CONTENTS

1. INVESTMENT BASICS....................................................................................................... 6
What is Investment?...................................................................................................................6
Why should one invest? .............................................................................................................6
When to start Investing?...........................................................................................................6
What care should one take while investing?......................................................................7
What is meant by Interest?......................................................................................................7
What factors determine interest rates?...............................................................................7
What are various options available for investment?......................................................8
What are various Short-term financial options available for investment?.............8
What are various Long-term financial o ptions available for investment?..............9
What is meant by a Stock Exchange?................................................................................10
What is an ‘Equity’/Share?......................................................................................................10
What is a ‘Debt Instrument’?.................................................................................................11
What is a Derivative?................................................................................................................11
What is a Mutual Fund?............................................................................................................11
What is an Index?.......................................................................................................................12
What is a Depository? ...............................................................................................................12
What is Dematerialization?.....................................................................................................12

2. SECURITIES ...........................................................................................................................13
What is meant by ‘Securities’?..............................................................................................13
What is the function of Securities Market?.......................................................................13
Which are the securities one can invest in?.....................................................................13
2.1 R EGULATOR ................................................................................................................................14
Why does Securities Market need Regulators?...............................................................14
Who regulates the Securities Market?................................................................................14
What is SEBI and what is its role?.......................................................................................14
2.2 PARTICIPANTS ............................................................................................................................15
Who are the participants in the Securities Market?......................................................15
Is it necessary to transact through an intermediary?..................................................15
What are the segments of Securities Market?................................................................15

3. PRIMARY MARKET............................................................................................................16
What is the role of the ‘Primary Market’? .........................................................................16
What is meant by Face Value of a share/debenture? ..................................................16
What do you mean by the term Premium and Discount in a Security Market?.16
3.1 ISSUE OF SHARES ......................................................................................................................17
Why do companies need to issue shares to the public? .............................................17
What are the different kinds of issues? .............................................................................17
What is meant by Issue price?..............................................................................................18
What is meant by Market Capitalisation?..........................................................................18
What is the difference between public issue and private placement?...................19
What is an Initial Public Offer (IPO)?..................................................................................19

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 Who decides the price of an issue? .....................................................................................19
What does ‘price discovery through Book Building Process’ mean?......................19
What is the main difference between offer of shares through book building and
offer of shares through normal public issue?..................................................................20
What is Cut-Off Price?...............................................................................................................20
What is the floor price in case of book building? ...........................................................20
What is a Price Band in a book built IPO?........................................................................20
Who decides the Price Band?.................................................................................................21
What is minimum number of days for which a bid should remain open during
book building?..............................................................................................................................21
Can open outcry system be used for book building?...................................................21
Can the individual investor use the book building facility to make an
application?...................................................................................................................................21
How does one know if shares are allotted in an IPO/offer for sale ? What is the
timeframe for getting refund if shares not allotted?....................................................21
How long does it take to get the shares listed after issue?.......................................21
What is the role of a ‘Registrar’ to an issue?...................................................................22
Does NSE provide any facility for IPO?..............................................................................22
What is a Prospectus?...............................................................................................................22
What does ‘Draft Offer document’ mean?........................................................................23
What is an ‘Abridged Prospectus’?.......................................................................................23
Who prepares the ‘Prospectus’/‘Offer Documents’?......................................................23
What does one mean by ‘Lock-in’?......................................................................................24
What is meant by ‘Listing of Securities’? ..........................................................................24
What is a ‘Listing Agreement’?..............................................................................................24
What does ‘Delisting of securities’ mean? ........................................................................24
What is SEBI’s Role in an Issue?..........................................................................................24
Does it mean that SEBI recommends an issue? ............................................................25
Does SEBI tag make one’s money safe?...........................................................................25
3.2 FOREIGN CAPITAL ISSUANCE ..................................................................................................25
Can companies in India raise foreign currency resources?.......................................25
What is an American Depository Receipt?........................................................................25
What is an ADS? .........................................................................................................................26
What is meant by Global Depository Receipts?..............................................................26

4. SECONDARY MARKET.....................................................................................................27
4.1 INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................................................27
What is meant by Secondary market?...............................................................................27
What is the role of the Secondary Market?......................................................................27
What is the difference between the Primary Market and the Secondary Market?
...........................................................................................................................................................27
4.1.1 Stock Exchange .........................................................................................................28
What is the role of a Stock Exchange in buying and selling shares?.....................28
What is Demutualisation of stock exchanges?................................................................28
How is a demutualised exchange different from a mutual exchange?..................28
Currently are there any demutualised stock exchanges in India?..........................28
4.1.2 Stock Trading ..................................................................................................................29
What is Screen Based Trading?............................................................................................29
What is NEAT?..............................................................................................................................29
How to place orders with the broker? ................................................................................29

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 How does an investor get access to internet based trading facility?.....................29
What is a Contract Note?.........................................................................................................30
What details are required to be mentioned on the contract note issued by the
stock broker?................................................................................................................................30
What is the maximum brokerage that a broker can charge?...................................30
Why should one trade on a recognized stock exchange only for buying/selling
shares?............................................................................................................................................31
How to know if the broker or sub broker is registered?..............................................31
What precautions must one take before investing in the stock markets?...........31
What Do’s and Don’ts should an investor bear in mind when investing in the
stock markets?............................................................................................................................32
4.2 PRODUCTS IN THE S ECONDARY MARKETS ..........................................................................34
What are the products dealt in the Secondary Markets?............................................34
4.2.1 Equity Investment....................................................................................................36
Why should one invest in equities in particular?............................................................36
What has been the average return on Equities in India? ...........................................36
Which are the factors that influence the price of a stock?.........................................37
What is meant by the terms Growth Stock / Value Stock? .......................................37
How can one acquire equity shares?..................................................................................38
What is Bid and Ask price?.....................................................................................................38
What is a Portfolio?....................................................................................................................39
What is Diversification?............................................................................................................39
What are the advantages of having a diversified portfolio?......................................39
4.2.2. Debt Investment..........................................................................................................40
What is a ‘Debt Instrument’?.................................................................................................40
What are the features of debt instruments?....................................................................40
What is meant by ‘Interest’ payable by a debenture or a bond?............................41
What are the Segments in the Debt Market in India? .................................................41
Who are the Participants in the Debt Market?................................................................41
Are bonds rated for their credit quality? ...........................................................................41
How can one acquire securities in the debt market?...................................................41

5. DERIVATIVES .......................................................................................................................42
What are Types of Derivatives?............................................................................................42
What is an ‘Option Premium’? ...............................................................................................42
What is ‘Commodity Exchange’? ..........................................................................................43
What is meant by ‘Commodity’?...........................................................................................43
What is Commodity derivatives market? ..........................................................................43
What is the difference between Commodity and Financial derivatives?...............43

6. DEPOSITORY .........................................................................................................................44
How is a depository similar to a bank?..............................................................................44
Which are the depositories in India?..................................................................................44
What are the benefits of participation in a depository? ..............................................44
Who is a Depository Participant (DP)?...............................................................................45
Does one need to keep any minimum balance of securities in his account with
his DP? ............................................................................................................................................45
What is an ISIN?.........................................................................................................................45
What is a Custodian?.................................................................................................................45

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 How can one convert physical holding into electronic holding i.e. how can one
dematerialise securities?.........................................................................................................46
Can odd lot shares be dematerialised?..............................................................................46
Do dematerialised shares have distinctive numbers?..................................................46
Can electronic holdings be converted into Physical certificates?.............................46
Can one dematerialise his debt instruments, mutual fund units, government
securities in his demat account?..........................................................................................46

7. MUTUAL FUNDS...................................................................................................................47
What is the Regulatory Body for Mutual Funds?............................................................47
What are the benefits of investing in Mutual Funds?...................................................47
What is NAV?................................................................................................................................48
What is Entry/Exit Load? .........................................................................................................48
Are there any risks involved in investing in Mutual Funds?......................................48
What are the different types of Mutual funds? ...............................................................49
What are the different investment plans that Mutual Funds offer?........................52
What are the rights that are available to a Mutual Fund holder in India?...........52
What is a Fund Offer document?..........................................................................................53
What is Active Fund Management?.....................................................................................53
What is Passive Fund Management?...................................................................................54
What is an ETF?...........................................................................................................................56

