New Delhi, Dec 28: The current rally at the IT counters has seen the net asset value of Kothari Pioneer Infotech Fund rise by 21 per cent in less than a month. The NAV, which was below par at Rs 9.72 on November 30, climbed to Rs 11.74 on December 23. In the four months since launch, the NAV has grown from Rs 9.70 to the current level, which translates into a rise of 21.03 per cent. The fund had a three per cent entry load on initial subscriptions and hence, the NAV started at Rs 9.70. If translated in terms of investments, an investment of Rs 10,000 has now grown to Rs 11,739 in four months.Mastek has been one of the star performers in the portfolio, which has aided the rise in NAV. The scrip has gone up by 71 per cent in the last three months, rising from Rs 246 on September 22 to Rs 423 on December 21. The fund holds 27,500 shares of the company as on November 30. According to the fund manager, R Sukumar, the market has recognised the potential of the company with a restructuring of its operations.``The company has moved from relatively unprofitable products business to its growing services business in USA and UK,'' he said.
The top holdings of the fund are Infosys, NIIT, Satyam Computer, Mastek, BFL Software, Tata Infotech, Digital and PSI Data. The seven scrips account for 83.5 per cent of the fund's assets. ``The fund has focussed on top line infotech stocks with strong fundamentals and good growth prospects,'' said Sukumar. The 1:1 bonus from Infosys will take the fund's holding in the company to 17,200 shares, provided the fund manager has not booked profits at higher levels. As on November 30, 1998, the fund held 8,600 shares of Infosys with a market value of little over Rs 2 crore.
The spurt at other prominent IT counters has added to the growth of NAV. With Q3 results round the corner, the markets are expecting an encore from IT companies. Expectations of a bonus from other IT majors after Infosys has further fuelled the rise in these stocks. The bottomline of IT companies has grown thickand fast at an average rate of 70-100 per cent in the last couple of years.
``Investors should take advantage of the current no-load on the infotech fund and invest here instead of investing in the shares on their own,'' said Prem Khatri, vice president, marketing, Kothari Pioneer AMC. The no-load offer is open till March 31, 1999.
The infotech fund was launched on August 10, 1998. During the initial offer, it raised Rs 7.5 crore from 4000 investors. Currently, the fund's assets stand at Rs 10.5 crore.
According to the fund manager, good Indian companies aim at becoming top players globally. ``For example, NIIT wants to become the numero uno computer education company ahead of IBM global services. Similarly, the recent tie-up between GE and Satyam highlights the potential of Indian companies to provide value added global services.''
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
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