The S&P BSE Smallcap index was among the major laggards last month, shedding 1.6%. As many as 218 smallcap stocks saw a double-digit fall of up to 35% month-on-month in February, data compiled by ETMarkets showed.
Stocks that saw a complete exit by mutual funds in the last month include Capri Global, MMTC, Lux Industries, Tarsons Products, and India Pesticides, according to Nuvama Alternative Research.
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India Pesticides, TTK Healthcare, Rama Steel Tubes, Expleo Solutions, and Tourism Finance Corp are also among the smallcap stocks that mutual funds exited last month.
Meanwhile, they reduced their holdings in City Union Bank, Aditya Birla Fashion, Rites, Navin Fluorine International, and Bata India. The other stocks where their holdings came down were Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders, Ashok Leyland, Bandhan Bank, NMDC, IRFC, NHPC, Paytm, Vodafone, IDFC First Bank, Biocon, Tata Elxsi, BHEL. The list has several public sector companies, suggesting that mutual funds chose to pocket some gains after the stellar run they have had in the last one year. In the last month alone, the S&P BSE CPSE index, a barometer of public sector companies, rose more than 3% month-on-month.
Here are the stocks that top MFs exited in February, based on the data collated by Nuvama Alternative Research.
SBI MF:
SJVN, Bank of Baroda, and Flair Writing are the stocks the fund house exited completely, while it reduced exposure in Life Insurance Corp of India and Bajaj Finance.
Kotak MF:
Apollo Hospitals, Tata Consumer Products, and South Indian Bank are the stocks exited by the fund house, while it reduced exposure to Jindal Steel & Power, ITC and Bajaj Finance.
Axis MF:
Gujarat Gas, Netweb Technologies are the stocks that the fund house exited completely, while it reduced exposure to Mphasis.
Nippon India MF:
The fund house exited Restaurant Brands, Tracxn Technologies, and Asian Paints last month. Credit Access Grameen and Tube Investments are the stocks where the fund house reduced exposure.
ICICI Prudential MF:
Bank of Baroda, Sapphire Foods, and LIC were the stocks exited by the fund house last month. NHPC, Oil India, and Bank of Baroda were the stocks where the fund house reduced its holdings.
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