8. MISCELLANEOUS ...............................................................................................................57
8.1 CORPORATE ACTIONS ..............................................................................................................57
What are Corporate Actions?.................................................................................................57
What is meant by ‘Dividend’ declared by companies?.................................................57
What is meant by Dividend yield?.......................................................................................58
What is a Stock Split?...............................................................................................................58
Why do companies announce Stock Split?.......................................................................59
What is Buyback of Shares?...................................................................................................60
8.2 INDEX ............................................................................................................................................60
What is the Nifty index?...........................................................................................................60
8.3 CLEARING & S ETTLEMENT AND R EDRESSAL.......................................................................61
What is a Clearing Corporation?...........................................................................................61
What is Rolling Settlement? ...................................................................................................61
What is Pay-in and Pay-out?..................................................................................................61
What is an Auction?...................................................................................................................62
What is a Book-closure/Record date?................................................................................62
What is a No -delivery period?...............................................................................................62
What is an Ex-dividend date?................................................................................................62
What is an Ex-date?..................................................................................................................63
What recourses are available to investor/client for redressing his grievances?63
What is Arbitration?...................................................................................................................63
What is an Investor Protection Fund?................................................................................63

9. CONCEPTS & MODES OF ANALYSIS ....................................................................64

What is Simple Interest? .........................................................................................................64
What is Compound Interest?.................................................................................................65
What is meant by the Time Value of Money? ..................................................................67
How is time value of money computed?...........................................................................70

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 What is Effective Annual return?..........................................................................................72
How to go about systematically analyzing a company?..............................................73
What is an Annual Report?.....................................................................................................74
Which features of an Annual Report should one read carefully?.............................74
What is a Balance Sheet and a Profit and Loss Account Statement? What is the
difference between Balance Sheet and Profit and Loss Account Statements of a
company?.......................................................................................................................................74
What do these sources of funds represent?.....................................................................77
What is the difference between Equity shareholders and Preferential
shareholders?...............................................................................................................................78
What is the difference between secured and unsecured loans under Loan
Funds?.............................................................................................................................................79
What is meant by application of funds?............................................................................79
What do the sub-headings under the Fixed Assets like ‘Gross block’
‘Depreciation’, ‘Net Block’ and Capital-Work in Progress’ mean?...........................80
What are Current Liabilities and Provisions and Net Current Assets in the
balance sheet?.............................................................................................................................81
How is balance sheet summarized?....................................................................................81
What does a Profit and Loss Account statement consists of?...................................82
What should one look for in a Profit and Loss account?.............................................83

10. RATIO ANALYSIS .............................................................................................................85

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1. Investment Basics

What is Investment?

The money you earn is partly spent and the rest saved for meeting future
expenses. Instead of keeping the savings idle you may like to use savings in
order to get return on it in the future. This is called Invest ment.

Why should one invest?

One needs to invest to:

§ earn return on your idle resources

§ generate a specified sum of money for a specific goal in life
§ make a provision for an uncertain future

One of the important reasons why one needs to invest wisely is to meet the
cost of Inflation. Inflation is the rate at which the cost of living increases.
The cost of living is simply what it costs to buy the goods and services you
need to live. Inflation causes money to lose value because it will not buy the
same amount of a good or a service in the future as it does now or did in the
past. For example, if there was a 6% inflation rate for the next 20 years, a
Rs. 100 purchase today would cost Rs. 321 in 20 years. This is why it is
important to consider inflation as a factor in any long-term investment
strategy. Remember to look at an investment's 'real' rate of return, which is
the return after inflation. The aim of investments should be to provide a
return above the inflation rate to ensure that the investment does not
decrease in value. For example, if the annual inflation rate is 6%, then the
investment will need to earn more than 6% to ensure it increases in value.
If the after-tax return on your investment is less than the inflation rate, then
your assets have actually decreased in value; that is, they won't buy as
much today as they did last year.

When to start Investing?

The sooner one starts investing the better. By investing early you allow your
investments more time to grow, whereby the concept of compounding (as
we shall see later) increases your income, by accumulating the principal and

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the interest or dividend earned on it, year after year. The three golden rules
for all investors are:

§ Invest early
§ Invest regularly
§ Invest for long term and not short term

What care should one take while investing?

Before making any investment, one must ensure to:

1. obtain written documents explaining the investment

2. read and understand such documents
3. verify the legitimacy of the investment
4. find out the costs and benefits associated with the investment
5. assess the risk-return profile of the investment
6. know the liquidity and safety aspects of the investment
7. ascertain if it is appropriate for your specific goals
8. compare these details with other investment opportunities available
9. examine if it fits in with other investments you are considering or you
have already made
10. deal only through an authorised intermediary
11. seek all clarifications about the intermediary and the investment
12. explore the options available to you if something were to go wrong,
and then, if satisfied, make the investment.

These are called the Twelve Important Steps to Investing.

What is meant by Interest?

When we borrow money, we are expected to pay for using it – this is known
as Interest. Interest is an amount charged to the borrower for the privilege
of using the lender’s money. Interest is usually calculated as a percentage of
the principal balance (the amount of money borrowed). The percentage rate
may be fixed for the life of the loan, or it may be variable, depending on the
terms of the loan.

What factors determine interest rates?

When we talk of interest rates, there are different types of interest rates -
rates that banks offer to their depositors, rates that they lend to their
borrowers, the rate at which the Government borrows in the

7
Bond/Government Securities market, rates offered to investors in small
savings schemes like NSC, PPF, rates at which companies issue fixed
deposits etc.

The factors which govern these interest rates are mostly economy related
and are commonly referred to as macroeconomic factors. Some of these
factors are:

§ Demand for money

§ Level of Government borrowings
§ Supply of money
§ Inflation rate
§ The Reserve Bank of India and the Government policies which
determine some of the variables mentioned above

What are various options available for investment?

One may invest in:

§ Physical assets like real estate, gold/jewellery, commodities etc.

and/or
§ Financial assets such as fixed deposits with banks, small saving
instrume nts with post offices, insurance/provident/pension fund etc.
or securities market related instruments like shares, bonds,
debentures etc.

What are various Short-term financial options available for

investment?

Broadly speaking, savings bank account, money market/liquid funds and

fixed deposits with banks may be considered as short-term financial
investment options:

Savings Bank Account is often the first banking product people

use, which offers low interest (4%-5% p.a.), making them only
marginally better than fixed deposits.

Money Market or Liquid Funds are a specialized form of mutual

funds that invest in extremely short-term fixed income instruments
and thereby provide easy liquidity. Unlike most mutual funds, money
market funds are primarily oriented towards protecting your capital
and then, aim to maximise returns. Money market funds usually yield

8
 better returns than savings accounts, but lower than bank fixed
deposits.

Fixed Deposits with Banks are also referred to as term deposits

and minimum investment period for bank FDs is 30 days. Fixed
Deposits with banks are for investors with low risk appetite, and may
be considered for 6-12 months investment period as normally
interest on less than 6 months bank FDs is likely to be lower than
money market fund returns.

What are various Long-term financial options available for

investment?

Post Office Savings Schemes, Public Provident Fund, Company Fixed

Deposits, Bonds and Debentures, Mutual Funds etc.

Post Office Savings: Post Office Monthly Income Scheme is a low

risk saving instrument, which can be availed through any post office.
It provides an interest rate of 8% per annum, which is paid monthly.
Minimum amount, which can be invested, is Rs. 1,000/- and
additional investment in multiples of 1,000/-. Maximum
amount is Rs. 3,00,000/- (if Single) or Rs. 6,00,000/- (if held
Jointly) during a year. It has a maturity period of 6 years. A bonus of
10% is paid at the time of maturity. Premature withdrawal is
permitted if deposit is more than one year old. A deduction of 5% is
levied from the principal amount if withdrawn prematurely; the 10%
bonus is also denied.

Public Provident Fund: A long term savings instrument with a

maturity of 15 years and interest payable at 8% per annum
compounded annually. A PPF account can be opened through a
nationalized bank at anytime during the year and is open all through
the year for depositing money. Tax benefits can be availed for the
amount invested and interest accrued is tax-free. A withdrawal is
permissible every year from the seventh financial year of the date of
opening of the account and the amount of withdrawal will be limited
to 50% of the balance at credit at the end of the 4th year
immediately preceding the year in which the amount is withdrawn or
at the end of the preceding year whichever is lower the amount of
loan if any.

