Retail investors and mutual funds buying selectively in large cap stocks amid market turmoil, seeking bargains and growth prospects.
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In the midst of the carnage in the stock markets, retail investors and some domestic mutual funds took the opportunity to buy selectively in some large cap and defensive stocks, while rotating their exposure.

Retail investors are buying because at these prices they feel that it is a bargain and their first response is that the stocks will make a new high, said Akash Akshay Chinchalkar, Head of Research at Axis Securities. He said the retail segment had also been selective buyers, “because they are always clinging on to the hope that they might be able to catch the fall.”

He also pointed out that retail would also include high net-worth individuals and family offices who would be looking to increase their holdings in beaten down stocks, with strong growth prospects.

While asset management companies are largely preferring to hold on to their cash, till more clarity emerges on the tariff negotiations between India and the US, they are finding some opportunities in the markets such as the fast moving consumer goods sector, which performed relatively better compared to the rest of the markets as their valuations are looking much better at current prices.

“If I were a fund manager, I would not take a cash call, but I would take a rotational call. I will change my approach from searching growth stocks to hunting down and digging into deep value stocks,” said Siddarth Bhamre, head of institutional research at Asit C Mehta.

While FPIs have been net sellers across the board, dealers said that there was no panic selling noticed among them. “They contributed to the sell-off certainly, but it is part of the overall negative sentiment and nothing extraordinary,” said a dealer with an institutional broker.

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Published on April 7, 2025