Investing Accelerator Summit 🚀

Less than 4 Days to Go! ⏳ The 20-20 Investing Accelerator Summit returns this Sunday. 20 Experts. 20 Business Deep Dives. Join India's sharpest investors for a marathon of business analysis. 👇 Meet the lineup: @ishmohit1 @MashraniVivek @nrmangal @suru27 @Sonaam1234 @kanodiaankit12 @KabraGunjan @kshayjogani @bharatbetpf @MarketScientist @aggarwalraghav @aggarwalabhinav @rajeev_agr @OzaRusmik @ValueEducator @Shubham_TLI @9onecapital @vikasvgupta @amitabhvatsya @_PiyushSarawagi 🎟️ Secure Your Spot NOW: investingacceleratorsummit.com #2020IAS #DeepDives

Timepass talk on Sunday 1. Time to Be a Small-Cap SIP Investor Small-cap investors are completely squeezed. SMEs are facing a liquidity choke, and metals have suddenly grown Red Bull wings. Yet the age-old truth remains unchanged: small caps create disproportionate wealth when bought at reasonable valuations and held patiently until the tide turns. That patience, however, demands a strong stomach, one that allows us to see a sea of red in the portfolio. If that isn’t your temperament, the safer route is simple: opt for small-cap funds. Any decently managed small-cap fund tends to deliver 70%+ returns within a year once the cycle turns. Even ICICI Prudential Small Cap Fund, which had shut the doors to fresh inflows for nearly two years, is now saying, “Mutual Funds Sahi Hai." So, if you’ve stayed invested through the pain, don’t quit now. Just ensure your stocks are falling because of market conditions, not because earnings visibility has collapsed. The antithesis is equally important: Holding companies with no earnings visibility is dangerous, such names can permanently destroy capital, even take it to zero. Conviction matters. So does discrimination. 2. Multi-baggers and the ₹100–1,000 Cr PAT Transition Amit Jeswani (@Amit_Jeswani1) famously mentioned at an @ias_summit a few years ago that most multi-baggers are created during the journey from ₹100 Cr to ₹1,000 Cr in PAT. A textbook example of this phenomenon today is MCX. MCX reported a PAT of ₹149 Cr in FY23, which dropped to ₹83 Cr in FY24, largely due to the technology contract issues that played villain during that phase. Post those setbacks, the turnaround has been phenomenal: PAT jumped to ₹560 Cr in FY25, and for 9M FY26 itself, MCX has already delivered ₹801 Cr. The company is now well on track to cross ₹1,000 Cr PAT for the full year. Unsurprisingly, the stock has delivered ~10x returns over the last three years. Another powerful example is Laurus Labs. Laurus already delivered disproportionate returns once during the 2019–2022 cycle, when PAT surged from ₹94 Cr to ₹984 Cr. That was followed by a downcycle, but the next upcycle clearly started from FY24 onwards. PAT in FY24 stood at ₹162 Cr, while the last four quarters have reported ₹233 Cr, ₹162 Cr, ₹194 Cr, and ₹252 Cr respectively. The stock has already turned into a multi-bagger again during this phase, and arguably, the journey is still far from over. The real exercise, therefore, is simple but not easy: Identify companies currently in the ₹100–300 Cr PAT range and assess which among them have the management quality, scalability, balance sheet strength, and sectoral tailwinds to compound into a four-digit PAT business. The hard truth is that nearly 80% of such companies may never get there, which is why this game is never easy. But the formula remains valid, and repeatedly proven. 3. MTF and the Recent Sell-off: A Reality Check MTF has been the talk of the town lately, and some stocks may indeed have felt the pressure during the recent sell-offs. That said, when you actually run the numbers, the issue appears far less systemic than it has been portrayed. Yes, the impact will vary from stock to stock, and a few names could see temporary stress. However, at the aggregate market level, the risk seems contained. Consider this: Out of 2,134 stocks with MTF exposure, ~83% can be fully unwound within ≤5 trading days based on average traded volumes. The total MTF outstanding for these 83% names stands at approximately ₹91,000 Cr. The combined market capitalisation of these companies is around ₹382 lakh Cr. Put differently, MTF exposure is a small fraction of overall market value. 4. Hospitals Are Getting “Admitted” Too In this sell-off, even hospitals, typically considered safe havens during brutal markets, haven’t been spared. Several leading names have seen meaningful corrections from recent highs: Max Healthcare Institute: ~24%, Narayana Hrudayalaya: ~23%, Artemis Medicare Services: ~22%, HCG: ~21%, Apollo Hospitals: ~16% Hospitals, of course, go through their own earnings cycles, largely driven by capacity additions and ramp-ups. That said, structurally, the sector remains a strong portfolio candidate for stable and consistent compounding, given predictable demand and improving operating leverage over time. Medical tourism from Bangladesh would have obviously slowed, but this should be more of a short-term blip. At this stage, it may be worth evaluating how close these names are to their long-term median EV/EBITDA valuations. Any meaningful deviation below historical averages could start throwing up selective entry opportunities. 