Company Fixed Deposits: These are short-term (six months) to

medium-term (three to five years) borrowings by companies at a
fixed rate of interest which is payable monthly, quarterly, semi-

9
 annually or annually. They can also be cumulative fixed deposits
where the entire principal alongwith the interest is paid at the end of
the loan period. The rate of interest varies between 6-9% per annum
for company FDs. The interest received is after deduction of taxes.

Bonds: It is a fixed income (debt) instrument issued for a period of

more than one year with the purpose of raising capital. The central or
state government, corporations and similar institutions sell bonds. A
bond is generally a promise to repay the principal along with a fixed
rate of interest on a specified date, called the Maturity Date.

Mutual Funds: These are funds operated by an investment company

which raises money from the public and invests in a group of assets
(shares, debentures etc.), in accordance with a stated set of
objectives. It is a substitute for those who are unable to invest
directly in equities or debt because of resource, time or knowledge
constraints. Benefits include professional money management,
buying in small amounts and diversification. Mutual fund units are
issued and redeemed by the Fund Management Company based on
the fund's net asset value (NAV), which is determined at the end of
each trading session. NAV is calculated as the value of all the shares
held by the fund, minus expenses, divided by the number of units
issued. Mutual Funds are usually long term investment vehicle
though there some categories of mutual funds, such as money
market mutual funds which are short term instruments.

What is meant by a Stock Exchange?

The Securities Contract (Regulation) Act, 1956 [SCRA] defines ‘Stock

Exchange’ as any body of individuals, whether incorporated or not,
constituted for the purpose of assisting, regulating or controlling the
business of buying, selling or dealing in securities. Stock exchange could be
a regional stock exchange whose area of operation/jurisdiction is specified at
the time of its recognition or national exchanges, which are permitted to
have nationwide trading since inception. NSE was incorporated as a national
stock exchange.

What is an ‘Equity’/Share?

Total equity capital of a company is divided into equal units of small

denominations, each called a share. For example, in a company the total
equity capital of Rs 2,00,00,000 is divided into 20,00,000 units of Rs 10
each. Each such unit of Rs 10 is called a Share. Thus, the company then is

10
said to have 20,00,000 equity shares of Rs 10 each. The holders of such
shares are members of the company and have voting rights.

What is a ‘Debt Instrument’?

Debt instrument represents a contract whereby one party lends money to

another on pre-determined terms with regards to rate and periodicity of
interest, repayment of principal amount by the borrower to the lender.

In the Indian securities markets, the term ‘bond’ is used for debt
instruments issued by the Central and State governments and public sector
organizations and the term d‘ ebenture’ is used for instruments issued by
private corporate sector.

What is a Derivative?

Derivative is a product whose value is derived from the value of one or more
basic variables, called underlying. The underlying asset can be equity, index,
foreign exchange (forex), commodity or any other asset.

Derivative products initially emerged as hedging devices against fluctuations

in commodity prices and commodity-linked derivatives remained the sole
form of such products for almost three hundred years. The financial
derivatives came into spotlight in post-1970 period due to growing instability
in the financial markets. However, since their emergence, these products
have become very popular and by 1990s, they accounted for about two-
thirds of total transactions in derivative products.

What is a Mutual Fund?

A Mutual Fund is a body corporate registered with SEBI (Securities Exchange

Board of India) that pools money from individuals/corporate investors and
invests the same in a variety of different financial instruments or securities
such as equity shares, Government securities, Bonds, debentures etc.
Mutual funds can thus be considered as financial intermediaries in the
investment business that collect funds from the public and invest on behalf
of the investors. Mutual funds issue units to the investors. The appreciation
of the portfolio or securities in which the mutual fund has invested the
money leads to an appreciation in the value of the units held by investors.
The investment objectives outlined by a Mutual Fund in its prospectus are
binding on the Mutual Fund scheme. The investment objectives specify the
class of securities a Mutual Fund can invest in. Mutual Funds invest in

11
various asset classes like equity, bonds, debentures, commercial paper and
government securities. The schemes offered by mutual funds vary from fund
to fund. Some are pure equity schemes; others are a mix of equity and
bonds. Investors are also given the option of getting dividends, which are
declared periodically by the mutual fund, or to participate only in the capital
appreciation of the scheme.

What is an Index?

An Index shows how a specified portfolio of share prices are moving in order
to give an indication of market trends. It is a basket of securities and the
average price movement of the basket of securities indicates the index
movement, whether upwards or downwards.

What is a Depository?

A depository is like a bank wherein the deposits are securities (viz. shares,
debentures, bonds, government securities, units etc.) in electronic form.

What is Dematerialization?

Dematerialization is the process by which physical certificates of an investor

are converted to an equivalent number of securities in electronic form and
credited to the investor’s account with his Depository Participant (DP).

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2. SECURITIES

What is meant by ‘Securities’?

The definition of ‘Securities’ as per the Securities Contracts Regulation Act

(SCRA), 1956, includes instruments such as shares, bonds, scrips, stocks or
other marketable securities of similar nature in or of any incorporate
company or body corporate, government securities, derivatives of securities,
units of collective investment scheme, interest and rights in securities,
security receipt or any other instruments so declared by the Central
Government.

What is the function of Securities Market?

Securities Markets is a place where buyers and sellers of securities can enter
into transactions to purchase and sell shares, bonds, debentures etc.
Further, it performs an important role of enabling corporates, entrepreneurs
to raise resources for their companies and business ventures through public
issues. Transfer of resources from those having idle resources (investors) to
others who have a need for them (corporates) is most efficiently achieved
through the securities market. Stated formally, securities markets provide
channels for reallocation of savings to investments and entrepreneurship.
Savings are linked to investments by a variety of intermediaries, through a
range of financial products, called ‘Securities’.

Which are the securities one can invest in?

§ Shares
§ Government Securities
§ Derivative products
§ Units of Mutual Funds etc., are some of the securities investors in the
securities market can invest in.

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2.1 Regulator

Why does Securities Market need Regulators?

The absence of conditions of perfect competition in the securities market

makes the role of the Regulator extremely important. The regulator ensures
that the market participants behave in a desired manner so that securities
market continues to be a major source of finance for corporate and
government and the interest of investors are protected.

Who regulates the Securities Market?

The responsibility for regulating the securities market is shared by

Department of Economic Affairs (DEA), Department of Company Affairs
(DCA), Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Securities and Exchange Board of
India (SEBI).

What is SEBI and what is its role?

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is the regulatory

authority in India established under Section 3 of SEBI Act, 1992. SEBI Act,
1992 provides for establishment of Securities and Exchange Board of India
(SEBI) with statutory powers for (a) protecting the interests of investors in
securities (b) promoting the development of the securities market and (c)
regulating the securities market. Its regulatory jurisdiction extends over
corporates in the issuance of capital and transfer of securities, in addition to
all intermediaries and persons associated with securities market. SEBI has
been obligated to perform the aforesaid functions by such measures as it
thinks fit. In particular, it has powers for:

§ Regulating the business in stock exchanges and any other securities

markets
§ Registering and regulating the working of stock brokers, sub–brokers
etc.
§ Promoting and regulating self-regulatory organizations
§ Prohibiting fraudulent and unfair trade practic es
§ Calling for information from, undertaking inspection, conducting
inquiries and audits of the stock exchanges, intermediaries, self –
regulatory organizations, mutual funds and other persons associated
with the securities market.

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2.2 Participants

Who are the participants in the Securities Market?

The securities market essentially has three categories of participants,

namely, the issuers of securities, investors in securities and the
intermediaries, such as merchant bankers, brokers etc. While the corporates
and government raise resources from the securities market to meet their
obligations, it is households that invest their savings in the securities
market.

Is it necessary to transact through an intermediary?

It is advisable to conduct transactions through an intermediary. For example

you need to transact through a trading member of a stock exchange if you
intend to buy or sell any security on stock exchanges. You need to maintain
an account with a depository if you intend to hold securities in demat form.
You need to deposit money with a banker to an issue if you are subscribing
to public issues. You get guidance if you are transacting through an
intermediary. Chose a SEBI registered intermediary, as he is accountable for
its activities. The list of registered intermediaries is available with
exchanges, industry associations etc.

What are the segments of Securities Market?

The securities market has two interdependent segments: the primary (new
issues) market and the secondary market. The primary market provides the
channel for sale of new securities while the secondary market deals in
securities previously issued.

15
3. PRIMARY MARKET

What is the role of the ‘Primary Market’?

The primary market provides the channel for sale of new securities. Primary
market provides opportunity to issuers of securities; Government as well as
corporates, to raise resources to meet their requirements of investment
and/or discharge some obligation.

