Fund Pick: JM Flexi Cap Fund remains focused, steady, ahead of the curve

The JM Flexi Cap Fund, launched in September 2008, has consistently ranked within the top 10 percentile of the flexicap fund category in the Crisil Mutual Fund Ranking (CMFR) for four consecutive quarters leading up to December 2024. The fund’s assets under management reached ₹5,338 crore in December 2024, a substantial increase from ₹191 crore in December 2021.

 

Satish Ramanathan and Chaitanya Choksi have managed the fund since August and December 2021, respectively, while Asit Bhandarkar and Ruchi Fozdar took over in October 2024.

 

The fund seeks to generate capital appreciation by investing primarily in equities and equity-related instruments across varied market capitalisations.

 

Trailing returns

 

The fund outperformed the benchmark (Nifty 500 TRI) across one-, two-, three-, five-, seven-, and 10-year trailing periods. It also outpaced its peers (funds in the flexicap category as indicated by the December 2024 CMFR) during the same time frames.

 

A ₹10,000 investment in the fund on its inception date, September 25, 2008, would have grown to ₹94,118 by February 13, 2025, delivering an annualised return of 14.65 per cent. By comparison, an equivalent investment in the category and benchmark would have appreciated to ₹87,129 (14.11 per cent annualised return) and ₹77,881 (13.34 per cent), respectively.

 

A disciplined investment approach through a systematic investment plan would have delivered strong results. A monthly investment of ₹10,000 in the fund over the past 10 years, amounting to ₹12 lakh, would have appreciated to ₹32.12 lakh (18.84 per cent annualised returns). In comparison, the same investment in the benchmark would have grown to ₹24.25 lakh (13.58 per cent), as of February 13, 2025.

 

Portfolio analysis

 

Over the past three years, the fund maintained a heavy tilt towards largecap stocks, which accounted for an average of 54.93 per cent of its overall allocation. Mid and smallcap stocks averaged 22.12 per cent and 20.07 per cent, respectively, with non-equity assets making up the remaining 2.89 per cent. In contrast, the category average allocations were 61.9 per cent in largecap, 17.17 per cent in midcap, and 12.76 per cent in smallcap stocks, positioning the fund’s mid and smallcap exposure above its peers.

 

The fund’s holdings were spread across 20 sectors. Financial services emerged as the dominant sector, with an average allocation of 25.17 per cent, followed by capital goods (10.36 per cent), information technology (9.47 per cent), automotive and auto components (7.81 per cent), and healthcare (6.25 per cent).

 

Throughout the review period, the fund had exposure to 167 stocks. The key contributors to its portfolio included Rural Electrification Corporation, Larsen & Toubro, Bank of Baroda, State Bank of India, and ICICI Bank.