5. Menon Bearings Menon Bearings delivered one of the strongest quarters in its history. Exports rose to an all-time high of ~36% of revenues, notably without any adverse impact from US tariffs. In its recent concall, management noted: “…we have already started additional business with one of the major customers from the US… we hardly see any impact from the tariffs imposed by the USA. On the contrary, our exports are poised to grow further going ahead...” For a company of this size, this is an interesting and positive development, especially in a challenging global environment. That said, management also acknowledged that elevated copper prices are a margin headwind. While the company claims a pass-through mechanism, the timing and completeness of quarterly/monthly pass-throughs remain an open variable and need close monitoring. From a cautionary standpoint, it’s worth recalling that in 2023 the company had articulated an ambition to double revenues by FY26. At the current run rate, the company appears far from that target, and it no longer seems to be a stated objective in the latest investor deck. Nevertheless, a company executing well amid headwinds deserves a closer look. 6. Zydus Lifesciences - Zycubo (US$50 mn Peak Sales Opportunity) Zycubo, a brand under Sentynl Therapeutics (a subsidiary of Zydus Lifesciences), has recently received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of Menkes disease. Menkes disease is an ultra-rare, life-threatening genetic disorder, diagnosed in newborns, with an estimated ~56 new cases annually in the US. If left untreated, median survival is less than 18 months. Zycubo is the first and only FDA-approved therapy for this condition and has demonstrated meaningful survival benefits. In pivotal studies, when treatment was initiated early, within 10 days of birth, median survival extended to ~177 months, representing a step-change in clinical outcomes. From a commercial standpoint, @SystematixGrp estimates price realisation at ~US$600,000 per patient per year. While affordability raises legitimate ethical and policy questions, Zycubo offers real hope to families with access through insurance or alternative funding. 7. Mackenna's Gold Krishnadevaraya was the greatest ruler of the Vijayanagara Empire, presiding over an era of exceptional prosperity where gold, trade, and culture thrived at a civilisational peak. Legend has it that during his reign, gold and diamonds were so abundant that they were traded like grain. That legacy seems to have quietly endured. Even today, Indian households are estimated to collectively hold ~34,600 tonnes of gold, one of the largest private gold stockpiles in the world. At $4,700 per ounce, this hoard is worth approximately $5.2 trillion. For perspective, India’s GDP is about $3.7–4.0 trillion, while the total equity market capitalisation stands near $5.0–5.2 trillion. Some civilisational habits don’t fade, they compound. The Jewellery companies and gold lenders are certainly trying to take advantage of it! 8. Defence Goes Global On Jan 18, 2026, Rajnath Singh flagged off the first export consignment of guided Pinaka rockets from Solar Defence and Aerospace’s Nagpur facility. This marks the first export of the guided variant, following completion of unguided Pinaka deliveries by late 2024. Armenia had earlier signed a ₹2,000 crore (US$250 mn) contract in 2022 for four Pinaka batteries, making it the first overseas customer for the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)-developed system. Pinaka offers precision strike capability up to 75 km (trialed up to 120 km). This milestone reflects India’s defence export journey, from <₹1,000 crore a decade ago to ~₹24,000 crore today. Globally, defence spending hit US$2.7 trillion in 2024, with 100+ countries increasing spends. With global tensions unlikely to ease soon, defence remains a structural, multi-year theme. India, the world’s 5th-largest military spender with the 2nd-largest standing army, is uniquely positioned to benefit from this trend, both domestically and via exports. From a market lens, the Motilal Oswal Nifty India Defence ETF (MODFENCE) is ~20% off recent highs and near a key support zone. Direction from here is uncertain, but with the Budget approaching, the theme is worth tracking closely. 9. Chemicals: Bottoming Out? I came across a chart from Nuvama Research suggesting that both RoE and RoCE are likely at the bottom of the cycle after a sharp correction from FY22 peaks. RoE declined from ~20.5% in FY22 to ~8.1% in FY25 and RoCE fell from ~23.2% to ~11.6% over the same period. This compression reflects the severity of the chemical downcycle, weak demand, inventory destocking, and elevated costs. At current levels (RoE ~8%, RoCE ~12%), return ratios are near the lower end of historical ranges. More importantly, the trend now points to stabilisation with marginal improvement, rather than further deterioration (of we course, we can never say never). While a return to peak profitability will take time, the data suggests that most of the downside to returns has already played out, shifting the narrative toward gradual recovery and operating leverage. Within this space, a few names I am actively tracking include: 📌Aether Industries – transitioning from a heavy capex phase to monetisation. 📌Acutaas – moving into a faster-growth CDMO phase. 📌Balaji Amines – positioning FY27 as a recovery year. Each has a distinct playbook, and these are not a BUY or SELL recommendations. 10. DIIs & Retail Running Out of Gas? Aggregate cash holdings of equity mutual funds have declined from ~7% in April 2025 to ~5.5% by December 2025, the lowest level since H1 2024. Large-cap funds: ~6% → ~3.9% Small-cap funds: ~9% → <6% In simple terms, most funds are already fully invested. That limits incremental buying power from DIIs unless fresh inflows come in. Adding to the pressure, FPIs have already sold ~₹33,000 crore YTD. With mutual fund cash buffers thin, market upside now depends more on new money and earnings, while corrections may feel sharper in the absence of dry powder. The open question though: Can the Budget pull a rabbit out of the hat, via tweaks to LTCG, STCG, or STT, to revive FII participation? Or is that asking too much? That’s all for today’s version. Happy Sunday!

