The Hindu Business Line : Sunday, December 28, 2003

NSDL: Non-cash corporate actions
CORPORATE actions are events initiated by corporates that impact shareholders. These could be cash corporate actions such as dividends/interest payments or non-cash actions such as issue of bonus shares, splitting ... More

PENSION PLANS

INSURANCE CORNER

ING Vysya Best Years Retirement Plan
ING Vysya's pension plan is a simple accumulation product that allows you to build up a certain lumpsum, which can be used to buy annuity, on the chosen date of retirement. The advantage of this product is its ... More

INSIGHT

Stocks in 2003: Partying like there is no tomorrow
AT THE beginning of 2003, when the Sensex was perched at the 3,400 level, had someone hazarded a guess that it would settle at almost 5,700 by the year-end, the most likely response would have been: "That's bull." ... More

How we handled the bull market
IT HAS been an exhilarating year at the markets and our experience when it comes to calling stocks has been no different either. As the end of the year approaches, we decided to step back and carry out an objective ... More

Stocks in 2004: Steam left in the bull run
COMING off a year when the broad markets have turned in returns of about 100 per cent (S&P CNX 500), it may be better to view the outlook for stocks in 2004 with circumspection. It is unlikely that 2004 will hold a ... More

Rationale for indexing
IN THE past six months, active funds have provided higher returns than index funds. Yet, those who believe in efficient markets state that index funds are a better investment in the long run. ... More

Investors in oil stocks need to watch out
Will divestment and sale of crossholdings in ONGC, Indian Oil and Gail alter the price discovery process? More

Annus Mirabilis for investment
Anything that the investor touched in 2003 turned to gold. This midas touch however is unlikely to work in 2004. Risk containment measures are likely to play an important role. It is necessary to remember that what you lose in a market downturn will decide how much you add to your wealth than what you gained in 2003. More

MUTUAL FUNDS

MF performance in 2003 — It's been party time for equity funds
IT HAS been a breathtaking year for investors in equity mutual funds. The majority of equity funds have beaten the market indices by a huge margin. One in every four equity funds has managed to double its NAV over ... More

HDFC Prudence Fund: Invest
WITH absolute returns of around 90 per cent over the past year, the HDFC Prudence Fund remains the top choice among the balanced funds available to the investor. Its performance in 2003 reinforces the case for ... More

Franklin Prima: Buy in phased manner
INVESTMENTS can be considered in Franklin Prima despite the rise of about 170 per cent in its NAV over the past twelve months. But exposures can be phased out, perhaps using the systematic investment plan. This will ... More

Alliance Basic Industries
Risk-averse: Book profits partially
Others: Hold More

HSBC Equity Fund: Hold
THE HSBC Equity Fund has delivered impressive returns of 147 per cent, in its maiden year, figuring among the top ten diversified equity funds, in terms of its returns over 2003. Both the fund's stock selection strategy ... More

Tata Mutual launches floating rate fund

STOCKS

India Cements: Buy (High Risk)
INVESTMENTS can be considered by those with a penchant for high risk in the stock of India Cements to capitalise on the steady improvement in its fundamentals. Business Line had taken a similar view in early ... More

Grauer & Weil: Buy
INVESTORS with a long-term perspective can consider exposures in Grauer & Weil (India) - GWL. Catering to almost all the companies in the automobile industry, GWL is among the larger manufacturers of ... More

HCL Technologies: Hold
Following the rebalancing of the services portfolio towards application/engineering and probable rebound in technology services, HCL Technologies appears well-positioned for good times ahead. However, sustainability of growth from its organic softwar e business, competition from frontline companies and other extraneous risks remain, says Krishnan Thiagarajan. More

MRF: Buy
WHILE MRF's latest performance may not appear all that impressive, the company appears well-positioned to exploit any improvement in the business environment. Taking into account the strong fundamentals, eminent ... More

Indian Hotels: Buy
Investors can consider exposures in the stock of Indian Hotels, which owns The Taj chain of hotels. The stock trades at Rs 458. It has appreciated by over 35 per cent since our last recommendation two months ago. It can be considered for `buy' as ... More

