Skip to main content

Index Mutual Funds

Although I would prefer largecap diversified funds, index funds are a good option for those who are starting and do not know much about investing in equities. And, this is a good time to begin investing in this asset class.

Another reason to invest in index funds is absence of confidence in the market. With the Bombay Stock Exchange Sensitive Index, or Sensex, looking highly volatile with a downward, it is difficult to take a call on an equity-diversified fund.

The main advantage of investing through an index fund, especially in these times, is that these are passively managed. Since the scheme invests the money, according to the index, there is little risk of active management. Then, there are costs as well. Most index funds charge 1-1.5 per cent as annual fund management fees, whereas equity diversified funds can charge 2.25 per cent.

As far as returns are concerned, equity-diversified funds have returned 9.25 per cent in aone-year period, whereas index funds, such as BeES, have returned slightly over 22 per cent. Similarly, funds investing in the Sensex and the Nifty such as Franklin India Index NSE Nifty and HDFC Index Sensex have returned 11-12 per cent. And, if one takes into account the cost-saving due to lower fund management fees, the returns would be at least 100 basis points more.

Although actively-managed funds tend to outperform benchmark indices such as the Sensex or the Nifty, in bad times, a wrong call by fund manager can hurt badly.

An index fund mirrors the benchmark, as it invests in stocks comprising the index and in the same proportion. Their returns should ideally mirror the performance of the underlying index. For instance, the fund manager will passively invest in Nifty-50 stocks in proportion to their market capitalisation. Due to this, index funds are known as passively-managed funds.

However, many times, there is a difference in returns from the index and the scheme that mirrors it. It is because there is a tracking error, which occurs when the fund manager actively manages the scheme. For instance, the Nifty has returned 11.6 per cent in the last one year, whereas the Nifty Junior BeEs has returned 9.37 per cent, a tracking error of 3.28.

In the US, the tracking error that can either be positive or negative is less than a per cent. In India, this error is sometime five per cent or more. According to financial planners, you could invest up to 15-20 per cent of your portfolio into index funds. If you are an experienced investor who does not have index funds in your portfolio, fund managers advise opting for it only if you do not want to keep an active track of your portfolio.

 Buy index funds only if you want safety on the equity side and don't want to keep a constant watch on it. Over a longer term, equity-diversified funds will outperform index funds, especially in the case of emerging markets like India.

This is because fund managers of emerging markets can pick stocks which are multi-baggers. On the other hand, fund managers in developed and mature markets do not have many such opportunities.

Happy Investing!!

We can help. Call 0 94 8300 8300 (India)

Leave your comment with mail ID and we will answer them

OR

You can write back to us at PrajnaCapital [at] Gmail [dot] Com

 

---------------------------------------------

Invest Mutual Funds Online

Transact Mutual Fund Online

Download Mutual Fund Application Forms from all AMCs

Download Mutual Fund Application Forms

Best Performing Mutual Funds

    1. Largecap Funds Invest Online
      1. DSP BlackRock Top 100 Fund
      2. ICICI Prudential Focused Blue Chip Fund
      3. Birla Sun Life Front Line Equity Fund
    2. Large and Midcap Funds Invest Online
      1. ICICI Prudential Dynamic Plan
      2. HDFC Top 200 Fund
      3. UTI Dividend Yield Fund
    1. Mid and SmallCap Funds Invest Online
      1. Reliance Equity Opportunities Fund
      2. DSP BlackRock Small & Midcap Fund
      3. Sundaram Select Midcap
      4. IDFC Premier Equity Fund
    1. Small and MicroCap Funds Invest Online
      1. DSP BlackRock MicroCap Fund
    1. Sector Funds Invest Online
      1. Reliance Banking Fund
      2. Reliance Banking Fund
    1. Tax Saver Mutual  Funds  Invest Online
      1. ICICI Prudential Tax Plan
      2. HDFC Taxsaver
      3. DSP BlackRock Tax Saver Fund
      4. Reliance Tax Saver (ELSS) Fund
    2. Gold Mutual Funds Invest Online
      1. Relaince Gold Savings Fund
      2. ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund
      3. HDFC Gold Fund

 

