Lakshmikanth's current stock pick is Birla Corp. Pramod Palathinkal is betting on Andhra Sugars. D Mukhopadhaya finds Avaya and Honeywell attractive. Sameer Saksena feels ICICI Bank and L&T will give 10-20% returns this year. These are some of the recommendations posted on our "MT blogs" by the ever expanding followers of our two model stock portfolios-Safe Wealth and Wealth Zoom.
We launched the portfolios about a year ago to help our readers "learn, debate and perhaps earn" from. It was, and remains, a novel experiment in print journalism. Till then we, like any other publication, reproduced select stock recommendations from equity research reports. But as Dipen Sheth, the fund manager of the two portfolios, once quipped: "Who is answerable if a stock we recommend results in losses?" He was asking Money Today to be accountable for its suggestions.
Not in terms of monetary compensation, but something more important: for explaining why a stock did not perform as expected and the lesson to be learnt. Thankfully Dipen, a professional wealth manager and IIT-IIM graduate, didn't just question us but also took up the challenge of building and managing the two model stock portfolios.
Every alternate Wednesday, for the past one year, he has updated and revised the portfolios, something fund managers do daily. But unlike any other fund manager, Dipen has also shared the logic behind his every move (good or bad) with our readers.
This has been the most valuable and unique offering of this section-a peek into the mind of a fund manager who has to take buy/sell/hold decisions under all market conditions. Initially, we didn't know whether we had succeeded in educating readers through this mock fund management.
Were they taking this exercise in the right spirit and learning the right lessons? The quality of posts on our blog clears all doubts. Readers are not only debating and learning, but are now telling us as much as we tell them.
Besides recommendations, there are detailed comments backed with rationale, research-and some reproach. A few readers have asked for the methodology and mandate for the two portfolios.
It was explained in detail in the 12 July 2007 issue and is available on our website. For readers who haven't yet visited the blog-you are missing out some real nuggets of wisdom and, perhaps, some wealth creation opportunities.
