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Portfolio Managers Post Loss In April, Wait For Election Storm To Pass

India’s top portfolio managers choose to protect capital in election season.

A fishing boat sits on a beach as a storm moves in during sunset in Lampuuk, Aceh province, Indonesia. (Photographer: Dimas Ardian/Bloomberg)
A fishing boat sits on a beach as a storm moves in during sunset in Lampuuk, Aceh province, Indonesia. (Photographer: Dimas Ardian/Bloomberg)

India’s portfolio managers suffered a loss in April even as they hedged positions amid a spike in volatility in the election season.

The top 50 portfolio managers by assets—together managing Rs 1.14 lakh crore of investor money—lost 0.90 percent on an average in April, according to regulatory data tracked by BloombergQuint. That compares with a 0.9 percent and 1 percent increase in the Sensex and Nifty 50, respectively, during the month.

In January to April, they returned average gains of 1.70 percent compared with 8.2 percent rise in the Sensex and the Nifty.

Portfolio managers were cautious in April and remain so in May with many preferring to hedge positions during the election season, people from the industry BloombergQuint spoke with said—they didn’t want to be identified out of business concerns. Volatility, measured by India VIX, has surged 40 percent since April 1. And portfolio management firms are prepping for counting of votes on May 23 as various surveys and political commentary suggest a coalition government.

Only 16 of the top 50 portfolio managers returned gains in April. Just five beat the benchmark Sensex.

Majority of the top 10 such firms posted negative returns in April. Karma Capital, which manages foreign investments, suffered a loss of 3.6 percent.

Here is how the top 50 portfolio managers performed in April and so far this year.