ICICI Prudential Tax Plan - Invest Online

Not a top ranker in the last one year, this fund stands out in the tax-saving category for its track record of consistently beating the benchmark and the category in 13 of the last 15 years.

In a category that is choc-a-bloc with 'growth style' funds, this fund displays a value orientation. The fund follows an unconstrained multi-cap strategy, with the proportion of large-cap and mid/small-cap stocks decided based on the relative valuations.

The fund has retained a four- to five-star rating through most of its long life. The ratings have stayed at four- to five-star in the last five years. The fund has the rare quality of containing downside quite well in bear markets but still delivering very strong outperformance in bull phases. The last one year is the only exception to this trend.

The fund's five-year return of 16.2 per cent is not chart-topping, but its consistency shows up in the impressive return of over 23 per cent since launch. While most tax-saving funds are fully invested, this fund does raise cash holdings to up to 10 per cent in overheated markets. In recent months, the fund has had a large-cap tilt, with a 65-70 per cent allocation to these stocks while mid caps made up 20-25 per cent of the portfolio.

The fund's slightly contrarian take on markets may lead to lower near- term returns but may deliver quite well over a market cycle. This is a good fund to own for risk-averse investors with a long-term focus.