Who will be the Next Big Bull of the Indian Market?

The passing away of Dalal Street mogul Rakesh Jhunjhunwala back in August has reignited the debate about who will sit on the ‘Big Bull’ throne.

Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s Journey to Rs. 32,000 crores

Born in 1960 and trained as a chartered accountant by profession, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala entered the Indian markets with only Rs. 5,000. He initiated his investment journey by investing in Tata Tea at Rs. 43 and earned massive profits when the share jumped to Rs. 143 within 3 months of his purchase. Tata Tea generated almost Rs. 25 lakhs worth of gains for the ace investor.

On the day of his passing, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s portfolio held 32 stocks with a net worth approximating Rs. 32,000 crores. As per Forbes, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s total net worth is estimated to be $5.5 billion, thus making him India’s 36th richest person.

With 5 out of the top 15 holdings of Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s portfolio in companies like Titan, Tata Motors, Indian Hotels, Rallis India, and Tata Communications, Jhunjhunwala indicated his preference for the home-grown conglomerate – Tata Group. Indeed, a third of his portfolio’s value is accounted for by Titan, in which he holds a 5.05% stake.

The other big stocks in value terms in Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s portfolio are Star Health, Metro Brands, Tata Motors, and Crisil. His stock holdings in these 4 companies and Titan alone cost over a whopping Rs. 11,000 crores.

​​However, due to the ever changing dynamics of the market, with many VCs snagging lucrative companies before they are listed, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala also transitioned to a method of VC-style investment. This trend is represented by his investments in Star Health. Rakesh Jhunjhunwala has, in addition to stock trading, established an airline Akasa, which is now operating commercially. He has also invested in movies.

The secret sauce to India’s Warren Buffett’s roaring success in the stock markets lies in his bullish attitude towards India’s growth story. Irrespective of how the markets were fairing, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala continued to believe that markets will rally up. So, with him gone, who are the other big sharks that are vying for the ‘Big Bull’ throne?

Radhakishan Damani

Credited by Rakesh Jhunjhunwala as his mentor, Radhakishan Damani made a fortune when his retail business, Avenue Supermarts, surged over 106% from its IPO pricing, on being listed in 2017. Born in 1954, India’s retail king Damani has also actively invested in stocks. He currently holds a portfolio of 16 stocks worth around Rs. 200,299 crores.

Besides Avenue Supermarts, his portfolio’s next two biggest equity investments value-wise include VST Industries (a tobacco firm) and India Cements. Additionally, his investments in Blue Dart Express (a logistics services provider) and Astra Microwave (a manufacturer of R.F. modules) have yielded huge returns as the stocks have zoomed over 300% in the past 3 years.

Radhakishan Damani is expected to serve as the trustee of Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s estate.

Ashish Dhawan

With 14 stocks in his portfolio, veteran investor and former PE investor Ashish Dhawan’s net worth has soared to Rs. 2,092 crores. He minted his fortune through Chrysalis Capital, a company that he co-founded in 1999. His stock investments are heavily veered towards computers and software.

Dhawan backs small-cap Birlasoft Ltd, an IT company, which has the potential to grow another 33%, as per some analysts. He also holds a 7% stake in Palred, erstwhile Four Soft Technologies, which is engaged in e-commerce, IT services, and entertainment business. Additionally, he is invested in finance stocks, such as IDFC and Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services. 

In 2022, Ashish Dhawan embarked on a new journey by establishing Convergence Foundation, which aims to incubate and finance organisations that deal in providing solutions for critical problems in the social sector. He is responsible for setting up the Central Square Foundation (CSF), an education advocacy body and Ashoka University.

Ashish Kacholia

Ashish Kacholia, the ‘big whale’ of Indian markets, started in Prime Securities and eventually set up his firm called Lucky Securities in 1995. He also co-founded Hungama Entertainment with Rakesh Jhunjhunwala in 1999. 

A whiz-kid of stock markets, Kacholia is known for his picking of small and mid-cap stocks, which are fundamentally strong. His current net worth stands at Rs. 1,892 crores. Ashish Kacholia’s portfolio holds 36 stocks, with Best Agrolife, Yasho Industries, and Xpro India being some notable multi-bagger investments.

Vijay Kishanlal Kedia

Kolkata-born ace investor, Vijay Kedia’s net worth currently stands at Rs. 794 crores. His portfolio holds 16 stocks, including Tejas Networks (an optical, broadband and data networking products company) and Vaibhav Global (a jewellery company). He has recently booked a partial profit by offloading a 1.4% stake in Lykis, a small cap premium FMCG company. However, he continues to hold 7.93% of Lykis.

Vijay Kedia’s trading strategy is informed by the principle of SMILE, which translates into ‘Small in size, Medium in experience, Large in aspiration, and Extra-large in market potential.’ He looks for small-cap and mid-cap company stocks with good management and invests for the long haul. His biggest investment has been in Cera Sanitaryware, a multi-bagger stock which rose to the tune of 47,150% in two decades. He has also raised his stake in Elecon Engineering, which has ascended almost 125% in the past year.

Dolly Khanna

Dolly Khanna is an alias of Rajiv Khanna, a Chennai-born marquee investor, who started investing in stocks after selling his family business ‘Kwality Milk Foods.’ Dolly Khanna’s portfolio holds 26 companies worth Rs. 606 crores. Despite trading 75% below its listing price, Dolly Khanna has picked a stake in Suryoday Small Finance Bank. The top value-wise investments in Dolly Khanna’s portfolio include Chennai Petroleum Corp, Polyplex, and Sharda Cropchem. New exposure has also been taken to New Delhi Television and Manali Petrochemicals.

Porinju Veliyath

India’s very own small-cap czar, Porinju Veliyath, is a renowned fund manager who manages his portfolio through Equity Intelligence India Private Ltd. He started his trading journey through Kotak Securities in 1990. He believes in the strategy of value investing.

Veliyath’s net worth currently stands at Rs. 180 crores, with 17 stocks in his portfolio. Some of his notable investments include Rubfila International, a small-cap stock that has returned over 250% in 2 years. He has also invested in a micro-cap plywood manufacturing company called Duropoly Industries.

So, who do you think will succeed Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s big bull run? Only time will tell.