FPIs reduce play in pharma, PSU banks; go long on IT

Portfolio churning in the March quarter saw foreign investors cutting exposure to state-owned banks and pharma shares. Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) reduced stake in almost all the stateowned lenders after the multi-crore scam at India’s second-largest PSU lender Punjab National Bank broke out and continued concern over bad loans. Activity by both FPIs and mutual funds was mixed in the private banking space.

Another sector where foreign investors largely sold was the pharmaceutical space. However, mutual funds were mostly on the buying side in the pharma space.

In the IT space, FPIs have bought heavily, while mutual funds have mostly been sellers. Majesco, seems to be a favourite with both FPIs and MFs who have raised stake in the company by 7 per cent and 8 per cent, respectively. Among the top 5 IT firms, barring Wipro, others have seen FPIs raising stake by 0.2-1.4 per cent.


In the auto space, Ashok Leyland has been a favourite with both FPIs and MFs.