Consistency has been the mainstay of this relatively recent entrant to the ELSS category. By keeping up with its benchmark and peers in six out of the last seven years, Religare Invesco Tax Plan has managed to retain a four- to five-star rating over much of its tenure. Usually ahead of its category only by 3-4 percentage points, the fund has widened this gap in the last one year, with a 40 per cent trailing one-year return. The fund owns a higher mid-cap allocation relative to the benchmark but prefers quality businesses. It avoids tactical calls on equity and sectoral allocations.

The fund's five-year return of 17.6 per cent has been earned mainly through a steady but constant outperformance of the market and the category. The fund has been quite good at containing losses in bad years for equities. However, it is not known to run way ahead during bull phases. The portfolio is mostly fully invested. With a 50-55 per cent large-cap weight at most times, the fund has a few giant caps in its portfolio, which are balanced out by a higher 35-40 per cent mid-cap exposure. In the last six months, the large-cap allocation has climbed to 55-60 per cent probably with an eye on valuations.

The fund's portfolio composition has predictable top holdings spread across large-cap private banks, tech companies and auto and telecom plays. Overall, this is a fund which is unlikely to throw up any nasty surprises on your tax-saving investments.