Month: May 2025

Equity Mutual Funds Play Safe with ₹2.3 Lakh Cr Cash Buffer: India’s equity mutual funds continue to adopt a cautious stance, with cash reserves hovering above ₹2.3 Lakh Cr as of April 2025 — sustaining one of the highest liquidity cushions in recent years. Despite intermittent market rallies, AMCs are holding back on aggressive equity allocations, signalling a preference for dry powder amid global and domestic headwinds.

Average Cash Holding Edges Higher Again: The average of cash holding ratio among the top 20 AMCs ticked up further to 6.53% in April, compared to 6.03% in March, extending the cautious momentum.

PPFAS MF leads with the highest cash holding ratio of 23.57%, driven by its cautious flexi-cap strategy. Motilal Oswal MF and Quant MF follow with 14.50% and 13.05%, also maintain sizable liquidity buffers. Large players like SBI MF, HDFC MF and ICICI Pru MF lead in absolute cash holdings — SBI MF alone holds over ₹38,000 Cr in cash.

Motilal Oswal Flexi Cap Fund leads with the highest cash holding ratio at 33.34%, followed closely by Motilal Oswal Midcap Fund and Parag Parikh Flexi Cap Fund have cash holding ratios at 24.54% and 23.79% respectively, among the highest in active equity schemes. SBI Contra Fund and SBI Small Cap Fund maintain over 20% in cash.

Contra Funds lead with the highest cash holding at 17% of AUM, signaling a highly cautious stance, followed by Flexi Cap (10.89%) and Focused Funds (9.39%), reflecting flexible allocation strategies. Small Cap Funds also maintain a notable 8.80% cash buffer to guard against volatility-driven corrections.

For a comprehensive understanding and more insights, please go through our detailed report.

Equity MFs Touch ₹30.58 Lakh Cr AUM in April – Equity mutual funds saw a robust 3.8% rise in Net AUM during April, driven by strong market momentum and rising investor confidence — pushing total assets to a record ₹30.58 Lakh Cr.

Fresh Bets: Funds Flock to Financials, Aviation & EVs – Recent IPO stock Ather Energy led the fresh picks with 13 schemes acquiring a massive 4.97% stake, reflecting rising conviction in the electric mobility theme. Financial names were in high demand, with Axis Bank, IDFC First Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Ujjivan Small Finance Bank drawing fresh interest. Jio Financial and Max Financial were also among the top choices, signaling continued confidence in the financial sector’s growth trajectory. Beyond banking, mutual funds added Interglobe Aviation, Reliance Industries, Supreme Industries, Lupin, Tube Investments, Dixon Technologies and Cholamandalam Investment.

IndusInd Bank: Conflicting Moves by MFs in April – IndusInd Bank was at the center of mixed activity, with 23 mutual fund schemes adding the stock as fresh investment (1.45% stake), while 17 others exited it (1.68% stake). The simultaneous buying and selling signals fund managers’ divided outlook and portfolio rebalancing strategies.

Clear Exits: Profit Booking in Autos, Pharma & Consumption – Voltas faced the steepest pullback, with 21 schemes exiting a 2.25% stake. Muthoot Finance, Zydus Life Sciences and Tech Mahindra also saw exits by 13 or more schemes. Notably, Mahindra & Mahindra, Siemens, Hindalco, ITC, Dr. Reddy’s Labs, Hindustan Unilever, Tata Motors, Bharat Forge and Navin Fluorine were also among the top exits.

For a comprehensive understanding and more insights, please go through our detailed report.

Mutual Fund industry’s average AUM rose 4.19% MoM to ₹69.49 lakh Cr in April amid ₹2.77 lakh Cr inflows and broad mark-to-market gains.

Equity funds logged ₹24,269 crore in inflows in April, marking the 50th consecutive month of gains, though down 3% to a 12-month low.

Debt AUM rose 5.78% with ₹2.19 lakh Cr of inflow in April, reversing March’s outflows of ₹2.02 lakh crore caused by year-end liquidity requirements.

SIP inflows rose 2% in April to ₹26,632 crore, rebounding from a 4-month low.

Additionally, Short Duration Funds and Corporate Bond Funds attracted significant inflows of ₹4.77K Cr and ₹3.46K Cr respectively, as investors positioned for potential RBI rate cuts and sought capital appreciation from longer-duration bonds.

For more details read through our comprehensive Mutual Fund Flow Report for April, 2025.

Information Technology Leads FPI Sell-Off as Sector Rotation Intensifies

Other sectors that witnessed significant unwinding included Capital Goods, Metals & Mining, Oil & Gas, Automobile & Auto Components, Construction and Healthcare, reflecting a broader shift away from cyclical and rate-sensitive segments. Information Technology saw the steepest selling of ₹13,828 Cr in the first half of April, cementing its position as the worst-hit sector of 2025 so far. Financial Services continued its weak streak from March, with outflows of ₹4,501 Cr.

Telecom Leads FPI Buys Amid Defensive Tilt

Telecommunication drew the highest FPI inflows at ₹2,137 Cr, signaling strong interest in digital infrastructure. Modest buying was seen in FMCG (₹587 Cr) and Media & Entertainment (₹103 Cr), while Power and Diversified sectors saw limited participation.

For a comprehensive understanding and more insights, please go through our detailed report.