the damage these can cause to the Indian economic growth story. The US sanctions on Venezuala and Iran and the production cut in OPEC are pushing the crude oil prices higher. The rising crude oil prices, along with the declining Indian rupee, which is Asia’s worst performing currency in CY18 so far, have created headwinds for the equity markets. 

These are the stocks where short build up position is seen:

These are the stocks where long build up position is seen:

For the coming session, the level of 10,380 will act as an immediate support, followed by 10,330, which is the 200-SMA. On the upside, the level of 10,480, followed by 10,550, would now be seen as strong hurdles for the index. Stocks in news: Indiabulls Housing Finance, NLC India, Sunteck Realty, Tata Power, Shalimar Paints and MEP Infrastructure.

Indian markets are likely to make flat to positive start. Trading of Nifty 50 index futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates that the Nifty may open with gain of 34 points at 10,455.  

The revenue from Jaguar and Land Rover in the quarter rose almost 13 per cent and sales from Tata brand rose 27 per cent YoY. 

The provisions for the quarter jumped by 23.5 per cent YoY, while these declined by 26.2 per cent QoQ to Rs 14.3 crore in Q4FY18 as against Rs 11.6 crore in Q4FY17 and Rs 19 crore in Q3FY18.

Gravita India soared on the bourses on Wednesday after the company announced signing a contract with Amara Raja Batteries for collection and recycling arrangements of scrap lead acid batteries.

The new employees will be serving out of St. Petersburg, Florida and will help digitalise the US insurers Transamerica’s US insurance and annuity business operations.

It takes a lot of analysis while making an investment decision. Ideally, even while exiting or redeeming an investment, an investor should thoroughly think and analysis why the scheme is underperforming. Moreover, investors should know when to redeem their investments.

With the increasing awareness and increasing interest of the investors many of the mutual fund houses came up with the NFOs with different themes.  Find the new fund offers currently open.

For the full year, the NII grew by 19 per cent yoy to Rs. 106 crore. The provisions also jumped to Rs. 48 crore in FY18 from Rs. 5 crore in FY17. The AUM grew by 43 per cent yoy to Rs. 795 crore. 

Total revenue for the quarter rose by 34 per cent yoy to Rs. 15,407 crore in Q4FY18 vs Rs. 11,473 crore in Q4FY18. Also, for the full year revenue grew by 31 per cent yoy to Rs. 56,521 crore in FY18 vs Rs .43,157 crore in FY17. 

The small-cap and mid-cap themes which were the darling of the investors for the last couple of years are bleeding like anything now. The theme had served manifold returns to investors till the end of 2017. But the year 2018 dawned with huge challenges for these themes. 

The shares of MM Forgings surged 8 per cent on the bourses, on Wednesday as the company decides to consider bonus issue as well as interim dividend as wells as a fund raising at its AGM, scheduled to be held on May 28, 2018.

Mutual fund industry will change more in the next 5 years than what it changed in the last 20 years. Read on to find the major changes. 

The share price of stainless steel manufacturer Mukand charted up by over 3 per cent in the intraday trade on Wednesday as a Japanese firm Sumitomo Corporation purchased 49 per cent stake in the joint venture of the company for an amount of Rs. 1181 crore. 

Following stocks are close to their 52-week low as of 12.44 p.m. on May 23, 2018

Following stocks are close to their 52-week high as of 12.44 p.m. on May 23, 2018.

During the quarter, the commercial production commenced at greenfield manufacturing facility for industrial Packaging products at Vizag.

India’s pharma major, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries has received the approval of US drug regulator for YONSA, a combination medication to treat metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) patients.

These are the stock where short build up position is seen

These are the stocks where long build up position is seen

Going ahead, Tuesday’s session low of 10,491 would act as an immediate support level, and a follow-through move below this level could lead to further downside up to the level of 10,440, which is 50 per cent retracement level of the recent rise from the March low. Stocks in news: Sun Pharmaceuticals, Minda Industries, Gravita and Majesco.

Indian benchmark indices are likely to witness quiet to modestly negative start to the trading session as cues from Asian peers are not encouraging. The trading of Nifty 50 index futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates that the Nifty may open down by 20 points at 10,529.  

In a significant development, Bharti Group sold off its entire stake of 13.64 per cent in Kishori Biyani-led Future Enterprises, making an exit for an estimated sum of Rs. 240 crore on Tuesday. 

The EBITDA for the quarter declined by 2 per cent QoQ to Rs.63 crore in Q4FY18 as compared with Rs.65 crore in Q3FY18. The EBITDA margin expanded by 170 bps to 10.1 per cent for Q4FY18. 

The reported net profit for the quarter came in at Rs 139.95 crore, an increase of 122.5 per cent YoY. This includes exceptional gain of Rs 38.24 crore.

The share price of Dabur India suffered a setback in Tuesday ’s trading as reports surfaced that assets worth Rs 21 crore have been seized from Pradip Burman, the director of the company.  

Lower redemption in the month of April rather than higher sales has helped the equity MF's asset under management to grow

Cipla reported net profit of Rs 153.3 crore, as against Rs 62.8 crore net loss in the corresponding quarter of last year.

