When Omprakash Kuckian took over the fund in November 2007, its assets under management were only `290 crore.
He rapidly changed its complexion and used the flexibility a small fund offers to the hilt. His moves paid off and in the December 2007 quarter, he delivered 54.66 per cent (category average, 25.7 per cent). But that has changed. With a corpus that has crossed `3,000 crore, he still takes strong sector bets but plays it safe with individual stock bets. Nevertheless, he has managed to impress, and in 2009, beat the category average by 20 per cent (102 per cent).
The portfolio is well balanced between large-and mid-caps. However, last year, had he bet more on mid-caps and lowered his cash holdings rapidly, as soon as the market rallied, he would have probably delivered even more. However, going by the current YTD returns, his large-cap bets have certainly worked out well.
The fund manager attempts to capitalise on valuation differentials between midand large-cap stocks, which at times could result in aggressive churning. The direct fallout of such a strategy is that the market cap keeps changing. This fund started off as a large-cap fund but resembled a pure mid-cap offering by the end of 2007. Since January 2009, it has taken on a distinct large-cap tilt and is evenly balanced today between large-, mid- and small-caps.
Kuckian confessed to adopting a waitand-watch strategy, to see how interest rates pan out and how inflation is dealt with some days back. He still believes interest rates are firm, given that inflation has not been tamed. He also feels the market is fairly valued and though he has adecent exposure to banking, he has increased his pharma exposure.Overall, the funds numbers speak for themselves. This one is a top pick.
