The Hindu Business Line : Sunday, February 20, 2005

Large-cap stocks, big safety
ARE equities attractive at current levels? The question assumes relevance with the Sensex moving past the 6,000 mark and inflows into mutual fund schemes peaking. It is worth bearing in mind that we are also ... More

Software: Cautious exuberance ahead
DOES the run-up in the software stocks earlier in the week suggest a sharp re-rating of the frontline players in the sector ahead? The trigger for this question stems from the Nasdaq-listed Cognizant Technologies' ... More

Taxing changes on the cards
THE ghost of the Kelkar Committee reforms has come to haunt the salaried class. In a bid to reform the personal tax law, the Finance Minister may implement some of the recommendations made by the Committee in 2002, and ... More

Agenda for SEBI's new CEO
THERE is reason to hope that Mr Meleveetil Damodaran will mould SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) into shape and make it a more effective regulatory body. Mr Damodaran assumed office as the Chairman of ... More

MUTUAL FUNDS

SPOTLIGHT

Kotak Global India: Hold
INVESTORS can retain their units in Kotak Global India. Since its inception in January 2004, the fund has turned in an impressive performance. Investors contemplating fresh exposures may choose funds with a longer track ... More

Magnum Contra Fund: Invest in small lots
AN investment can be considered in SBI Magnum Contra Fund, as its portfolio appears to be well structured to capitalise on growth trends in the economy. A judicious mix of large-cap and mid-cap stocks, with a tilt in ... More

FUND TALK
Too risky to rely on equity funds alone
How do I earn income from equity funds? I am a retired professional aged 66 years residing in Mumbai on my own. I have a corpus invested in diversified equity schemes, all in the growth option. As I need a regular monthly income, I would like ... More

Canbank Mutual to merge Canganga and Cantriple

STOCKS

D-Link (India): Buy
INVESTORS with a medium-term perspective can consider taking fresh exposure in the D-Link stock; any declines, linked to broad market trends, could also be used to step up exposure. Considering the stock's recent sharp ... More

Lumax Industries: Buy
THE steady growth in automobile production has been a positive for the financial performance of quite a few companies including Lumax Industries, makers of automotive lighting systems. The steady growth in ... More

Syngenta India: Buy
INVESTORS with a long-term investment perspective can consider adding the Syngenta India stock to their portfolio. The stock trades at a price-earnings multiple of about 18 times its 2004 earnings, which stand at Rs 22. Improved growth rates ... More

TECHNICAL ANALYSIS

Weakness beckons indices
Preferred view: Except for a firm trend on Monday, the index closed on a weak note on the remaining days of the week. The Nifty failed to move past the resistance level at 2125-2130 that was referred to last week. The index did not ... More

Positive outlook for Reliance
Tata Power (Rs 412.6): A bearish upward sloping "wedge" pattern appears to be taking shape on the daily price charts. A drop below Rs 405 would confirm the completion of the pattern and would impart short-term weakness. A breach of Rs ... More

Focus of the week
Bank of Rajasthan (Rs 68.6): The outlook is bullish. The stock appears to have completed a segment of the upward move at the high of Rs 54.5 in May 2004. The subsequent downward move would qualify as the correction to the earlier rally. ... More

Query corner

OPEN OFFERS

United Breweries: Accept
SHAREHOLDERS of United Breweries (UB) can tender their holdings as part of the open offer being made by Scottish and Newcastle India (SNI) at Rs 575 per share. In our view, the pricing differential of 35 per cent ... More

CARS

Toyota Land Cruiser Prado — Luxury on and off the road
YOU believe in working hard and playing hard. You want to test your limits at the boardroom and in the great outdoors. You want to live life to the fullest. You do everything in style. You believe in making a youthful, ... More

Maruti Esteem fetches higher resale value
I WANT to buy a car in the mid-size C-segment. With a budget of about Rs 5.5 lakh, I have narrowed down my options to the new Maruti Suzuki Esteem VXi (petrol) and the Tata Indigo GLX (petrol). I am going to use the ... More

STOCK MARKETS

Budget risk: Buy puts/sell futures
Investors can consider insuring a part of their portfolio against a possible decline in values to guard against an `event risk' ahead of the Budget to be presented on February 28. The Budget promises to unveil a number of initiatives that would ... More

DERIVATIVES MARKETS

Taxation of derivative transactions
Derivative contracts are not for purchase/sale of any commodity, stock, share or scrip. Derivatives are a special class of securities under the SC(R)A, 1956 and do not any way resemble any other type of securities like share, stocks or scrips. More

Using Futures/Options
This has reference to your article `Using Future/Options' in Business Line on Sunday 13. The reference given in the article talks about the position (which is at the end of day session) of stock in which there is a restriction in place. ... More

Black & Scholes in black & white
THOSE familiar with the Black and Scholes (B&S) model may know that it does not use stock returns as a factor to price options. This is because the model is based on the principles of replication and no-arbitrage. ... More

READER RESPONSE

NSCCL circular

Options guide

Futures guide

FIXED DEPOSITS

FD Options
KSE: Investors can consider adding the one- or two-year fixed deposit programme from KSE Ltd to their portfolio, given the attractive interest rates and the modest risks associated it. The company offers an interest rate of 8 per cent ... More

INTERVIEW

`A good cross-cultural fit' — Mr Deepak Sogani, CFO, Patni Computers
Patni Computer Systems made a dramatic move last November by acquiring the US-based Cymbal Corporation specialising in the telecom vertical for a total consideration of $68 million. This inorganic move has given Patni a foothold in the telecom ... More

INCOME TAX

Long-distance learning, short-changed tax benefit
I AM a graduate and work as a project leader in a company. I am planning to do MBA through long-distance learning. Are there any tax benefits that I can get in respect of the fee paid for pursuing the post-graduation ... More

Rebate for stamp duty

IPOS

Jet Airways: Invest at cutoff
ONLY investors with an appetite for risk should consider taking up the Jet Airways offer. We believe that the stock is reasonably valued at the lower end of the price band. At the upper end, returns over the ... More

UTV Software: Avoid
A BUSINESS model that now remains more at the level of aspiration than in film production; an uninspiring track record in film production, an in-house channel that could act as a drag on profitability and resources; a ... More

BOOKS

Dissect the disclosed numbers
TO FACE a tough adversary, you need all the ammo you can gather. So too when trying to understand accounts. A good addition to your arsenal for this can be Accounting & Analysis: The Indian Experience 2004 ... More

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Weakness beckons indices

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Press Note 18