Popular posts from this blog

How to generate a UAN Online

Best SIP Funds Online   In order to make Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) accounts portable, the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) had launched the facility of Universal Account Number (UAN ) in 2014. Having a UAN is now mandatory if you have an EPF account and are contributing to it. So far, you got this number from your employer and every time you changed jobs, you had to furnish this number to the new employer.  However, in order to make it easier for you to get a UAN , and without your employer's intervention, the EPFO now allows you to go online and generate a UAN on your own. This facility can be used by freshers, or new employees, who are joining the workforce as well as by employees who have older EPF accounts but do not have a UAN as yet. As a new employee, you can simply generate a UAN and provide the number to your employer at the time of joining, when you need to fill up forms for your EPF contribution. As per a circula...
Read more

Reliance Regular Savings Fund - Debt Option

Reliance Regular Savings Fund - Invest Online     The scheme aims to generate optimal returns consistent with moderate levels of risk. It will invest atleast 65 per cent of its assets in debt instruments with maturity of more than 1 year and the rest in money market instruments (including cash or call money and reverse repo) and debentures with maturity of less than 1 year. The exposure in government securities will generally not exceed 50 percent of the assets. The fund uses a mix of relatively low portfolio duration with active investments in higher-yielding corporate bonds. It does not take aggressive duration calls but tries to improve returns by cherry-picking corporate bonds. This is reflected in the fund's returns matching the category and benchmark for five years - at 8.4 per cent - but lagging behind the category during a raging bull market in bonds in the last one year. The fund has been a consistent but not chart-topping performer in the income category. Despite its ...
Read more

Am you Required to E-file Tax Return?

Download Tax Saving Mutual Fund Application Forms Invest In Tax Saving Mutual Funds Online Buy Gold Mutual Funds Leave a missed Call on 94 8300 8300   Am I Required to 'E-file' My Return? Yes, under the law you are required to e-file your return if your income for the year is Rs. 500,000 or more. Even if you are not required to e-file your return, it is advisable to do so for the following benefits: i) E-filing is environment friendly. ii) E-filing ensures certain validations before the return is filed. Therefore, e-returns are more accurate than the paper returns. iii) E-returns are processed faster than the paper returns. iv) E-filing can be done from the comfort of home/office and you do not have to stand in queue to e-file. v) E-returns can be accessed anytime from the tax department's e-filing portal. For further information contact Prajna Capit...
Read more

IIFL NCDs

Buy Gold Mutual Funds Invest Mutual Funds Online Download Tax Saving Mutual Fund Application Forms Call 0 94 8300 8300 (India) IIFL NCDs IIF's six-year unsecured NCD 2012 Risk-wary investors should stay away from this issue, and even, risk-taking ones should think twice It is a public issue of unsecured redeemable non-convertible debentures ( NCDs ) by India Infoline Finance ( IIF ), an unlisted company, which is a 98.9 per cent subsidiary of India Infoline, a listed company. The issue seeks to raise Rs 250 crore with an option to retain over-subscription up to Rs 250 crore taking the total potential issue amount to Rs 500 crore. It will be open for public subscription from September 5 to September 18 with a minimum application size of Rs 5,000 in the form of five NCDs of face value Rs 1,000, TENURE & RATES: IIF will redeem the NCDs at the end of six years, and investors wanting out before six years will be able to sell the...
Read more

Income Tax Basics for beginners

Download Tax Saving Mutual Fund Application Forms Invest In Tax Saving Mutual Funds Online Buy Gold Mutual Funds Leave a missed Call on 94 8300 8300   Tax is a compulsory payment made to the Government, but there are ways to optimise it   Income tax is an instrument used by the government to achieve its social and economic objectives. Simply put, tax is duty or tariff that income earning individuals pay to the Government in exchange of certain benefits such as law and order, healthcare, education and a lot more. With proper planning, your tax liability can be reduced and optimised effectively, leaving you with a greater share of your income in your hands than being paid out as tax. Income earned in the twelve months contained in the period from 1st April to 31st March (Financial Year) is taken into account when calculating income tax. Under the Income Tax Act this period is called the previous year.   ...
Read more
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
Invest in Tax Saving Mutual Funds Download Any Applications
Transact Mutual Funds Online Invest Online
Buy Gold Mutual Funds Invest Now