They may issue the securities at face value, or at a discount/premium and

these securities may take a variety of forms such as equity, debt etc. They
may issue the securities in domestic market and/or international market.

What is meant by Face Value of a share/debenture?

The nominal or stated amount (in Rs.) assigned to a security by the issuer.
For shares, it is the original cost of the stock shown on the certificate; for
bonds, it is the amount paid to the holder at maturity. Also known as par
value or simply par. For an equity share, the face value is usually a very
small amount (Rs. 5, Rs. 10) and does not have much bearing on the price
of the share, which may quote higher in the market, at Rs. 100 or Rs. 1000
or any other price. For a debt security, face value is the amount repaid to
the investor when the bond matures (usually, Government securities and
corporate bonds have a face value of Rs. 100). The price at which the
security trades depends on the fluctuations in the interest rates in the
economy.

What do you mean by the term Premium and Disco unt in a

Security Market?

Securities are generally issued in denominations of 5, 10 or 100. This is

known as the Face Value or Par Value of the security as discussed earlier.
When a security is sold above its face value, it is said to be issued at a
Premium and if it is sold at less than its face value, then it is said to be
issued at a Discount.

16
3.1 Issue of Shares

Why do companies need to issue shares to the public?

Most companies are usually started privately by their promoter(s). However,

the promoters’ capital and the borrowings from banks and financial
institutions may not be sufficient for setting up or running the business over
a long term. So companies invite the public to contribute towards the equity
and issue shares to individual investors. The way to invite share capital from
the public is through a ‘Public Issue’. Simply stated, a public issue is an offer
to the public to subscribe to the share capital of a company. Once this is
done, the company allots shares to the applicants as per the prescribed
rules and regulations laid down by SEBI.

What are the different kinds of issues?

Primarily, issues can be classified as a Public, Rights or Preferential issues

(also known as private placements). While public and rights issues involve a
detailed procedure, private placements or preferential issues are relatively
simpler. The classification of issues is illustrated below:

Initial Public Offering (IPO) is when an unlisted company makes either a

fresh issue of securities or an offer for sale of its existing securities or both
for the first time to the public. This paves way for listing and trading of the
issuer’s securities.

A follow on public offering (Further Issue) is when an already listed

company makes either a fresh issue of securities to the public or an offer for
sale to the public, through an offer document.

Rights Issue is when a listed company which proposes to issue fresh

securities to its existing shareholders as on a record date. The rights are
normally offered in a particular ratio to the number of securities held prior to
the issue. This route is best suited for companies who would like to raise
capital without diluting stake of its existing shareholders.

A Preferential issue is an issue of shares or of convertible securities by

listed companies to a select group of persons under Section 81 of the
Companies Act, 1956 which is neither a rights issue nor a public issue. This
is a faster way for a company to raise equity capital. The issuer company
has to comply with the Companies Act and the requirements contained in

17
the Chapter pertaining to preferential allotment in SEBI guidelines which
inter-alia include pricing, disclosures in notice etc.

Classification of Issues

Issues

Public Rights Preferential

Initial Public Offering Further Public Offering

Fresh Issue Offer for Sale Fresh Issue Offer for Sale

What is meant by Issue price?

The price at which a company's shares are offered initially in the primary
market is called as the Issue price. When they begin to be traded, the
market price may be above or below the issue price.

What is meant by Market Capitalisation?

The market value of a quoted company, which is calculated by multiplying

its current share price (market price) by the number of shares in issue is
called as market capitalization. E.g. Company A has 120 million shares in
issue. The current market price is Rs. 100. The market capitalisation of
comp any A is Rs. 12000 million.

18
What is the difference between public issue and private
placement?

When an issue is not made to only a select set of people but is open to the
general public and any other investor at large, it is a public issue. But if the
issue is made to a select set of people, it is called private placement. As per
Companies Act, 1956, an issue becomes public if it results in allotment to 50
persons or more. This means an issue can be privately placed where an
allotment is made to less than 50 persons.

What is an Initial Public Offer (IPO)?

An Initial Public Offer (IPO) is the selling of securities to the public in the
primary market. It is when an unlisted company makes either a fresh issue
of securities or an offer for sale of its existing securities or both for the first
time to the public. This paves way for listing and trading of the issuer’s
securities. The sale of securities can be either through book building or
through normal public issue.

Who decides the price of an issue?

Indian primary market ushered in an era of free pricing in 1992. Following

this, the guidelines have provided that the issuer in consultation with
Merchant Banker shall decide the price. There is no price formula stipulated
by SEBI. SEBI does not play any role in price fixation. The company and
merchant banker are however required to give full disclosures of the
parameters which they had considered while deciding the issue price. There
are two types of issues, one where company and Lead Merchant Banker fix a
price (called fixed price) and other, where the company and the Lead
Manager (LM) stipulate a floor price or a price band and leave it to market
forces to determine the final price (price discovery through book building
process).

What does ‘price discovery through Book Building Process’

mean?

Book Building is basically a process used in IPOs for efficient price discovery.
It is a mechanism where, during the period for which the IPO is open, bids
are collected from investors at various prices, which are above or equal to
the floor price. The offer price is determined after the bid closing date.

19
What is the main difference between offer of shares through
book building and offer of shares through normal public issue?

Price at which securities will be allotted is not known in case of offer of

shares through Book Building while in case of offer of shares through normal
public issue, price is known in advance to investor. Under Book Building,
investors bid for shares at the floor price or above and after the closure of
the book building process the price is determined for allotment of shares.

In case of Book Building, the demand can be known everyday as the book
is being built. But in case of the public issue the demand is known at the
close of the issue.

What is Cut-Off Price?

In a Book building issue, the issuer is required to indicate either the price
band or a floor price in the prospectus. The actual discovered issue price can
be any price in the price band or any price above the floor price. This issue
price is called “Cut-Off Price”. The issuer and lead manager decides this after
considering the book and the investors’ appetite for the stock.

What is the floor price in case of book building?

Floor price is the minimum price at which bids can be made.

What is a Price Band in a book built IPO?

The prospectus may contain either the floor price for the securities or a price
band within which the investors can bid. The spread between the floor and
the cap of the price band shall not be more than 20%. In other words, it
means that the cap should not be more than 120% of the floor price. The
price band can have a revision and such a revision in the price band shall be
widely disseminated by informing the stock exchanges, by issuing a press
release and also indicating the change on the relevant website and the
terminals of the trading members participating in the book building process.
In case the price band is revised, the bidding period shall be extended for a
further period of three days, subject to the total bidding period not
exceeding ten days.

20
Who decides the Price Band?

It may be understood that the regulatory mechanism does not play a role in
setting the price for issues. It is up to the company to decide on the price or
the price band, in consultation with Merchant Bankers.

What is minimum number of days for which a bid should

remain open during book building?

The Book should remain open for a minimum of 3 days.

Can open outcry system be used for book building?

No. As per SEBI, only electronically linked transparent facility is allowed to

be used in case of book building.

Can the individual investor use the book building facility to

make an application?

Yes.

How does one know if shares are allotted in an IPO/offer for

sale? What is the timeframe for getting refund if shares not
allotted?

As per SEBI guidelines, the Basis of Allotment should be completed with 15

days from the issue close date. As soon as the basis of allotment is
completed, within 2 working days the details of credit to demat account /
allotment advice and despatch of refund order needs to be completed. So an
investor should know in about 15 days time from the closure of issue,
whether shares are allotted to him or not.

How long does it take to get the shares listed after issue?

It would take around 3 weeks after the closure of the book built issue.

21
What is the role of a ‘Registrar’ to an issue?

The Registrar finalizes the list of eligible allottees after deleting the invalid
applications and ensures that the corporate action for crediting of shares to
the demat accounts of the applicants is done and the dispatch of refund
orders to those applicable are sent. The Lead Manager coordinates with the
Registrar to ensure follow up so that that the flow of applications from
collecting bank branches, processing of the applications and other matters
till the basis of allotment is finalized, dispatch security certificates and
refund orders completed and securities listed.

Does NSE provide any facility for IPO?

Yes. NSE’s electronic trading network spans across the country providing
access to investors in remote areas. NSE decided to offer this infrastructure
for conducting online IPOs through the Book Building process. NSE operates
a fully automated screen based bidding system called NEAT IPO that enables
trading members to enter bids directly from their offices through a
sophisticated telecommunication network.

