Equity investors turn richer by Rs 14 lakh crore in 6 months: 10 key things you should know

Investors on Dalal Street became richer by Rs 14.07 lakh crore during the first half of 2023 as the equity market scaled new highs amid the ongoing buying by foreign institutional investors. The benchmark BSE Sensex surged nearly 3,878 points, or 6.37 per cent, to settle at a record close of 64,718.56 on June 30 against 60,840.74 on December 30, 2022. Likewise, the 50-share NSE Nifty index rallied 1,083.75 points, or 5.99 per cent, to a record 19,189.05.

Meanwhile, the market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms increased to Rs 296.46 lakh crore on June 30, 2023 from Rs 282.38 lakh crore on December 30 last year. Below are the key things you should know:

Top 10 large-cap gainers 

With a rally of more than 60 per cent, ABB India gained the most among large-caps during January-June. It was followed by Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Company and Tata Motors which gained more than 50 per cent each during the same period. Hindustan Aeronautics, ITC, Siemens, Trent, Interglobe Aviation (IndiGo), Bajaj Auto and DLF also gained somewhere between 30 per cent and 50 per cent since December.

Top 10 mid-caps 

Shares of Aurobindo Pharma and One97 Communications soared more than 60 per cent each during the first six months of 2023. In the mid-cap space, KPIT Technologies, PB Fintech, Power Finance Corporation, REC, L&T Finance Holdings, Polycab India, Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services and Cummins India also gained between 35 per cent and 60 per cent during the same period.

Top 10 small- and micro-caps

In the small-cap space, lesser-known players including Remedium Lifecare and Pulsar International advanced over 2,500 per cent each in H1CY23. Taylormade Renewables, K&R Rail Engineering and SVP Housing also gained over 500 per cent each during the same period. With a rally of more than 200 per cent, Blue Cloud Softech Solutions, Kintech Renewables, Softrak Venture Investment, JITF Infralogistics and Sheetal Diamonds stood among other major gainers in the small-cap space.

Institutional flows 

Foreign institutional investors have poured more than Rs 60,000 crore in equities during January-June 2023. On the other hand, the net investment of domestic institutional investors stood at Rs 83,964 crore on a year-to-date basis till June 28, 2023.

Puneet Maheshwari, Director, Upstox, said, “Consistent FII buying is supporting the market move even as broad-based rally is encouraging retail investors to take a bullish view on the markets. IPO investing activity is also seen improving with Tata Technology IPO getting a SEBI approval.”

Top performing IPOs 

Among the companies which got listed on the SME exchanges or main board this year, Exhicon Events Media traded at Rs 215.65 on June 30, up nearly 237 per cent, against the issue price of Rs 64. Shares of the company got listed on the BSE SME exchange on April 17, 2023. Dev Labtech Venture, Mankind Pharma, Retina Paints, Maiden Forgings, Sealmatic India, Divgi Torqtransfer, SVJ Enterprises, Bright Outdoor Media and Macfos also gained between 25 per cent and 80 per cent so far against their respective issue prices.

Valuations 

The 30-share index Sensex traded at a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 23.62 times on June 28 against its five-year average of 26.15 times and a ten-year average of 23.29 times.

Sectoral performance 

Among the BSE sectoral indices, Realty and Capital Goods indices gained over 20 per cent each YTD. Auto, FMCG, Healthcare and Consumer Durables indices also rallied somewhere between 7 per cent and 20 per cent during the same period.

Global markets 

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index has outpaced global markets so far in 2023. The index has gained nearly 25 per cent YTD till June 27. It was followed by Germany’s DAX index (up 14 per cent) and the benchmark French stock market index CAC40 (up 12 per cent). On the other hand, The Dow Jones Industrial Average index of the US rose 2.35 per cent during the same period.

Market outlook 

V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services, said, “Investors should remain invested in the market. Long-term investors can continue with their systematic investments. Since valuations are rich from the short-term perspective some profit booking can be considered by investors who do not have a long-term time horizon. High-quality financials are even now trading at fair valuations.”

Stocks to buy 

Considering the present market scenario, Gaurav Dua of Sharekhan by BNP Paribas suggests buying Bharti Airtel, L&T, M&M, SBI and Titan Company with an investment horizon of at least 18-24 months. He is also positive on APL Apollo, Gabriel India, Jupiter Wagon, Himatsingka Siede and Mahindra CIE in the broader markets.

Also read: Market extends record run as Sensex tops 64,550; Nifty breaches 19,150: Investor wealth jumps over Rs 3.91L cr in 2 days; Nippon Life jumps 20%

Also read: Looking for value picks? These 10 small-cap stocks are the darlings of foreign investors