The Hindu Business Line : Sunday, August 21, 2005

Investment quiz
1) A question on fashion and Wimbledon. The tradition of women players wearing hats, bustles, stiff petticoats and corsets was changed in 1919 — the first Wimbledon after the First World War — by a French woman. "This balletic figure ... More

OPEN OFFERS

JBF Industries: Reject
The offer price of Rs 46.50 is well below the current market price of about Rs 75. JBF Industries recently made a preferential allotment to private equity funds managed by Citigroup. Post-allotment, the acquirer's stake in the company is 25 per ... More

Wimco: Accept
SHAREHOLDERS can accept the open offer being made by Swedish Match, to acquire 20 per cent of the public shareholding of Wimco Ltd. Swedish Match also reserves the right to acquire an additional 6 per cent stake through the open offer, mopping up ... More

INSIGHT

Why companies should tell more
WITH stock prices on a relentless upward march there is concern in some quarters about the prevailing valuations. Given the very nature of equity instruments, it is difficult to be forthright in one's views; thus ... More

A fund of disclosure, yet inadequate
DISCLOSURE standards adopted by mutual funds in India are probably the best in the world. Importantly, SEBI and the Association of Mutual Funds of India have come together to orchestrate the changes in the reporting standards that have helped ... More

Has Posco hit pay-dirt?
HAS Posco walked away with a better deal for steel manufacture with the Orissa Government compared to the Tatas? Yes, if one goes strictly by the Memorandum of Understanding signed by Posco and Tata Steel with the State Government. But this ... More

COURTS/LEGAL ISSUES

Whatever you do, don't wobble
TO LESTER Bowie, a jazz trumpet player and composer, C is the name of a pitch, a sound. "So is a cat's meow, so is a motorcycle, so is anything," he'd say. To many motorcycle buyers, however, their vehicle and the ... More

MUTUAL FUNDS

HDFC Growth: Sell
INVESTORS in HDFC Growth Fund may reduce exposures following its unimpressive performance this year. They could switch to a combination of HDFC Equity and SBI Magnum Contra, which could provide superior returns. Despite a spurt in equity ... More

`Individual investors are dumb money'
BRACE UP, this line may hit you like a tonne of bricks: "Individual investors have a striking ability to do the wrong thing." And, before you recover from the shock, here's more: "Individual investors are dumb money... Individuals hurt ... More

UTI Master Value: Hold
INVESTORS in UTI Master Value can stay with the fund. This is a reversal of last year's recommendation to book profits. The recommendation was given in light of relatively poor performance in 2003 and early 2004. Since then, the fund has ... More

FUND TALK
Risky to invest borrowed funds
You cannot rely on an equity fund investment to consistently generate enough income to service your interest obligations. More

Birla Sun Life to launch Birla Top 100 Fund

Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund is to launch Birla Top 100 Fund. The fund will invest 65 per cent of its assets in stocks of the top 100 companies in terms of market capitalisation. The fund offers dividend and growth options. The minimum ... More

STOCKS

MRF: Buy
Though the recent trend of subdued growth in earnings may continue for a while, the long-term prospects are encouraging. Any pick-up in business volume and a marginal increase in profitability would have a magnifying impact on the ... More

Bihar Caustic: Buy
INVESTORS can consider taking exposure in the Bihar Caustic stock which quotes at a trailing 12-month price-earnings multiple of four. An attractive 33 per cent return on net worth for FY-05 and a high operating ... More

Century Textiles: Buy
SHAREHOLDERS of Century Textiles can remain invested and also accumulate the stock, as there could be scope for appreciation linked to fundamentals and clarity on ownership and management control. But the effect of the ... More

Godrej Consumer Products: Buy on declines
RESURGENT demand and softening input prices have helped Godrej Consumer Products report strong sales and profit numbers for the June 2005-06 quarter. Reviving growth in categories such as hair colour and market share gains for the company in ... More

NTPC: Buy
INVESTORS looking for steady capital appreciation with minimal risk over the medium-to-long-term can consider putting their money in the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) stock at the current market price of Rs 97. The stock has been a ... More