Systematic investment plan of mutual funds is in highlights again. This time not with new highs but with SIP contribution registering a decline in the month of April 2018.

Country’s largest bank, the State Bank of India (SBI) reported its Q4FY18 net loss and also reported divergence for its FY17 March financial with RBI assessment.

The board of directors have recommended a dividend of Rs. 100 per equity share of Rs. 10 each, for the FY18.

The stock of Dredging Corp was buzzing during Tuesday's trading session as news reports suggested that government mulls to invite bids to sell its stakes. The stock hit a intraday high of Rs. 586.00 per share.

The share price of Future Lifestyle Fashions jumped by over 3 per cent on the bourses in the intraday trade on Tuesday, following a block deal wherein media heavyweight Bennett Coleman & Co bought the company's equity shares.

The unadjusted profit for the quarter came in at Rs. 100.33 crore, yoy decline of 51.6 per cent. This includes one-time loss of Rs. 133.2 crore on impairment of investment.

Investors generally consider debt as a burden, whether it is on themselves or on a company they plan to invest in. While analysing a firm, investors must check whether the company has any debt or not.

Following stocks are close to their 52-week high as of 12.44 p.m. on May 22, 2018.

Following stocks are close to their 52-week low as of 12.44 p.m. on May 22, 2018

These patents are corresponding to the New Chemical Entities (NCEs) for the treatment of disorders associated with Neurodegenerative diseases.

EBITDA for the quarter rose by 7.9 per cent yoy to Rs. 176.16 crore with a corresponding margin contraction of 96 bps. EBITDA margin for the quarter stood at 27.4 per cent.

Petronet LNG posted good numbers for Q4FY18 and full year FY18. The company has reported net sales of Rs. 8,739.63 crore in Q4FY18 as compared to Rs. 6,515.82 crore in Q4FY17.

These are the stocks where long build up position is seen

These are the stocks where short build up position is seen

Going ahead, Nifty has a cluster of supports in the range of 10,440-10,500. Stocks in news: Future Retail, Dhunseri Petrochem, CMI, Essar Shipping and HDIL.

Indian benchmark indices are expected to open on a tepid following mixed cues from Asian peers. The trading of Nifty 50 index futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates that the Nifty may open lower by 19 points at 10,523.  

Accrual funds are the debt funds which hold the securities till their maturity. These funds primarily focuses on earning interest income from the coupon offered by the securities in their portfolio. 

 Consumer theme-based mutual funds have outperformed most of the sectors in the last one year and three months. Read on to find if they will continue their better show…….

Despite positive Q4 earnings report on Friday after market hours, Ashok Leyland, the commercial vehicle giant, drowned more than 9 per cent and closed 9.5 per cent down. Now the stock has just taken resistance turned support at 133.50 levels.

The PAT for the quarter came in at Rs. 7.65 crore, yoy increase of 81.4 per cent.

The PAT for the quarter came in at Rs. 4.9 crore, yoy decline of 97.2 per cent. This was partly due to Rs. 2.86 crore loss from other source as against other income o

Colgate Palmolive reported strong quarterly results with robust operating profit and bottom-line. For the full year ended March 2018, the results were steady with choppy top-line.

Looking at the full year numbers, we see that revenue jumped by 16 per cent to reach Rs. 1,138 crore while EBITDA rose by 3 per cent to Rs. 238.9 crore.

Online retailer Infibeam's wholly-owned subsidiary Infibeam Global has acquired 100 per cent shares of Vavian International Limited.

Demerging cement business includes 3 integrated cement units with a total capacity of 11.4 MTPA (excludes 1.2 MTPA for which statutory clearance is pending) and 1 grinding unit of 2 MTPA.

Many a time, we wait for the festive season to buy our desired product. That is, we aim to own the same product with the same quality and same durability at a lower price as the festive seasons always comes up with discounts. Then why not do the same with your mutual fund investments, even in the investing world you can have the same approach.

Glenmark’s current portfolio contains of 135 products official for distribution in the US market and 62 ANDA’s are pending for approval with the USFDA.

Pennar Industries reported robust results with stable revenues and increasing margins on lower other expenses.

Capacite Infraprojects reported lower mixed numbers with a top-line increase, followed by a decline in margins and a strong slump in the bottom-line.

Benchmark indices witnessed 5 consecutive downfalls and most of the sectoral indices have followed. Meanwhile, IT index has remained sideways, consolidating for the last 11 days. IT major, TCS has hit a new all-time high after consolidating for 3 weeks.

Indostar Capital Finance made a decent debut on the bourses getting listed at Rs. 600 on both BSE and NSE at a premium of 4.90 per cent on the issue price of Rs 572, on Monday.

Future Lifestyle Fashions reported subdued performance over the quarter with heavy deterioration in the bottom-line

Future Lifestyle Fashions reported subdued performance over the quarter with heavy deterioration in the bottom-line.

The stock of Endurance Tech was buzzing on Monday on back of news that the company is eligible to receive industrial promotion subsidy.