Madras Cements: Buy
Investments can be contemplated in the stock of Madras Cements at Rs 808, as there appears to be room for appreciation linked to fundamentals. The company is set to benefit from the higher level of cement prices in its key markets of Tamil Nadu ... More

Birla Corp: Buy (High Risk)
INVESTMENTS can be considered in the Birla Corp stock as it may benefit from the gradual improvement in cement prices. Higher demand in the north and the eastern regions are likely to restore better balance between ... More

TECHNICAL ANALYSIS

Focus of the week
KEC International (Rs 72.9): After a period of consolidation, the stock appears poised to resume its uptrend. The near-term outlook is bullish and a move to the Rs 95-100 range appears likely. Remain invested with a stop loss at Rs 62. A ... More

Overbought Nifty moves into unchartered territory
Preferred view: As anticipated, the index ruled firm and also moved past the all-time high of 1818. Technically, there is no resistance level for the index as it has moved into unchartered territory. The near-term trend remains positive. A ... More

Upside potential in Reliance
Wipro (Rs 1713.8): After a decline on the first two days, the stock recovered strongly on Wednesday and posted a modest gain on Friday. Though there is a possibility of a sideways trend that could continue for a while, the overall outlook ... More

Query corner
Shall I hold or sell Zandu Pharma bought at Rs 2700 and Monsanto Chemicals at Rs 1100? I am willing to hold these stocks for a year. — N. Ramabhadran Zandu Pharma (Rs 3362): The stock is on an uptrend and has significant ... More

CARS

Question `n' auto
I bought a Maruti 8OO DX, MPFI, five gears version in April 2000, and am getting an average mileage of about 16 kmpl within Bangalore city and about 21 kmpl on highways with the air-conditioning on. This version of the 800 offers excellent ... More

STOCK MARKETS

Equity outlook: Optimism in the air
IT is an extremely bullish viewpoint that greets the question on where the equity market is headed in 2004. Across the board, industry experts, equity analysts and stock market investors are cheering in the New Year ... More

Nifty peaks

DERIVATIVES MARKETS

Bullish undertone in Nifty
RIDING on a strong undertone in the indices and most of the underlying securities, there was a substantial roll-over of positions on the January contracts. The Nifty gained 3 per cent week-on-week. The weakness in the Nifty midweek (it dipped by ... More

Using futures & options
Please clarify the following points regarding Covered Calls: When I write a covered call, how is the settlement effected? Do I have the option to give delivery of shares? — S. Padmanabhan A covered call is initiated by taking a ... More

THE YEAR THAT WAS
Futures rule firm
Some interesting trends that were evident in the derivatives market in 2003 are: # Near-month contracts are the most active out of the three contracts available at any time. This is primarily due to liquidity and pricing concerns. The ... More

2003: Futures and options on a high
FUTURES and options have truly arrived with the National Stock Exchange (NSE) accounting for much of the action. Be it volumes, traded value or open positions, 2003 was a record-breaking year. That the trading levels ... More

FIXED DEPOSITS

Jubilant Organosys: Yielding for a year
OPTIONS for fixed deposits have been dwindling over the past two years. There are few manufacturing companies that access the fixed deposit market now. Those who accept do not offer superior rates on a risk-adjusted ... More

INTERVIEW

`Paints still perceived as luxury product'
`The paint industry in India still has a lot to do to promote usage, which by itself is a huge opportunity.' More

INCOME TAX

Tax planning for VRS
I WORK for a bank. An `Optional Early Retirement Scheme' has just been introduced by the bank. Under the plan, the bank will pay employees opting for the scheme an ex-gratia. Will this ex-gratia qualify for exemption ... More

Sixty and scouting
I AM 60 years old and plan to invest in LIC Varishtha Bima Yojana. Please advise me as to whether the pension that I receive from the LIC under the scheme will be taxable? What will be the tax implication of the ... More

RIGHTS ISSUES

Sangam (India): Avoid
SHAREHOLDERS can avoid the rights offer of Sangam (India) — SIL. The company offers 82.17 lakh equity shares at Rs 15 per share (face value of Rs 10) in the ratio of one equity share for every two held. ... More

CARTOON