Mr. Apurva Sharma Fund Manager
Apurva is a seasoned finance professional with over 16 years of experience. He holds the CFA designation and has an MBA in Finance from Welingkars, alongside a Bachelor of Engineering in Information Technology from Mumbai University.
His prior role involved serving as a Co-Fund Manager at Helios Asset Management, where he oversaw a Flexi Cap Mutual Fund with an Assets Under Management exceeding ₹1000 crore. Apurva's professional journey also includes valuable experience at notable institutions such as PGIM India AMC, Edelweiss, ICICI Group, AnandRathi, and Centrum Wealth Managers.
Mr. E A Sundaram Portfolio Manager
Sundaram possesses extensive prior experience, having served as Manager (Research) at SBI Mutual Fund, Head of Research and Fund Manager at Zurich India Mutual Fund, Senior Portfolio Manager at HDFC Mutual Fund, Portfolio Manager at M3 Investment Managers (a family office), and CIO and Portfolio Manager at PGIM India Mutual Fund. Over the past two decades, he has managed long-only portfolios, including separately managed accounts and family offices, achieving a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) exceeding 21%, compared to the benchmark's 17%.
With over 34 years of investment expertise, Sundaram has a proven track record of taking significant contrarian investment stances. Notable examples include underweighting the Technology sector in 1999, Infrastructure, Utilities, and Power in 2007, Midcaps in 2017, and avoiding exposure to NBFCs in 2018. The underlying principle of these decisions was to steer clear of sectors exhibiting extreme popularity and, consequently, inflated valuations. This strategic approach served to mitigate portfolio downside risk during subsequent sector corrections while consistently delivering substantially above-average returns.
Sundaram characterizes his value investing philosophy as "Commonsense Investing." His core tenet is that investment success stems not only from making sound choices but equally from refraining from detrimental ones. The avoidance of significant investment setbacks is a defining characteristic of Sundaram's investment methodology. These setbacks are averted by abstaining from investments in: (a) companies with fundamental weaknesses, (b) managements that have historically disadvantaged minority shareholders, and (c) assets trading at excessive valuations.
Consequently, Sundaram's strategy involves investing in robust businesses when they are temporarily out of favour. This unpopularity facilitates an advantageous entry price. Provided there is conviction in a company's enduring competitive capacity, short-term market apprehension can be leveraged to acquire securities at attractive valuations. Given that many mainstream investment products tend to focus on widely publicized and popular companies, Sundaram's distinct investment style and portfolio construction offer minimal overlap with such strategies, presenting a valuable diversification opportunity.
Furthermore, his firm conviction in investing solely in companies with a sustained history of High Return on Capital Employed, coupled with a disciplined approach to capital allocation that avoids overpaying for such quality entities, aligns perfectly with prevailing market sentiment regarding prudent investment practices.