Going ahead, the zone of 10,550-10,560 is a key support for the Nifty as it is a confluence of 50-day EMA and 50 per cent retracement of the downmove. Stocks in news: South Indian Bank, AU Small Finance Bank, Century Textile, Indoco Remedies, Alembic Pharmaceuticals, Endurance Technologies and Indiabulls Real Estate.

As we step into the fresh week, chances are Indian markets may see flat opening despite encouraging cues from Asian peers. This would be mainly due to the setback suffered by the BJP in Karnataka as it failed to muster the requisite majority. The trading of Nifty 50 index futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates that the Nifty may open with a modest gain of 17 points at 10,632.  

The level of risk and return in an investment is an important criterion for selection of investment instruments. Generally speaking, the higher the risk, the higher would be the returns, and lower the risk, lower the returns. So, the risk and return in an investment are directly correlated, which dictates the choice of investments.

The time horizon of an investment is intrinsically linked to wealth creation. So, higher the time horizon (period of investment) of an investor, higher will be the wealth creation. 

Investment gurus and market experts never tire of telling the investors to stop trying to time the market and have always advised the investors that the ‘time in the market’ is more important than ‘timing the market’. 

There professional hazards faced by professionals such as doctors, engineers, architects, lawyers, chartered accountants, among others. The civil or criminal liability arising out of error, omission or negligence on the part of these professionals could be financially crippling. 

The resignation of B S Yedyurappa as the Chief Minister of Karnataka exposes the dubious and blatantly partisan role played by Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala. This incident reinforces the fact that the Governors of the state are political appointees who are puppets in the hand of the High Command. 

There are various statistical tools used to measure the performance of mutual funds. Beta and R-squared are the two most used measurement tools. Read on to find how to use them.

Maruti Suzuki, the country’s largest passenger vehicle manufacturer, is set to drive biggest ever capacity expansion at its Gujarat facility to achieve its target of hitting 2.5 million units by 2022.

Gilt funds are debt mutual fund schemes which invest predominantly in the government bonds, that is, government-issued bonds.

Post Union Budget 2018, the roller-coaster ride in the market have taught investors that nothing is going to be easy in the investment arena. To gain one need to take risks, but before that the investors should know the risks affecting their portfolio

Ashok Leyland, one of India’s largest commercial vehicle manufacturers, reported strong results for the quarter. The company recorded good numbers across the board.

The share price of Avenue Supermarts fell about 8 per cent intraday on Friday, its biggest intraday fall since listing, after promoter Radhakrishan Damani announced plans to sell stake in the company.

Debt-ridden Reliance Communications gained nearly 30 per cent in early trade on Friday only to wipe-off its gains and fall further by 18 per cent over uncertainty on settling the dispute with Ericsson.

Yarn manufacturer Meera Industries Limited (MIL) has received an export order worth US$41,000 from a Uzbekistan-based company. This order is scheduled to be executed in July 2018.

The board of directors have recommended a dividend of Rs. 60 per equity share of Rs. 10 face value for the fiscal year 2018.

In the last quarter of fiscal year 2018, the railway division registered a growth of 14.2 per cent yoy and current order book for this division is Rs. 350 crore which will be executed in the next 12-13 months.

Indian Toner & Developers posted weak results across the board with full year revenues also falling over previous corresponding quarter

Following stocks are close to their 52-week low as at 12.44 p.m. on May 18, 2018.

The markets on May 18, 2018 opened down. BSE Sensex is trading at 35,025.66, down by 123.46 points and the Nifty is trading at 10,646.95, down by 35.75 points. 

PSU Banking index was off its multiple support zone at the start of May 2018. The same bounce was misconceived as bottom fishing for the PSU Banking sector. It was just a short covering after major PSU Banks had badly fallen post Q4 results.

The telecom operator and the e-commerce major join hands to offer 40 smartphones, starting at a price of Rs. 3,399. The scheme aims to promote the use of 4G network among new smartphone users.

As a part of Government of India’s ‘Make in India’ initiative, Titagarh Wagons Limited is set to provide four vessels, two each for the Indian Navy and Ministry of Earth Sciences, respectively. The company has been successful in launching the first of the four vessels.

The company’s consolidated total income for the fourth quarter of FY18 was at Rs. 2,092 crore as compared to Rs. 2,098 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.

Its lending plan for this financial year is 20 per cent higher than the previous year and the NCD issue is set to open on May 22 and close on June 4, with a base size of Rs. 3,000 crore and an option to retain over subscription of up to Rs. 9,000 crore.

A UN report has predicted that India will be the fastest growing economy in the world with a projected growth rate of 7.6 per cent in FY19.

EBITDA for the quarter rose by 38.7 per cent yoy to Rs. 101 crore with a corresponding margin expansion of 64 bps. EBITDA margin for the quarter stood at 9.8 per cent.

Overall volumes in futures & options currently stand at 1.45 crore contracts with a turnover of Rs. 14,32,762.88 crore.

Overall volumes in futures & options currently stand at 1.45 crore contracts with a turnover of Rs. 14,32,762.88 crore.