From refinery heaters to the Hydrogen economy! ⚛️🚀 Fascinating session by @amitabhvatsya on JNK India at @IAS_Summit. Their JV with Chemdist and the upcoming CBG-to-Hydrogen project for IOCL show a high-barrier engineering moat pivot into green energy. 🌍💡 #IAS2025

Good thread on all 20 sessions from recently concluded @IAS_Summit #IAS2025 Good diligent reporting by @Rakshithsantos1

Which idea you liked the most at @ias_summit & why ?? @cautkarshpandey @suru27 @MarketScientist @amitabhvatsya @vikasgupta @MashraniVivek @LearningEleven

On this Vaikuntha Ekadashi, I have started my journey on Substack! My first post is about my highest conviction idea! Hope it adds value! Laurus Isn’t Expanding the Present. It’s Engineering the Future. The Real Laurus Story Is What Comes After FY26. open.substack.com/pub/kbsekhar/p…

Presented on Gold lenders at @ias_summit Not the most known one, but the ones that are emerging and can show strong growth going forward+are at reasonable valuations. Let’s see :)

Well said @SamarthNagpal26 🤝

@Ronakjejoue28 @ishmohit1 @MashraniVivek @nrmangal @suru27 @Sonaam1234 Yes.

@ias_summit @ishmohit1 @MashraniVivek @nrmangal @suru27 @Sonaam1234 I could not register earlier for live sessions Can I register now for the recordings

What a marathon! 🚀 The 20-20 Investing Accelerator Summit is a wrap. 20 Experts. 20 Deep Dives. Hundreds of insights. A massive thank you to our incredible lineup for sharing such high-conviction research today: @ishmohit1 @MashraniVivek @nrmangal @suru27 @Sonaam1234 @kanodiaankit12 @KabraGunjan @kshayjogani @bharatbetpf @MarketScientist @aggarwalraghav @aggarwalabhinav @rajeev_agr @OzaRusmik @ValueEducator @Shubham_TLI @9onecapital @vikasvgupta @amitabhvatsya @_PiyushSarawagi And thank you to the attendees who joined us live! Recordings coming soon. 📹 #IAS2025 #Investing

@Ronakjejoue28 @ishmohit1 @MashraniVivek @nrmangal @suru27 @Sonaam1234 Recordings will be sent via email by the 25th December.

@ias_summit @ishmohit1 @MashraniVivek @nrmangal @suru27 @Sonaam1234 Pls post when re cordings are out

Deep dive with @nrmangal at @ias_summit:Focusing on a precision engineering business.Leader in 3W engine. A play on EV and Non-EV players. Strong revenue,margins,good cash flow Unlocking value 6th largest player in Ev after ola. With huge potential. #IAS2025

Next Speaker of the Day in @ias_summit: Nitin Mangal from Trudence Capital @nrmangal Company Name: Greaves Cotton Sector: Capital Goods Market Cap: 4,199 Cr #IAS2025

Great insights by @_PiyushSarawagi on Macpower CNC. Strong tailwinds from aerospace, defence & Make in India. A small but solid company with prudent capital allocation, in-house R&D, and capacity expansion—well placed for growth. #Investing #ias2025 #CapitalGoods #MakeInIndia

Deep dive into Gold Loans with @ishmohit1 at @IAS_Summit. 🏦🌕 The contrast between CSB Bank’s focused strategy vs. Fedfina’s aggressive scale-up is a masterclass in why "not all lenders are equal." Watching their distribution evolution closely. 📈 #IAS2025

Deep dive with @kshayjogani: Gas turbines are vital for AI data centers. Noted MTAR’s role in supplying precision parts for Bloom Energy’s solid oxide fuel cells. A high-potential satellite portfolio play for the power demand theme. @IAS_Summit #IAS2025

Attending the @ias_summit Online Investing Accelerator Summit #ias2025 Will be posting all the incremental updates here, stay tuned! 1/n

Next speaker of the day in @ias_summit: Akshay Jogani @kshayjogani Company: MTAR Technologies Market Cap: ~7196 Cr #ias2025 Personal Takeaway: It was an amazing & detailed session, kudos Akshay!

Just sat through a rigorous deep dive on MTAR by @kshayjogani. The specific growth tailwinds for the sector are hard to ignore. Already a holder, but the depth of research shared here adds serious conviction. Solid session at @IAS_Summit. #IAS2025

Great session with @MarketScientist. The takeaway: growth triggers in established firms aren't always obvious. They require sharp observation and watchfulness to unearth. It’s a masterclass in insight-driven thinking. @IAS_Summit #IAS2025

Still processing the depth of @MarketScientist’s market analysis at @IAS_Summit. Parveen Yadav’s data-driven approach offers a rare level of clarity in today's volatility. A masterclass in systematic thinking. #IAS2025