Jhunjhunwala's portfolio gained Rs 2618 cr in April-July

Among the lot, Rallis India, Escorts, Jubilant Life Sciences, and Crisil added half of the total gains made in the ace stock-picker’s portfolio. 

The value of investments made by ace stock-picker Rakesh Jhunjhunwala and his family has surged past the Rs 10,000-crore mark, with the net worth of his portfolio rising by Rs 2,618 crore since the start of this financial year (FY21). 

Based on Tuesday’s closing, the Jhunjhunwala family’s investments in listed companies were worth Rs 10,965 crore, up 32.4 per cent from Rs 8,284 crore at the end of March. 

In the April-June 2020 quarter (Q1FY21), Jhunjhunwala increased his stake in Rallis India, Jubilant Life Sciences, Federal Bank, Edelweiss Financial Services, NCC, and Firstsource Solutions (FSL), and trimmed his holding in Lupin and Agro Tech Foods, the latest shareholding pattern available on the exchanges show. He added Indian Hotels and Dishman Carbogen Amcis to his portfolio by acquiring more than 1.05 per cent stake in the June quarter. 

His stake in Titan Company and Escorts remained unchanged, along with 16 other firms, including Orient Cement, Multi Commodity Stock Exchange of India, ION Exchange, Crisil, and Fortis Healthcare. 

Among the lot, Rallis India, Escorts, Jubilant Life Sciences, and Crisil helped Jhunjhunwala’s portfolio beat market returns at the index level since April 1, 2020. These stocks collectively added half, or Rs 1,234 crore, of the total gains made in Jhunjhunwala’s portfolio during the period under review. 

Titan, however, underperformed the market, gaining 8.7 per cent, as against a 28.7 per cent surge in the Sensex during the period. 

Given the sharp run-up in the markets since their March 2020 lows, most analysts are now cautious and suggest the trajectory will depend on the number of Covid-19 cases and the progress in vaccine research. That said, equity as an asset class, they believe, should deliver good returns from a long-term horizon. 

“Given the significant rally, we believe the global equity market may remain on the sidelines over the next few months as profit-booking may set in. Within equities, Indian equities may underperform their Asian peers over the next few months because of lack of a demand stimulus,” wrote Jitendra Gohil, head of India equity research at Credit Suisse Wealth Management India, in a July 16 note. It was co-authored with Premal Kamdar, equity research analyst. 

They remain bullish on the agri-linked, telecom, FMCG, and utility sectors.  

Ajit Mishra, vice-president for research at Religare Broking, echoed similar views and suggested a cautious stance on the markets. 

“The markets are largely focusing on earnings and the recent announcements by index majors have positively surprised, which, in turn, is fuelling the recovery. Besides, the global markets are also not showing any signs of slowing down, helping the index to maintain the momentum. However, the rising number of Covid-19 cases and talks of community transmission may affect this pace. We suggest focusing more on risk management and opting for quality counters for investment,” he said.

Photograph: Shailesh Andrade/Reuters.