Aarvee Denims: Buy
AN INVESTMENT can be considered in the Aarvee Denims stock from a medium-term perspective. At the current market price, the stock trades at about nine times its expected FY-06 earnings per share, on an expanded equity base. The largest ... More

TECHNICAL ANALYSIS

Near-term trend appears muted
Preferred view: The market activity was devoid of any significant trend for the second week in succession. Though the index managed to register a gain of about 22 points, the market action did not portray a positive picture. The ... More

Focus of the week
Blue Star (Rs 381.2): The long-term outlook is bullish. The stock staged a breakout from a trading range last week. The rise in price coupled with the pick-up in volume indicates the start of the next leg of the rally. The stock ... More

Weak near-term outlook for SBI
SBI (Rs 805.2): The price action during the week was characterised by a zigzag movement. The stock failed to make any significant move on either direction. The near-term outlook remains bearish. Last week's view of a test of the swing low ... More

Query corner
What is the outlook for Manali Petro and Lloyd Steel? — S.P.Kumar, Amrit Patel, R. Natarajan Manali Petro (Rs 26.5): There is scope for a move to the Rs 32-34 range. The near-term trend is positive and investors may hold ... More

CARS

Swift scores on fuel efficiency
THANKS to the rave reviews, I have almost decided to buy the Maruti Suzuki Swift ZXi (fully loaded version) But when I approached the local dealer for a quote, the sales in-charge was trying to convince me that for ... More

Hyundai tunes a new Sonata
TRENDS IN the automobile industry are not as fickle as in the world of fashion. Yet, the world of wheels is not immune to some cyclicality of trends dictated by evolving local tastes and market realities. The latest one ... More

New version of the Getz
HYUNDAI has come out with another variant of the Getz bringing the total number of variants to four. Called Getz GLE, the new variant comes with power steering and AC as part of the standard equipment. The GLE is ... More

ECONOMICS

Second-hand goods
RECENTLY, my friend had a first-hand experience of how economics works in everyday life. He decided to sell his two-month old car, as his company was sending him abroad for a year. Unfortunately, none were willing to pay more than 75 per cent of ... More

DERIVATIVES MARKETS

Trading modest
TRADING activity was just modest last week amid volatile condition at the derivative segment on the NSE; the average daily turnover was Rs 15,148 crore against the previous week figure of Rs 17,227 crore. Robust rollover of positions both in ... More

F&O POINTERS
Bullish undertone
Nifty outlook: As has been anticipated, the Nifty was volatile last week touching an all-time high of the 2400-mark before settling at around 2383 points. Keeping in mind the volatility in the market, we have been advising investors ... More

FIXED DEPOSITS

KSE offers attractive interest rates
KSE: Investors can consider adding the one- or two-year fixed deposit programme from KSE Ltd to their portfolio, given the attractive interest rates and the modest risks associated it. The company offers an interest rate of 8 per ... More

REGULATORY BODIES & RULINGS

Dealing in the stock market
You can contact a broker or a sub-broker registered with the Securities and Exchange Board of India for carrying out your transactions pertaining to the capital market. Who is a broker? A broker is a member of a recognised stock ... More

BROADBAND

Broadband: Speed up your Net life
As more players come in, choices are expanding for the customer, both in terms of service providers and prices. More

INCOME TAX

Is investment in retirement plan eligible for rebate?
I AM a retired bank officer. I recently invested Rs 10,000 in ING Vysya retirement plan. At the time of investment I was told that this investment will qualify for deduction under Section 80CCC. I have already ... More

IPOS

FCS Software Solutions: Avoid
INVESTORS can avoid the initial public offering being made by FCS Software Solutions at Rs 50 per share. Since the overall software services business is booming, FCS Software's focus on application maintenance, e-learning and product engineering ... More

BOOKS

Visualise the potential uses of a property
A real estate option grants the party owning the option, the optionee, the exclusive, unrestricted, and irrevocable right to purchase property from the party selling the option, the optioner, during the specified period of time that the real ... More

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