The Hindu Business Line : Sunday, December 04, 2005

Investment quiz
1. Who is the world's largest re-insurer now (a status that has changed in the past month)? 2. What is the CNX 100? 3. On Wall Street, which company is affectionately referred to as Mr Softee? 4. Which fund house launched the first ... More

INSIGHT

Riding the `relative' wave
AS INDIA Inc. enters an aggressive investment phase, everyone seems to be talking of `better times', or should we say `even better times'. In the circumstances, judging the companies, especially the mid- and ... More

Auto sector: First-gear sales, top-gear valuation
AUTOMOBILE stocks are at the forefront of the market rally, which is interesting considering that the growth rates in important segments of the industry are cooling down. Is there something the market knows that we do not? Sales of trucks and ... More

Making sense of sentiment
Staying rational does not require you to be a skilled investor. Some investment gurus have indicated that a simple buy-and-hold policy could be as effective as any complicated procedure. Investors who keep things simple could make as much money as th e most skilled fund manager. More

MUTUAL FUNDS

SPOTLIGHT

HDFC Top 200 Fund: Invest
EXPOSURES may be considered in HDFC Top 200 Fund, as it remains one of the better options in the equity funds space. The portfolio, which has about 50 stocks, appears well positioned to benefit from the underlying ... More

Franklin India Flexicap: Hold
INVESTORS in the new fund offer of Franklin India Flexicap can retain their holdings. The fund has delivered an impressive performance since its launch in March this year, doing better than such well-established peers ... More

Franklin India Small Companies Fund: Invest
FEW product categories in the mutual fund space can now evoke as much excitement as a mid-cap/small-cap fund. You can rest assured that the hype surrounding a close-end small-cap fund will be doubly so. Close-end funds ... More

PORTFOLIO MOVES
Birla Equity
EQUITY-linked savings schemes (ELSS) or tax benefit funds have the dual aim of capital appreciation through investing in equity instruments and providing tax incentives as well. The three-year lock-in period may help earn returns over time, ... More

How much does the manager matter?
The fund manager's exit is an important event. It merits closer tracking of the fund's performance and checking on the fund's performance over the subsequent few quarters. More

PruICICI MF to levy entry load on SIP

Mr Sanjay Sinha has replaced Mr Sandip Sabharwal as Head of Equity at SBI Mutual Fund. Mr Sabharwal is no longer with SBI Mutual Fund. Mr Sinha was earlier part of the fund management team at UTI Mutual Fund. At SBI, he will now manage ... More

STOCKS

Pioneer Embroideries: Buy
AN investment can be considered in Pioneer Embroideries. At Rs 92, the stock trades at a valuation of nine times its trailing four-quarter per-share earnings. With a market capitalisation of about Rs 100 crore, the stock could, however, be ... More

Container Corporation: Buy
AN EXPOSURE can be considered in the stock of Container Corporation of India, which is a premier logistics play. This sector will continue to figure prominently in the preferences of institutional investors, as ... More

Gati: Buy
INVESTMENT can be considered in the stock of the cargo movement and logistics player, Gati, which trades at about Rs 335. Any dip in the stock price, linked to broad market movements, can also be used as an opportunity ... More

V.I.P. Industries: Book profits
INVESTORS can consider divesting from the VIP Industries stock, which trades at about Rs 140. The company's modest revenue growth and a low operating margin do not justify the current valuation. Though exports have more ... More

Dredging Corporation: Book profits
THE growth opportunities for dredging companies is immense as a number of projects are in the pipeline. Dredging Corporation of India (DCI), so far the dominant player in the industry, is facing competition from foreign ... More

TECHNICAL ANALYSIS

Consolidation ahead of an upward trend
Preferred view: The market action was marked by a high degree of volatility during the week. After a sharp rally in the earlier week, the pattern traced out in the past few days could be classified as a consolidation ahead of the ... More

Focus of the week
Kotak Mahindra Bank (Rs 228): The share price has been in a major uptrend in the recent years. There appears to be significant upside potential from prevailing levels. After passing through a brief corrective phase, the stock resumed ... More

Bullish outlook for Infosys
Infosys (Rs 2,843): The stock ruled firm and also moved to the target zone of Rs 2,800-2,820 during the week. The outlook remains bullish and a move to the Rs 2,950-2,960 range appears likely. Hold with a stop-loss at Rs 2,660. Fresh ... More

Query Corner
Please advise if I should hold or exit from Surana Telecom purchased at Rs 34? — Mini Surana Telecom (Rs 31): The stock has been in a sharp downtrend in the recent months. There could be a pull back once the stock ... More

CARS

Feast yourself with Fiesta
Ford appears to have made the extra effort to develop and price the Fiesta in a manner that could keep aspiring sedan buyers interested. On key issues, such as long-term reliability, fuel efficiency and low-cost maintenance, the Honda City has a he ad start. Only six months down the road will it be clear how the Fiesta stacks up vis-à-vis the City. Now the former has novelty value. More

LIFE INSURANCE

LIC Jeevan Plus
After Life Insurance Corporation decided to close sales of its first unit-linked product, Bima Plus, it launched another product to plug the gap. Called Jeevan Plus, the product is a whole-life unit-linked plan.Here are some of the key features ... More

STOCK MARKETS

Portfolio diversification
IF YOU want to construct an equity portfolio, would you buy a large quantity in handful of stocks or would you buy a small number of 15-20 stocks? The answer depends on how you pick your stocks. Why? Suppose you buy stocks based on fundamental ... More

DERIVATIVES MARKETS

F&O POINTERS
Volatile trends may continue
If the Nifty sustains current levels and opens on a strong note on Monday, then it could go up to a high of 2730 levels. More

Options guide
Call option: A call option gives the buyer `the right but not the obligation' to buy the stock at a specified price on a future date. Put option: A put option gives the buyer `the right but not the obligation' to sell a stock ... More

INCOME TAX

Home loans: One from my company, one from my bank
I TOOK a house building advance from my employer company in March 2001. The first instalment along with interest on this loan was repaid in February 2004. In August 2004, I took a fresh loan from HDFC and completed construction of the house in ... More

Maximum deduction on housing loan
WHAT is the maximum amount of deduction that I can get in respect of interest on the housing loan? Vidya Reply Interest on capital borrowed for purchase or construction can be claimed as a deduction without any limit where a property ... More

PUBLIC OFFER

ICICI Bank: Aggressively priced
AN INVESTMENT in the public offer of ICICI Bank can be avoided for now. The offer is aggressively priced relative to its past financial performance. The valuation is also higher vis-a-vis to that of many of its peers. Growing at a healthy ... More

BOOKS

Brave the markets with just one book
JOHN Mauldin's `Thoughts from the Frontline' is a weekly financial e-letter that goes to over 1,500,000 readers. He has edited "Just One Thing," from Wiley (www.wiley.com), getting `Twelve of the World's Best Investors ... More

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Top Stories
Riding the `relative' wave

Consolidation ahead of an upward trend

Making sense of sentiment

Feast yourself with Fiesta

ICICI Bank: Aggressively priced

Auto sector: First-gear sales, top-gear valuation

In Focus

FDI in retail sector

Indian Aviation: Sky is the limit

India Inc's bonus bonanza

Sethusamudram Canal Project