The retail investors in the Indian stock market seem to be investing mostly in the companies which are popular and have strong consumer appeal.
A data shared by Nikhil Kamath Co-Founder of Zerodha on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) showed that the top holdings of retail investors in the Indian market included prominent companies like Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank, Larsen & Toubro, TCS, Infosys, among others.
“Contrary to the general belief that retail investors are incompetent at investing, their top holdings tell a different story. Looks like they tend to invest in companies that are well-known and favoured among consumers, indicating a strategy that leans towards businesses with strong brand recognition and consumer appeal,” Kamath wrote.
The data showed retail investors own stocks worth ₹30 lakh crore, which accounts for 7.7% of the total value of all listed companies in India.
The billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led oil-to-telecom conglomerate Reliance Industries topped the chart of biggest holdings of retail investors. They held ₹1.58 lakh crore worth Reliance shares.
This was followed by ₹1.23 lakh crore worth holding in HDFC Bank. Retail investors held L&T shares worth ₹86,997 crore, TCS shares worth ₹63,186 crore and Infosys shares amounting to ₹61,391 crore, as per the data shared by Kamath.
Among other top holdings include Hindustan Unilever, ITC, ICICI Bank, SBI, Tata Motors, Asian Paints, Tata Steel, Titan Company, Bajaj Finance, among others.
Also Read: Tata Motors, M&M to Bajaj Auto: Why are auto stocks rising after India's stellar GDP data print?
Meanwhile, retail investors have been flocking Dalal Street since the COVID-19 lockdown as their participation in the primary and secondary markets have risen sharply.
In the five years between 2019 and 2023, more than 120 million investors were registered, as per NSE data. In January 2024 alone, over 5.4 million investors were added.
The sharp rally in the Indian stock market during this period has attracted retail participation. The benchmark Nifty 50 has jumped over 50% in three years and is up more than 104% in the past five years.
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