Book Building through the NSE system offers several advantages:

§ The NSE system offers a nation wide bidding facility in securities

§ It provide a fair, efficient & transparent method for collecting bids

using the latest electronic trading systems

§ Costs involved in the issue are far less than those in a normal IPO

§ The system reduces the time taken for completion of the issue
process

The IPO market timings are from 10.00 a.m. to 3.00 p.m. On the last day of
the IPO, the session timings can be further extended on specific request by
the Book Running Lead Manager.

What is a Prospectus?

A large number of new companies float public issues. While a large number
of these companies are genuine, quite a few may want to exploit the
investors. Therefore, it is very important that an investor before applying for
any issue identifies future potential of a company. A part of the guidelines
issued by SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) is the disclosure of

22
information to the public. This disclosure includes information like the reason
for raising the money, the way money is proposed to be spent, the return
expected on the money etc. This information is in the form of ‘Prospectus ’
which also includes information regarding the size of the issue, the current
status of the company, its equity capital, its current and past performance,
the promoters, the project, cost of the project, means of financing, product
and capacity etc. It also contains lot of mandatory information regarding
underwriting and statutory compliances. This helps investors to evaluate
short term and long term prospects of the company.

What does ‘Draft Offer document’ mean?

‘Offer document’ means Prospectus in case of a public issue or offer for sale
and Letter of Offer in case of a rights issue which is filed with the Registrar
of Companies (ROC) and Stock Exchanges (SEs). An offer document covers
all the relevant information to help an investor to make his/her investment
decision.

‘Draft Offer document’ means the offer document in draft stage. The draft
offer documents are filed with SEBI, atleast 21 days prior to the filing of the
Offer Document with ROC/SEs. SEBI may specify changes, if any, in the
draft Offer Document and the issuer or the lead merchant banker shall carry
out such changes in the draft offer document before filing the Offer
Document with ROC/SEs. The Draft Offer Document is available on the SEBI
website for public comments for a period of 21 days from the filing of the
Draft Offer Document with SEBI.

What is an ‘Abridged Prospectus’?

‘Abridged Prospectus’ is a shorter version of the Prospectus and contains all

the salient features of a Prospectus. It accompanies the application form of
public issues.

Who prepares the ‘Prospectus’/‘Offer Documents’?

Generally, the public issues of companies are handled by ‘Merchant Bankers’

who are responsible for getting the project appraised, finalizing the cost of
the project, profitability estimates and for preparing of ‘Prospectus’. The
‘Prospectus’ is submitted to SEBI for its approval.

23
What does one mean by ‘Lock-in’?

‘Lock-in’ indicates a freeze on the sale of shares for a certain period of time.
SEBI guidelines have stipulated lock-in requirements on shares of promoters
mainly to ensure that the promoters or main persons, who are controlling
the company, shall continue to hold some minimum percentage in the
company after the public issue.

What is meant by ‘Listing of Securities’?

Listing means admission of securities of an issuer to trading privileges

(dealings) on a stock exchange through a formal agreement. The prime
objective of admission to dealings on the exchange is to provide liquidity
and marketability to securities, as also to provide a mechanism for effective
control and supervision of trading.

What is a ‘Listing Agreement’?

At the time of listing securities of a company on a stock exchange, the

company is required to enter into a listing agreement with the exchange.
The listing agreement specifies the terms and conditions of listing and the
disclosures that shall be made by a company on a continuous basis to the
exchange.

What does ‘Delisting of securities’ mean?

The term ‘Delisting of securities’ means permanent removal of securities of a

listed company from a stock exchange. As a consequence of delisting, the
securities of that company would no longer be traded at that stock
exchange.

What is SEBI’s Role in an Issue?

Any company making a public issue or a listed company making a rights

issue of value of more than Rs 50 lakh is required to file a draft offer
document with SEBI for its observations. The company can proceed further
on the issue only after getting observations from SEBI. The validity period of
SEBI’s observation letter is three months only i.e. the company has to open
its issue within three months period.

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Does it mean that SEBI recommends an issue?

SEBI does not recommend any issue nor does take any responsibility either
for the financial soundness of any scheme or the project for which the issue
is proposed to be made or for the correctness of the statements made or
opinions expressed in the offer document. SEBI mainly scrutinizes the issue
for seeing that adequate disclosures are made by the issuing company in the
prospectus or offer document.

Does SEBI tag make one’s money safe?

The investors should make an informed decision purely by themselves based

on the contents disclosed in the offer documents. SEBI does not associate
itself with any issue/issuer and should in no way be construed as a
guarantee for the funds that the investor proposes to invest through the
issue. However, the investors are generally advised to study all the material
facts pertaining to the issue including the risk factors before considering any
investment. They are strongly warned against relying on any ‘tips’ or news
through unofficial means.

3.2 Foreign Capital Issuance

Can companies in India raise foreign currency resources?

Yes. Indian companies are permitted to raise foreign currency resources

through two main sources: a) issue of foreign currency convertible bonds
more commonly known as ‘Euro’ issues and b) issue of ordinary shares
through depository receipts namely ‘Global Depository Receipts
(GDRs)/American Depository Receipts (ADRs)’ to foreign investors i.e. to the
institutional investors or individual investors.

What is an American Depository Receipt?

An American Depositary Receipt ("ADR") is a physical certificate evidencing

ownership of American Depositary Shares ("ADSs"). The term is often used
to refer to the ADSs themselves.

25
What is an ADS?

An American Depositary Share ("ADS") is a U.S. dollar denominated form of

equity ownership in a non-U.S. company. It represents the foreign shares of
the company held on deposit by a custodian bank in the company's home
country and carries the corporate and economic rights of the foreign shares,
subject to the terms specified on the ADR certificate.

One or several ADSs can be represented by a physical ADR certificate. The

terms ADR and ADS are often used interchangeably.

ADSs provide U.S. investors with a convenient way to invest in overseas

securities and to trade non-U.S. securities in the U.S. ADSs are issued by a
depository bank, such as JPMorgan Chase Bank. They are traded in the
same manner as shares in U.S. companies, on the New York Stock Exchange
(NYSE) and the American Stock Exchange (AMEX) or quoted on NASDAQ
and the over-the-counter (OTC) market.

Although ADSs are U.S. dollar denominated securities and pay dividends in
U.S. dollars, they do not eliminate the currency risk associated with an
investment in a non-U.S. company.

What is meant by Global Depository Receipts?

Global Depository Receipts (GDRs) may be defined as a global finance

vehicle that allows an issuer to raise capital simultaneously in two or
markets through a global offering. GDRs may be used in public or private
markets inside or outside US. GDR, a negotiable certificate usually
represents company’s traded equity/debt. The underlying shares correspond
to the GDRs in a fixed ratio say 1 GDR=10 shares.

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4. SECONDARY MARKET

4.1 Introduction

What is meant by Secondary market?

Secondary market refers to a market where securities are traded after being
initially offered to the public in the primary market and/or listed on the
Stock Exchange. Majority of the trading is done in the secondary market.
Secondary market comprises of equity markets and the debt markets.

What is the role of the Secondary Market?

For the general investor, the secondary market provides an efficient

platform for trading of his securities. For the management of the company,
Secondary equity markets serve as a monitoring and control conduit—by
facilitating value-enhancing control activities, enabling implementation of
incentive-based management contracts, and aggregating information (via
price discovery) that guides management decisions.

What is the difference between the Primary Market and the

Secondary Market?

In the primary market, securities are offered to public for subscription for
the purpose of raising capital or fund. Secondary market is an equity trading
venue in which already existing/pre-issued securities are traded among
investors. Secondary market could be either auction or dealer market. While
stock exchange is the part of an auction market, Over-the-Counter (OTC) is
a part of the dealer market.

27
4.1.1 Stock Exchange

What is the role of a Stock Exchange in buying and selling

shares?

The stock exchanges in India, under the overall supervision of the regulatory
authority, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), provide a
trading platform, where buyers and sellers can meet to transact in
securities. The trading platform provided by NSE is an electronic one and
there is no need for buyers and sellers to meet at a physical location to
trade. They can trade through the computerized trading screens available
with the NSE trading members or the internet based trading facility provided
by the trading members of NSE.

What is Demutualisation of stock exchanges?

Demutualisation refers to the legal structure of an exchange whereby the

ownership, the management and the trading rights at the exchange are
segregated from one another.

How is a demutualised exchange different from a mutual

exchange?

