How do PMS fund managers navigate the market to deliver alpha?

An eminent panel sat together in PMS Bazaar Conclave 2024 held in Bengaluru to show how fund managers get their excess market-beating returns. Given all the spotlight on the India growth story, they shed light on which macro factor was driving this economic upswing.

23 May 2024
How do PMS fund managers navigate the market to deliver alpha?

Here is what the panel discussed: 

Speakers: Amit Jeswani, Founder & CEO of Stallion Asset, Anil Rego, CEO & CIO of Right Horizons, Sonam Srivastava, Founder & CEO of Wright Research, and Varun Goenka, Director, Investments, Valuequest Investment Advisors.

Moderator: Shailendra Kumar, Co-founder FinAtoZ.

Jeswani said the growth in per capita income is sure to be a critical driving factor, irrespective of global challenges. From $2300 currently, India’s per capita would grow to $5000 and higher levels in the coming years, in his opinion, and the country was where the US was in 1982 and the rise in per capita is set to be a game-changer. Rego then opined that India’s demographic dividend is all set to be reaped now and was a critical factor. Srivastava then came in and said technology (AI etc.), mobile and Aadhaar are set to drive India to greater heights.

India’s much higher GDP growth rate compared to the advanced economies and indeed the global economy would be a key differentiator for the country in Goenka’s view. He was of the opinion that India could grow irrespective of whether the world economy rose or not and cited the examples of Japan, South Korea and China from the previous decades.

When Kumar then sought to understand what to make of the market volatility in recent times, Mr Goenka noted that Indian corporates were in a position of strength and could easily weather. He observed that Indian corporates had $176 billion in profits and $236 billion in cash flows, and had significantly de-leveraged their balance sheets. Kumar wanted experts’ opinions on what the dominant themes for investment would be for the foreseeable future.

Jeswani observed that irrespective of themes, the focus must be on companies that are gaining market share across sectors. The discussion then veered towards how quality and value would play out in the market.

Goenka noted that quality as such may not be that useful for generating returns. Quality has to come with reasonable growth and valuations to make a meaningful investment case. To a question on where HNIs should look to invest, Srivastava noted how quant-driven strategies with Artificial Intelligence and defined algorithms that are optimised for multiple timeframes appeal to new-age investors.

Jeswani was of the view that equity is about alpha creation and that index investing has given almost the same returns as gold over the past many decades. Therefore, for stronger compounding, investors needed to think bigger about active investing.

The panellists then set out to answer questions from the audience, which centred around per capita income translating to better growth and queries on execution from government and industry for faster growth, taxes, transparency etc.

Recent Blogs

Sectors to watch and Sectors to Dodge Alternates Universe Webinar Series

Sectors to watch and Sectors to Dodge – Alternates Universe Webinar Series

PMS Bazaar recently organized a webinar titled “Sectors to watch and Sectors to Dodge” which featured Mr. Darshan Engineer, Fund Manager at Sundaram Alternate Assets and Mr. Sandeep Tulsiyan, also a Fund Manager at Sundaram Alternate Assets, who had a discussion with Mrs. Reshmi Chakraborthy from Sundaram Alternate Assets. This blog covers the important points shared in this insightful webinar.

Mid and Small Caps Driving Indias dollar5 Trillion Pathway

Mid and Small Caps: Driving India’s $5 Trillion Pathway

PMS Bazaar recently organized a webinar titled “Mid and Small Caps: Driving India’s $5 Trillion Pathway,” which featured Mr. Achin Goel, Fund Manager at Bonanza.

Equity PMS strategies shine in May 9 in 10 Beat Nifty 50 TRI as small cap surge lifts all boats

Equity PMS strategies shine in May; 9 in 10 Beat Nifty 50 TRI as small cap surge lifts all boats

Robust sectoral rotation and smart stock selection power one of the strongest alpha months for PMS managers

128 of 133 AIFs posted gains in May 2025 Long only strategies beat long short peers by 400 bps

128 of 133 AIFs posted gains in May 2025; Long-only strategies beat long-short peers by 400 bps

Long-only AIFs averaged 5.69% returns in May 2025 sharply above long-short peers (1.68%) as broader market strength, FII flows, and sector momentum powered alpha generation

Who Will the Race for Alpha Fund Managers vs AI

Who Will the Race for Alpha – Fund Managers vs AI

PMS Bazaar recently organized an exciting webinar titled “Who Will the Race for Alpha – Fund Managers vs AI,” which featured Mr. Sankarsh Chanda, Founder & CEO, Savart.

Trust Tech and Transformation  The Future of Private Banking in India

Trust Tech and Transformation – The Future of Private Banking in India

PMS Bazaar conducted another episode of the Alternates Universe Webinar Series -Season 2- Episode 11 - Trust Tech and Transformation – The Future of Private Banking in India.

Access Innovative Global Themes via Gift City Route

Access Innovative Global Themes via Gift City Route

PMS Bazaar recently organized a webinar titled “Access Innovative Global Themes via Gift City Route,” which featured Mr. Vaibhav Shah, Associate Director – Head- Business Strategy, Products & International Business, Mirae Asset Investment Managers and Mr. Scott Helfstein, Head of Investment Strategy, Global X ETFs.

110 of 123 AIFs Deliver Gains in April  Top Performers Log 5–9percentage Returns

110 of 123 AIFs Deliver Gains in April; Top Performers Log 5–9% Returns

Long-only AIFs (2.19%) outperformed long-short peers (1.28%) with category average alpha of ~90 bps as macro tailwinds and index gains supported broad-based strategy resilience