Suzlon Energy, Reliance Power, YES Bank, Tanla, MTAR, GMM Pfaudler, PTC India shares: Retail favourite stocks in bear grip

Shares of 25 retail-heavy companies, where retail-ownership is in excess of 20 per cent and the company market capitalisation (m-cap) is in excess of Rs 5,000 crore, are in the bear grip. They included MTAR Technologies Ltd, Gujarat State Fertilizers & Chemicals Ltd, Ion Exchange (India) Ltd,  GMM Pfaudler Ltd and Reliance Power Ltd, to name a few.

Others included Tanla Platforms Ltd, Titagarh Railsystems Ltd, PTC India and Suzlon Energy among others. These stocks have fallen 20-40 per cent from their 52-week high levels, data compiled from corporate database AceEquity suggests.

In the case of MTAR Technologies, the stock at Rs 1,793.50 apiece is off 39 per cent from its 52-week high of Rs 2,920 hit in September last year. Individual investors, with less than Rs 2 lakh worth shares, accounted for 29.67 per cent stake in this company as on December 31, 2023.

Shares of GSFC are down 36 per cent from its January high of Rs 322.45. Retail investors owned 21.45 per cent stake in this company at the end of December quarter, Ion Exchange (down 35 per cent), GMM Pfaudler (Rs 34 per cent), Reliance Power (down 32 per cent), Tanla Platforms )down 30 per cent Deepak Fertilisers (down 30 per cent) and YES Bank Ltd (down 28 per cent) are some other retail-heavy stocks that are off their one-year highs. Retail investors have 21-28 per cent stakes in these companies.

Sterlite Technologies Ltd, Titagarh Railsystems Ltd, PCBL Ltd, HBL Power Systems Ltd, PTC India Ltd, Praj Industries Ltd, Texmaco Rail & Engineering Ltd, Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers & Chemicals Ltd, Raymond Ltd, Rain Industries Ltd, The South Indian Bank Ltd and Suzlon Energy Ltd saw their shares falling 23-28 per cent since their 52-week high levels. Retail ownership in these stocks stood up to 51 per cent at the end of December quarter.

Many of he stocks re from midcap and smallcap pockets, where there is concern over valuation froth.

"The dominant near-term trend in the market now is the correction in the broader market, particularly the small caps. The small cap index is 7.8 per ent down from the peak and this correction is likely to continue since the valuations are even now excessive. The regulator SEBI has sent a clear message about the frothy valuations in the small cap segment and, therefore, regulatory actions are likely, going forward. There can be redemptions from small cap funds adding to the downside.Quality large caps will bounce back after a correction, but small caps are unlikely to bounce back in the near-term.PSE stocks that have run up too much too fast also are likely to face selling pressure," said V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services.