In a mutual exchange, the three functions of ownership, management and

trading are concentrated into a single Group. Here, the broker members of
the exchange are both the owners and the traders on the exchange and
they further manage the exchange as well. This at times can lead to conflicts
of interest in decision making. A demutualised exchange, on the other hand,
has all these three functions clearly segregated, i.e. the ownership,
management and trading are in separate hands.

Currently are there any demutualised stock exchanges in

India?

Currently, two stock exchanges in India, the National Stock Exchange (NSE)
and Over the Counter Exchange of India (OTCEI) are demutualised.

28
4.1.2 Stock Trading

What is Screen Based Trading?

The trading on stock exchanges in India used to take place through open
outcry without use of information technology for immediate matching or
recording of trades. This was time consuming and inefficient. This imposed
limits on trading volumes and effic iency. In order to provide efficiency,
liquidity and transparency, NSE introduced a nationwide, on-line, fully-
automated screen based trading system (SBTS) where a member can punch
into the computer the quantities of a security and the price at which he
would like to transact, and the transaction is executed as soon as a
matching sale or buy order from a counter party is found.

What is NEAT?

NSE is the first exchange in the world to use satellite communication

technology for trading. Its trading system, called National Exchange for
Automated Trading (NEAT), is a state of-the-art client server based
application. At the server end all trading information is stored in an in-
memory database to achieve minimum response time and maximum system
availability for users. It has uptime record of 99.7%. For all trades entered
into NEAT system, there is uniform response time of less than one second.

How to place orders with the broker?

You may go to the broker’s office or place an order on the phone/internet or

as defined in the Model Agreement, which every client needs to enter into
with his or her broker.

How does an investor get access to internet based trading

facility?

There are many brokers of the NSE who provide internet based trading
facility to their clients. Internet based trading enables an investor to buy/sell
securities through internet which can be accessed from a computer at the
investor’s residence or anywhere else where the client can access the
internet. Investors need to get in touch with an NSE broker providing this
service to avail of internet based trading facility.

29
What is a Contract Note?

Contract Note is a confirmation of trades done on a particular day on behalf

of the client by a trading member. It imposes a legally enforceable
relationship between the client and the trading member with respect to
purchase/sale and settlement of trades. It also helps to settle
disputes/claims between the investor and the trading member. It is a
prerequisite for filing a complaint or arbitration proceeding against the
trading member in case of a dispute. A valid contract note should be in the
prescribed form, contain the details of trades, stamped with requisite value
and duly signed by the authorized signatory. Contract notes are kept in
duplicate, the trading member and the client should keep one copy each.
After verifying the details contained therein, the client keeps one copy and
returns the second copy to the trading member duly acknowledged by him.

What details are required to be mentioned on the contract

note issued by the stock broker?

A broker has to issue a contract note to clients for all transactions in the
form specified by the stock exchange. The contract note inter-alia should
have following:

§ Name, address and SEBI Registration number of the Member broker.

§ Name of partner/proprietor/Authorised Signatory.
§ Dealing Office Address/Tel. No./Fax no., Code number of the member
given by the Exchange.
§ Contract number, date of issue of contract note, settlement number
and time period for settlement.
§ Constituent (Client) name/Code Number.
§ Order number and order time corresponding to the trades.
§ Trade number and Trade time.
§ Quantity and kind of Security bought/sold by the client.
§ Brokerage and Purchase/Sale rate.
§ Service tax rates, Securities Transaction Tax and any other charges
levied by the broker.
§ Appropriate stamps have to be affixed on the contract note or it is
mentioned that the consolidated stamp duty is paid.
§ Signature of the Stock broker/Authorized Signatory.

What is the maximum brokerage that a broker can charge?

The maximum brokerage that can be charged by a broker from his clients as
commission cannot be more than 2.5% of the value mentioned in the
respective purchase or sale note.

30
Why should one trade on a recognized stock exchange only for
buying/selling shares?

An investor does not get any protection if he trades outside a stock

exchange. Trading at the exchange offers investors the best prices
prevailing at the time in the market, lack of any counter-party risk which is
assumed by the clearing corporation, access to investor grievance and
redressal mechanism of stock exchanges, protection upto a prescribed limit,
from the Investor Protection Fund etc.

How to know if the broker or sub broker is registered?

One can confirm it by verifying the registration certificate issued by SEBI. A

broker's registration number begins with the letters ‘INB’ and that of a sub
broker with the letters ‘INS’.

What precautions must one take before investing in the stock

markets?

Here are some useful pointers to bear in mind before you invest in the
markets:

§ Make sure your broker is registered with SEBI and the exchanges and
do not deal with unregistered intermediaries.

§ Ensure that you receive contract notes for all your transactions from
your broker within one working day of execution of the trades.

§ All investments carry risk of some kind. Investors should always

know the risk that they are taking and invest in a manner that
matches their risk tolerance.

§ Do not be misled by market rumours, u

l ring advertisement or ‘hot
tips’ of the day.

§ Take informed decisions by studying the fundamentals of the

company. Find out the business the company is into, its future
prospects, quality of management, past track record etc Sources of
knowing about a company are through annual reports, economic
magazines, databases available with vendors or your financial
advisor.

31
 § If your financial advisor or broker advises you to invest in a company
you have never heard of, be cautious. Spend some time checking out
about the company before investing.

§ Do not be attracted by announcements of fantastic results/news

reports, about a company. Do your own research before investing in
any stock.
§ Do not be attracted to stocks based on what an internet website
promotes, unless you have done adequate study of the company.

§ Investing in very low priced stocks or what are known as penny

stocks does not guarantee high returns.

§ Be cautious about stocks which show a sudden spurt in price or

trading activity.

§ Any advise or tip that claims that there are huge returns expected,
especially for acting quickly, may be risky and may to lead to losing
some, most, or all of your money.

What Do’s and Don’ts should an investor bear in mind when

investing in the stock markets?

§ Ensure that the intermediary (broker/sub-broker) has a valid SEBI

registration certificate.
§ Enter into an agreement with your broker/sub-broker setting out
terms and conditions clearly.
§ Ensure that you give all your details in the ‘Know Your Client’ form.
§ Ensure that you read carefully and understand the contents of the
‘Risk Disclosure Document’ and then acknowledge it.
§ Insist on a contract note issued by your broker only, for trades done
each day.
§ Ensure that you receive the contract note from your broker within 24
hours of the transaction.
§ Ensure that the contract note contains details such as the broker’s
name, trade time and number, transaction price, brokerage, service
tax, securities transaction tax etc. and is signed by the Authorised
Signatory of the broker.
§ To cross check genuineness of the transactions, log in to the NSE
website (www.nseindia.com) and go to the trade verification facility
extended by NSE at www.nseindia.com/content/equities/
eq_trdverify.htm.

32
§ Issue account payee cheques/demand drafts in the name of your
broker only, as it appears on the contract note/SEBI registration
certificate of the broker.
§ While delivering shares to your broker to meet your obligations,
ensure that the delivery instructions are made only to the designated
account of your broker only.
§ Insist on periodical statement of accounts of funds and securities
from your broker. Cross check and reconcile your accounts promptly
and in case of any discrepancies bring it to the attention of your
broker immediately.
§ Please ensure that you receive payments/deliveries from your broker,
for the transactions entered by you, within one working day of the
payout date.
§ Ensure that you do not undertake deals on behalf of others or trade
on your own name and then issue cheques from a family members ’/
friends’ bank accounts.
§ Similarly, the Demat delivery instruction slip should be from your
own Demat account, not from any other family members’/friends’
accounts.
§ Do not sign blank delivery instruction slip(s) while meeting security
payin obligation.
§ No intermediary in the market can accept deposit assuring fixed
returns. Hence do not give your money as deposit against assurances
of returns.
§ ‘Portfolio Management Services’ could be offered only by
intermediaries having specific approval of SEBI for PMS. Hence, do
not part your funds to unauthorized persons for Portfolio
Management.
§ Delivery Instruction Slip is a very valuable document. Do not leave
signed blank delivery instruction slip with anyone. While meeting pay
in obligation make sure that correct ID of authorised intermediary is
filled in the Delivery Instruction Form.
§ Be cautious while taking funding form authorised intermediaries as
these transactions are not covered under Settlement Guarantee
mechanisms of the exchange.
§ Insist on execution of all orders under unique client code allotted to
you. Do not accept trades executed under some other client code to
your account.
§ When you are authorising someone through ‘Power of Attorney’ for
operation of your DP account, make sure that:
§ your authorizatio n is in favour of registered
intermediary only.
§ authorisation is only for limited purpose of debits and
credits arising out of valid transactions executed
through that intermediary only.

