Massive Underperformance = Big Opportunity? Dinshaw Irani On Small-Caps

Mid-caps and small-caps have sharply underperformed even as the Nifty trades near record highs with only a handful of stocks driving the rally. Speaking on the opportunity, Helios AMC’s Dinshaw Irani explains why this environment motivated the firm to launch its new Small-Cap Fund. Despite stretched standalone valuations, Irani highlights that when measured by PEG (Price-to-Earnings-to-Growth), small-caps are currently the cheapest segment in the market - with a PEG of 1.1 vs. 1.7 for large and mid-caps. With earnings growth strongly favoring smaller companies and performance cycles historically shifting back toward broader markets, Helios believes this is a compelling entry point. The response to the launch has been phenomenal, and the mid-cap strategy has already topped ICRA rankings.