NEW DELHI, July 13: Blue chips like State Bank of India, Reliance and the like may be the most sought after in the current bull run. But the best in terms of returns belong to the B1 group. Of course software companies are at the forefront. But those who had bought from the B1 list scrips which were going for a song can reap a bonanza today. In most cases the returns are over 100 per cent.

Shares in the B1 group of BSE have outperformed the market by a very wide margin compared to the A group. In the A group there were only three scrips which have given a return of more than 100 per cent over the last six and half months, with the maximum return coming from Hero Honda (139 per cent).

In the B1 group CMC lead the market outperfomers with a return of 850 per cent. There are 20 scrips which have given a return of over 100 per cent.

Though the rising Sensex has not seen an across-the-board rally, nearly 122 scrips out of the 746 in B1 have outperformed the sensex since January 1997.

The Sensex registered a gain of 32.5 per cent, rising from 3260 on January 1, 1997 to last Friday's close of 4321.98 points.

The biggest gainer in the list of market outperformers is the public sector CMC Limited. The scrip has moved from Rs 10 to the current level of Rs 94.75, recording nearly a gain of 850 per cent. Despite a reported drop in the net profit in 1996-97 (from Rs 12.66 crore to Rs 3.85 crore) the scrip has been on the rise, mainly on account of some excellent orders in hand.

In the list of the market outperformers the first six scrips are those of software companies CMC, Satyam Computers, Infosys Technologies, Tata Infotech, Aptech and BFL Software. Besides, the list includes nearly 12 pharmaceutical companies and 23 MNCs.

The analysis throws up other interesting, but rewarding stories. Less than a year ago, six scrips were quoting below par. For example, Hindustan Zinc, which was quoting at Rs 9.5 in January, today changes hands for Rs 21.4. The company has reported a 30 per cent drop in net earnings to Rs 30.22 crore.

The reason: rising international zinc prices which are currently quoting at a 6-year high of $ 1,450. Another major gainer has been Bata India, giving a return of 117 per cent in over six months.

The scrip has moved from Rs 56.25 to Rs 122.25. The company staged a turnaround for the year ending December 31, 1996, reporting a net profit of Rs 4.15 crore as against a net loss of Rs 42.16 crore in the previous year. Bausch & Lomb, another turnaround story, recorded a gain of nearly 50 per cent.

The other major gainer is Shipping Corporation, which has moved from Rs 25 to Rs 49, a gain of 96 per cent. Even HMT's scrip moved from Rs 7.5 to current level of Rs 14.5.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.