33
 § you verify DP statement periodically say every month/
fortnight to ensure that no unauthorised transactions
have taken place in your account.
§ authorization given by you has been properly used for
the purpose for which authorization has been given.
§ in case you find wrong entries please report in writing
to the authorized intermediary.
§ Don’t accept unsigned/duplicate contract note.
§ Don’t accept contract note signed by any unauthorised person.
§ Don’t delay payment/deliveries of securities to broker.
§ In the event of any discrepancies/disputes, please bring them to the
notice of the broker immediately in writing (acknowledged by the
broker) and ensure their prompt rectification.
§ In case of sub-broker disputes, inform the main broker in writing
about the dispute at the earliest and in any case not later than 6
months.
§ If your broker/sub-broker does not resolve your complaints within a
reasonable period (say within 15 days), please bring it to the
attention of the ‘Investor Grievances Cell’ of the NSE.
§ While lodging a complaint with the ‘Investor Grievances Cell’ of the
NSE, it is very important that you submit copies of all relevant
documents like contract notes, proof of payments/delivery of shares
etc. alongwith the complaint. Remember, in the absence of sufficient
documents, resolution of complaints becomes difficult.
§ Familiarise yourself with the rules, regulations and circulars issued by
stock exchanges/SEBI before carrying out any transaction.

4.2 Products in the Secondary Markets

What are the products dealt in the Secondary Markets?

Following are the main financial products/instruments dealt in the Secondary

market which may be divided broadly into Shares and Bonds:

Shares:

Equity Shares: An equity share, commonly referred to as ordinary

share, represents the form of fractional ownership in a business
venture.

Rights Issue/ Rights Shares: The issue of new securities to existing

shareholders at a ratio to those already held, at a price. For e.g. a

34
 2:3 rights issue at Rs. 125, would entitle a shareholder to receive 2
shares for every 3 shares held at a price of Rs. 125 per share.

Bonus Shares: Shares issued by the companies to their shareholders

free of cost based on the number of shares the shareholder owns.

Preference shares: Owners of these kind of shares are entitled to a

fixed dividend or dividend calculated at a fixed rate to be paid
regularly before dividend can be paid in respect of equity share. They
also enjoy priority over the equity shareholders in payment of
surplus. But in the event of liquidation, their claims rank below the
claims of the company’s creditors, bondholders/debenture holders.

Cumulative Preference Shares: A type of preference shares on which

dividend accumulates if remained unpaid. All arrears of preference
dividend have to be paid out before paying dividend on equity
shares.

Cumulative Convertible Preference Shares: A type of preference

shares where the dividend payable on the same accumulates, if not
paid. After a specified date, these shares will be converted into
equity capital of the company.

Bond: is a negotiable certificate evidencing indebtedness. It is normally

unsecured. A debt security is generally issued by a company, municipality or
government agency. A bond investor lends money to the issuer and in
exchange, the issuer promises to repay the loan amount on a specified
maturity date. The issuer usually pays the bond holder periodic interest
payments over the life of the loan. The various types of Bonds are as
follows:

Zero Coupon Bond: Bond issued at a discount and repaid at a face

value. No periodic interest is paid. The difference between the issue
price and redemption price represents the return to the holder. The
buyer of these bonds receives only one payment, at the maturity of
the bond.

Convertible Bond: A bond giving the investor the option to convert

the bond into equity at a fixed conversion price.

Treasury Bills: Short-term (up to one year) bearer discount security

issued by government as a means of financing their cash
requirements.

35
4.2.1 Equity Investment

Why should one invest in equities in particular?

When you buy a share of a company you become a shareholder in that

company. Shares are also known as Equities. Equities have the potential to
increase in value over time. It also provides your portfolio with the growth
necessary to reach your long term investment goals. Research studies have
proved that the equities have outperformed most other forms of
investments in the long term. This may be illustrated with the help of
following examples:

a) Over a 15 year period between 1990 to 2005, Nifty has given an

annualised return of 17%.

b) Mr. Raju invests in Nifty on January 1, 2000 (index value 1592.90).

The Nifty value as of end December 2005 was 2836.55. Holding this
investment over this period Jan 2000 to Dec 2005 he gets a return of
78.07%. Investment in shares of ONGC Ltd for the same period
gave a return of 465.86%, SBI 301.17% and Reliance 281.42%.

Therefore,

§ Equities are considered the most challenging and the rewarding,

when compared to other investment options.
§ Research studies have proved that investme nts in some shares with
a longer tenure of investment have yielded far superior returns than
any other investment.

However, this does not mean all equity investments would guarantee similar
high returns. Equities are high risk investments. One needs to study them
carefully before investing.

What has been the average return on Equities in India?

Since 1990 till date, Indian stock market has returned about 17% to
investors on an average in terms of increase in share prices or capital
appreciation annually. Besides that on average stocks have paid 1.5%
dividend annually. Dividend is a percentage of the face value of a share that
a company returns to its shareholders from its annual profits. Compared to

36
most other forms of investments, investing in equity shares offers the
highest rate of return, if invested over a longer duration.

Which are the factors that influence the price of a stock?

Broadly there are two factors: (1) stock specific and (2) market specific. The
stock-specific factor is related to people’s expectations about the company,
its future earnings capacity, financial health and management, level of
technology and marketing skills.

The market specific factor is influenced by the investor’s sentiment towards

the stock market as a whole. This factor depends on the environment rather
than the performance of any particular company. Events favourable to an
economy, political or regulatory environment like high economic growth,
friendly budget, stable government etc. can fuel euphoria in the investors,
resulting in a boom in the market. On the other hand, unfavourable events
like war, economic crisis, communal riots, minority government etc. depress
the market irrespective of certain companies performing well. However, the
effect of market-specific factor is generally short-term. Despite ups and
downs, price of a stock in the long run gets stabilized based on the stock-
specific factors. Therefore, a prudent advice to all investors is to analyse and
invest and not speculate in shares.

What is meant by the terms Growth Stock / Value Stock?

Growth Stocks :

In the investment world we come across terms such as Growth stocks, Value
stocks etc. Companies whose potential for growth in sales and earnings are
excellent, are growing faster than other companies in the market or other
stocks in the same industry are called the Growth Stocks. These companies
usually pay little or no dividends and instead prefer to reinvest their profits
in their business for further expansions.

Value Stocks:

The task here is to look for stocks that have been overlooked by other
investors and which may have a ‘hidden value’. These companies may have
been beaten down in price because of some bad event, or may be in an
industry that's not fancied by most investors. However, even a company
that has seen its stock price decline still has assets to its name - buildings,
real estate, inventories, subsidiaries, and so on. Many of these assets still
have value, yet that value may not be reflected in the stock's price. Value

37
investors look to buy stocks that are undervalued, and then hold those
stocks until the rest of the market realizes the real value of the company's
assets. The value investors tend to purchase a company's stock usually
based on relationships between the current market price of the company
and certain business fundamentals. They like P/E ratio being below a certain
absolute limit; dividend yields above a certain absolute limit; Total sales at a
certain level relative to the company's market capitalization, or market value
etc.

How can one acquire equity shares?

You may subscribe to issues made by corporates in the primary market. In

the primary market, resources are mobilised by the corporates through fresh
public issues (IPOs) or through private placements. Alternately, you may
purchase shares from the secondary market. To buy and sell securities you
should approach a SEBI registered trading member (broker) of a recognized
stock exchange.

What is Bid and Ask price?

The ‘Bid’ is the buyer’s price. It is this price that you need to know when you
have to sell a stock. Bid is the rate/price at which there is a ready buyer for
the stock, which you intend to sell.

The ‘Ask’ (or offer) is what you need to know when you're buying i.e. this is
the rate/ price at which there is seller ready to sell his stock. The seller will
sell his stock if he gets the quoted “Ask’ price.

