Rakesh Jhunjhunwala death anniversary: How Big Bull's top stock bets fared in 2 years

This day, two years ago, ace investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala (RJ) passed away due to cardiac arrest at 62. His legacy endures, along with the admiration of millions who looked up to him. A self-made stock market trader, investor, and entrepreneur, he churned an initial investment of mere Rs 5,000 into billions of dollars.

At 83.90 per dollar exchange rate, the RJ family held stocks worth $6 billion or Rs 50,563 crore, as per data publicly available with Trendlyne. This is against Rs 33,942.63 crore at the end of July-September 2022 quarter. Titan Company Ltd, Star Health and Allied Insurance Company Ltd, Tata Motors Ltd, Concord Biotech Ltd, Metro Brands Ltd and NCC Ltd are among top stocks that are a part of his family's portfolio.

Among the top 10 RJ portfolio holdings, excluding Concord Biotech, four delivered over 100 per cent returns since his demise. Concord Biotech Ltd was listed only in 2023 and, hence, excluded from the comparison purpose.

NCC, a Jhunjhunwala stock, delivered 393 per cent return and traded at Rs 318.40 level on Tuesday against Rs 64.50 in August 2022. Rekha Jhunjhunwala owned about 12.5 per cent stake in this company at the end of June quarter. PSU stock Canara Bank delivered 131 per cent return and traded at Rs 106.75 level on Tuesday against Rs 46.19 in August 2022. Jhunjhunwalas stake in this PSU bank stood at 1.5 per cent at the end of June quarter.

The Indian Hotels Company Ltd shares have rallied 124 per cent to Rs 610.70 level as on Tuesday's closing from Rs 271.90 level in August 2022. The RJ family held 12.5 per cent stake in this Tata group firm in Q1. Another Tata group firm Tata Motors Ltd also climbed 120 per cent in the two year period. The Jhunjhunwala family held 1.3 per cent stake in the auto major as on June 30.

Jhunjhunwala's biggest stock bet Titan Company Ltd delivered a healthy 37 per cent return in the said period. The RJ family held roughly Rs 16,000 crore worth of Titan shares. Star Health and Allied Insurance Company, the second biggest holding in the RJ family portfolio, is down 16.76 per cent in the past two years. The Federal Bank Ltd and Fortis Healthcare Ltd jumped 83 per cent each. Metro Brands Ltd climbed 48 per cent, while CRISIL added 39 per cent. Concord Biotech got listed on August 18, 2023.

Renowned for his 'Midas touch,' Jhunjhunwala was known for his risk-taking abilities, which he felt was integral to life itself. He believed that without risk, one was nothing. Rakesh Jhunjhunwala was also a quick learner who openly admitted his mistakes. As he said at the India Today Conclave in 2021, "I try to predict. Sometimes I'm right, sometimes I'm wrong. When I'm wrong, I learn."

Many of his portfolio stocks such as Escorts, Tata Communications, Apollo Hospitals, Rallis India, Lupin, Apollo Tyres, Crisil, Praj Industries and BEML yielded him multibagger returns throughout his extensive journey in the domestic stock market.
The Big Bull was renowned for maintaining a bullish stance even during the market's most bearish phases. He reportedly once said that 98 percent of his stock market fortune was made by being a bull. "One can try to predict risk, debt, and the market, but the outcome can never be fully known. Only the future will reveal what it holds," he once remarked.

Jhunjhunwala was not only a skilled investor but also an adept trader. He mentioned that there were times when the investor in him believed a particular stock in his portfolio was overpriced, but his technical expertise led him to think that although the stock might be overvalued, it could still become more overvalued. Over the years, many of his sayings became a source of inspiration for budding investors. One memorable quote was: "When there's doom and gloom, don't forget there's darkness before dawn."