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ICICI Prudential CIO Sankaran Naren Spots Contra Opportunities in Mid and Smallcaps
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Moneycontrol•12-10-2026, 08:11
ICICI Prudential CIO Sankaran Naren Spots Contra Opportunities in Mid and Smallcaps
- •Sankaran Naren, CIO of ICICI Prudential MF, states that the firm will exclusively buy underperformers to find investment opportunities during market slumps.
- •Contra funds have outperformed major benchmarks like the Nifty 50 and Nifty 500 over the past one and three-year periods.
- •The contrarian category is gaining traction with prominent players like SBI, Invesco, Bandhan, Motilal Oswal, and ICICI Prudential managing or launching contra funds.
- •Contrarian investing is not just about buying cheap stocks; it can involve value, growth, or quality stocks depending on the current market cycle.
- •Experts advise investors to maintain a patience horizon of at least five years and use contra funds as a satellite allocation rather than a core portfolio holding.
Key Questions Answered
The ICICI Prudential Contra Fund follows a contrarian investment strategy that focuses on buying stocks and sectors that have underperformed the market over the last three to five years, based on the principle of purchasing assets that are currently out of favor.
The new fund offer (NFO) for the ICICI Prudential Contra Fund is open until October 12, 2026.
Sankaran Naren currently sees more contrarian investment opportunities lower down the market-cap ladder, specifically noting that pronounced underperformance in many mid and smallcap sectors creates attractive prospects.
