A reader asks, “One common trend I see in your analysis is that the active MFs are always considered against the benchmark indices and not index funds themselves. Why are active mutual fund returns compared with TRI (total return indices) and not index fund returns?” “Also, since index fund investment recommendation is limited only to…

We analyse the performance of multi-asset mutual funds in this article. This category is only four years old introduced by SEBI in 2018 with the re-categorization of mutual funds. Therefore we shall only look at the last 1,2,3, and 4-year trailing returns of multi-asset funds. According to SEBI, a multi-asset fund invests in at least three…

This article presents results from the Equity Mutual Fund Screener Sep 2022 and discusses why we badly need an aggressive hybrid index fund! We find out how easy/hard it is to consistently beat the CRISIL Hybrid 35+65 – Aggressive Index. The index comprises S&P BSE 200 TR(65%) and CRISIL Composite Bond Fund Index (35%). Disclaimer: Fund…

Many investors incorrectly believe that index funds are necessary only in the large cap space and that active funds easily beat the index in the mid cap and small cap segments.  In this article, we bust this myth with rolling returns and trailing results comparison of active mid cap mutual funds with Nifty Midcap 150…

A reader asks, “Is this a good time to Invest in NASDAQ 100 and S&P 500? As both indexes have fallen around 25% to date in 2022.” The answer depends on your motivation and your appreciation of underlying risks. From the point of view of Indian investors, the US stock market has been on an…

A reader asks, “I noticed that Kotak Arbitrage Fund is holding about 5% of Kotak Liquid Fund. Can you explain why they are doing this?” Kotak is not alone. Many arbitrage funds buy units of their own debt funds. This is done in a bid to bolster returns. Even a few years back, arbitrage funds…

I started an Rs. 500 SIP in Sundaram Midcap Fund (then known as Sundaram Select Midcap) for an extended family member’s higher education in Aug 2009. Here are some lessons on investment risk and reward from the investment. Kindly note that I do not count this investment as part of my net worth and have…

A reader asked, “If we compare the performance of actively managed mutual funds across categories, how many of them have outperformed the Nifty 50 consistently?” Readers may be aware that we publish a monthly equity mutual funds performance consistency screener where each category has its own relevant benchmark. Let us now determine how many funds…

A reader aged 35 asks, “I have stopped all my equity MF investments due to the global recession and poor returns over the last few months. However, reading your articles, I am now in two minds. Can you please advise what I should do?” The market zoomed up after the March 2020 crash much more…

A mutual fund portfolio growth visualiser is now available as an add-on module for our Google sheet-based mutual fund and stock investment tracker. Key features of the portfolio growth visualiser module Requires either the mutual fund or mutual fund + stock investment tracker. (see features below) This is an add-on module to the existing tracker…

A reader writes, “Sir, you have mentioned several times that equity mutual fund investing comes with no guarantees. I find this quite unsettling. Each time the market falls, I feel worried and am in two minds about investing. My mind tells me to stay invested, but my heart is worried. Please advise.” It is true…

“Has anyone ever gotten rich using mutual funds?”. You may have seen this question do the rounds on social media and personal financial forums from time to time. This is asked by two sets of people. (1) Those who wish to push other products: Insurance, stock advisory services or a PMS and (2) young investors…

This article explains how international mutual funds are taxed with an example. All mutual funds not holding a minimum of 65% of Indian stocks or Indian stock-based ETFs are known as “non-equity” mutual funds by the income tax department. They are taxed at a rate of 20% with indexation. In the case of non-equity mutual…