Kotak Bank, Infosys, Bajaj Finance, Tata Motors, TCS: How mutual funds' top March stock bets fared in results season

Thirteen out of the 15 top mutual fund (MF) stock bets of March delivered positive returns in April so far, with 12 outperforming Sensex's 1.4 per cent return during the same period. Mutual funds had bought shares worth Rs 16,051.97 crore in these 15 stocks, with Infosys, Reliance Industries and HDFC among their top picks.

Thanks to disappointing earnings outlook, shares and TCS and Infosys fell this month. Tata Motors and Sona BLW Precision Forgings led gainers with double-digit returns.

Among mutual funds' top five March stock picks, three underperformed the BSE Sensex in April.  Shares of Infosys plunged 12 per cent in April over March 31 closing value of Rs 1,427.70. As per PRIME Database, MFs bought Rs 2,576.21 crore worth Infosys shares last month. They held 66,56,16,990 shares or 16.04 per cent stake in Infosys in March against 64,76,40,519 shares or 15.61 per cent stake in February.

Reliance Industries, where MFs bought Rs 1,864.25 crore in March, is up 1.5 per cent this month. Shares of HDFC and HDFC AMC rose 4.4 per cent and 5.9 per cent, respectively. MFs bought Rs 1,369.80 crore worth HDFC shares in March and Rs 1,318.50 crore worth HDFC AMC shares during the same period.

Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL), where MFs bought Rs 1,102 crore in March, has seen its shares rising 3.71 per cent in April.

Among top March mutual fund picks that delivered solid returns in April included Tata Motors (12 per cent), Sona BLW Precision Forgings (11.14 per cent), Kotak Mahindra Bank (9.28 per cent), Astral (8.72 per cent) and Biocon (8.48 per cent.

Bajaj Finance, Power Grid, Samvardhana Motherson International and Tata Steel were other mutual fund buys which rose 2-6 per cent in April.

Also read: Adani Power vs Tata Power: Which stock can deliver better returns in long term? 

Also read: Infosys shares recover, but still in bear grip. What's next for mutual funds’ top March stock bet