Prajna Capital - An Investment Guide

THE LAST few months have seen tumultous movement in the stock exchanges forcing eager investors to play it safe. With interest rates from banks slipping, investors are prone to look at alternatives. In recent times, especially over the last few days, some banks have also taken the decision to hike interest rates with some offering as much as 9% for a one-year fixed deposit ( FD ). This move (of hiking interest rate) has happened due to a 0.25% hike in repo rate by the RBI (the repo rate is the rate at which banks borrow from the RBI). So is investing in a one-year bank FD the best way to earn some secure return? Not necessarily, aver investment experts. The product which many investors, be it high-networth individuals ( HNIs ) or retail investors could look at is the fixed maturity plan ( FMP ). FMPs are offered by mutual funds. “FMPs have come of age during the last fiscal. It has moved from a product being sold to corporate with even HNIs jumping into the bandwagon,” says the region...

Following a balanced approach to investing in equities, investors can recoup the amount invested in stocks in few years DIVIDEND IS a tax-free income in the hand of shareholders. However, Indian companies are known for not having a regular dividend paying policy. Nonetheless, dividends are far more profitable today than it would have been in the last four years. This is because the stock prices have crashed in last one year, as result the dividend yield (dividend per share divided by price per share) has gone up. Therefore, the dividend per rupee of investment is much more today than it was earlier. However, investors should not aim at accumulating stocks with high dividend yield because such high yields may not be sustainable in case profit falls due to economic slowdown. Consistent in paying dividends and in some cases have also increased the payout ratio. A high payout ratio means a higher percentage of profits are distributed among shareholders as dividends. The table shows the ...

It is time to be defensive. The trick is to pick up every available opportunity to add returns bit by bit BDV-270534-BDV A RANGE-BOUND market is always on the move, but going nowhere! The ‘buy and hold’ will just eat away returns and may not even deliver return equal to say an fixed deposit ( FD ). Therefore, it is frustrating for a long-term investor since it eats into real returns. It is also frustrating for an arbitrageur since volumes generally drift lower and the bid offer of price makes it difficult to make money. Then, there are day traders, who still have work to do since their horizon is short. However, sideways movements generally are preceded and succeeded by large bouts of volatility, which invariably take a toll on some large leveraged players. This leads to some active players withdrawing from the market leading to further liquidity squeeze. However, all is not lost! Let me attempt to outline the investment strategies in a range-bound market for a normal average investor,...

Fixed deposits ( FDs ) are a safer investment option when compared to debt funds. Debt funds are sensitive to interest rate fluctuations unlike an FD which offers a fixed interest rate for a fixed tenure. But the most important difference between these two is the tax treatment on gains. The interest earned on a fixed deposit is to be added on to your income irrespective of the term of the FD. Further, there is no distinction between short or long term capital gains tax in FDs. This overall reduces the yield of a fixed deposit, especially if you fall in the 30 per cent tax bracket. What makes debt funds a better choice is the tax treatment on its gains. Just like FDs, if you redeem a debt fund within one year then you need to add the gains to your income (Short term capital gains). In case you redeem the investment after one year (long term capital gains) you can avail the indexation benefit.

Some investment avenues for those who don’t want to take the risks associated with stock markets When the stock markets go the downside way, investments in fixed deposits ( FDs ) become attractive again. FDs remained a dormant investment avenue for the past few years, mainly because of the fact that the interest rates were low, and these investments are unsecured. So, the government's saving schemes, especially the post office saving scheme, had an edge over FDs. Fixed deposits attractive again However, some recent changes have again brought FDs into the limelight. The contributing factors include the decision to give tax breaks in terms of coverage under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act. The second major factor has been the gradual increase in the interest rates on FDs. These deposits have been brought on par with small savings schemes. Investments in term deposits for those planning to take a tax deduction will have a lock-in period of five years. The government notification sa...