If an investor looks at a computer screen for a quote on the stock of say

XYZ Ltd, it might look something like this:

Bid (Buy side) Ask (Se ll side)

______________________________________________________
Qty. Price (Rs.) Qty. Price (Rs.)
_____________________________________________________________
1000 50.25 50.35 2000
500 50.10 50.40 1000
550 50.05 50.50 1500
2500 50.00 50.55 3000
1300 49.85 50.65 1450
_____________________________________________________________
Total 5850 8950
_____________________________________________________________

38
Here, on the left-hand side after the Bid quantity and price, whereas on the
right hand side we find the Ask quantity and prices. The best Buy (Bid) order
is the order with the highest price and therefore sits on the first line of the
Bid side (1000 shares @ Rs. 50.25). The best Sell (Ask) order is the order
with the lowest sell price (2000 shares @ Rs. 50.35). The difference in the
price of the best bid and ask is called as the Bid-Ask spread and often is an
indicator of liquidity in a stock. The narrower the difference the more liquid
or highly traded is the stock.

What is a Portfolio?

A Portfolio is a combination of different investment assets mixed and

matched for the purpose of achieving an investor's goal(s). Items that are
considered a part of your portfolio can include any asset you own-from
shares, debentures, bonds, mutual fund units to items such as gold, art and
even real estate etc. However, for most investors a portfolio has come to
signify an investment in financial instruments like shares, debentures, fixed
deposits, mutual fund units.

What is Diversification?

It is a risk management technique that mixes a wide variety of investments

within a portfolio. It is designed to minimize the impact of any one security
on overall portfolio performance. Diversification is possibly the best way to
reduce the risk in a portfolio.

What are the advantages of having a diversified portfolio?

A good investment portfolio is a mix of a wide range of asset class. Different

securities perform differently at any point in time, so with a mix of asset
types, your entire portfolio does not suffer the impact of a decline of any
one security. When your stocks go down, you may still have the stability of
the bonds in your portfolio. There have been all sorts of academic studies
and formulas that demonstrate why diversification is important, but it's
really just the simple practice of "not putting all your eggs in one basket." If
you spread your investments across various types of assets and markets,
you'll reduce the risk of your entire portfolio getting affected by the adverse
returns of any single asset class.

39
4.2.2. Debt Investment

What is a ‘Debt Instrument’?

Debt instrument represents a contract whereby one party lends money to

another on pre-determined terms with regards to rate and periodicity of
interest, repayment of principal amount by the borrower to the lender.

In Indian securities markets, the term ‘bond’ is used for debt instruments
issued by the Central and State governments and public sector organizations
and the term ‘debenture’ is used for instruments issued by private corporate
sector.

What are the features of debt instruments?

Each debt instrument has three features: Maturity, coupon and principal.

Maturity: Maturity of a bond refers to the date, on which the bond

matures, which is the date on which the borrower has agreed to
repay the principal. Term-to-Maturity refers to the number of years
remaining for the bond to mature. The Term-to-Maturity changes
everyday, from date of issue of the bond until its maturity. The term
to maturity of a bond can be calculated on any date, as the distance
between such a date and the date of maturity. It is also called the
term or the tenure of the bond.

Coupon: Coupon refers to the periodic interest payments that are

made by the borrower (who is also the issuer of the bond) to the
lender (the subscriber of the bond). Coupon rate is the rate at which
interest is paid, and is usually represented as a percentage of the par
value of a bond.

Principal: Principal is the amount that has been borrowed, and is also
called the par value or face value of the bond. The coupon is the
product of the principal and the coupon rate.

The name of the bond itself conveys the key features of a bond. For
example, a GS CG2008 11.40% bond refers to a Central Government bond
maturing in the year 2008 and paying a coupon of 11.40%. Since Central
Government bonds have a face value of Rs.100 and normally pay coupon
semi-annually, this bond will pay Rs. 5.70 as six- monthly coupon, until
maturity.

40
What is meant by ‘Interest’ payable by a debenture or a bond?

Interest is the amount paid by the borrower (the company) to the lender
(the debenture-holder) for borrowing the amount for a specific period of
time. The interest may be paid annual, semi-annually, quarterly or monthly
and is paid usually on the face value (the value printed on the bond
certificate) of the bond.

What are the Segments in the Debt Market in India?

There are three main segments in the debt markets in India, viz., (1)
Government Securities, (2) Public Sector Units (PSU) bonds, and (3)
Corporate securities.

The market for Government Securities comprises the Centre, State and
State-sponsored securities. In the recent past, local bodies such as
municipalities have also begun to tap the debt markets for funds. Some of
the PSU bonds are tax free, while most bonds including government
securities are not tax-free. Corporate bond markets comprise of commercial
paper and bonds. These bonds typically are structured to suit the
requirements of investors and the issuing corporate, and include a variety of
tailor- made features with respect to interest payments and redemption.

Who are the Participants in the Debt Market?

Given the large size of the trades, Debt market is predominantly a wholesale
market, with dominant institutional investor participation. The investors in
the debt markets are mainly banks, financial institutions, mutual funds,
provident funds, insurance companies and corporates.

Are bonds rated for their credit quality?

Most Bond/Debenture issues are rated by specialised credit rating agencies.

Credit rating agencies in India are CRISIL, CARE, ICRA and Fitch. The yield
on a bond varies inversely with its credit (safety) rating. The safer the
instrument, the lower is the rate of interest offered.

How can one acquire securities in the debt market?

You may subscribe to issues made by the government/corporates in the

primary market. Alternatively, you may purchase the same from the
secondary market through the stock exchanges.

41
5. DERIVATIVES

What are Types of Derivatives?

Forwards: A forward contract is a customized contract between two

entities, where settlement takes place on a specific date in the future at
today’s pre-agreed price.

Futures: A futures contract is an agreement between two parties to buy or

sell an asset at a certain time in the future at a certain price. Futures
contracts are special types of forward contracts in the sense that the former
are standardized exchange-traded contracts, such as futures of the Nifty
index.

Options: An Option is a contract which gives the right, but not an

obligation, to buy or sell the underlying at a stated date and at a stated
price. While a buyer of an option pays the premium and buys the right to
exercise his option, the writer of an option is the one who receives the
option premium and therefore obliged to sell/buy the asset if the buyer
exercises it on him. Options are of two types - Calls and Puts options:

‘Calls’ give the buyer the right but not the obligation to buy a given
quantity of the underlying asset, at a given price on or before a given
future date.

‘Puts’ give the buyer the right, but not the obligation to sell a given
quantity of underlying asset at a given price on or before a given
future date.

Presently, at NSE futures and options are traded on the Nifty, CNX IT, BANK
Nifty and 116 single stocks.

Warrants: Options generally have lives of up to one year. The majority of

options traded on exchanges have maximum maturity of nine months.
Longer dated options are called Warrants and are generally traded over-the-
counter.

What is an ‘Option Premium’?

At the time of buying an option contract, the buyer has to pay premium. The
premium is the price for acquiring the right to buy or sell. It is price paid by
the option buyer to the option seller for acquiring the right to buy or sell.
Option premiums are always paid upfront.

42
What is ‘Commodity Exchange’?

A Commodity Exchange is an association, or a company of any other body

corporate organizing futures trading in commodities. In a wider sense, it is
taken to include any organized market place where trade is routed through
one mechanism, allowing effective competition among buyers and among
sellers – this would include auction-type exchanges, but not wholesale
markets, where trade is localized, but effectively takes place through many
non-related individual transactions between different permutations of buyers
and sellers.

What is meant by ‘Commodity’?

FCRA Forward Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1952 defines “goods” as “every

kind of movable property other than actionable claims, money and
securities”. Futures’ trading is organized in such goods or commodities as
are permitted by the Central Government. At present, all goods and
products of agricultural (including plantation), mineral and fossil origin are
allowed for futures trading under the auspices of the commodity exchanges
recognized under the FCRA.

What is Commodity derivatives market?

Commodity derivatives market trade contracts for which the underlying

asset is commodity. It can be an agricultural commodity like wheat,
soybeans, rapeseed, cotton, etc or precious metals like gold, silver, etc.

What is the difference between Commodity and Financial

derivatives?

The basic concept of a derivative contract remains the same whether the
underlying happens to be a commodity or a financial asset. However there
are some features which are very peculiar to commodity derivative markets.
In the case of financial derivatives, most of these contracts are cash settled.
Even in the case of physical settlement, financial assets are not bulky and
do not need special facility for storage. Due to the bulky nature of the
underlying assets, physical settlement in commodity derivatives creates the
need for warehousing. Similarly, the concept of varying quality of asset does
not really exist as far as financial underlyings are concerned. However in the
case of commodities, the quality of the asset underlying a contract can vary
at times.

43
6. DEPOSITORY
How is a depository similar to a bank?

A Depository can be compared with a bank, which holds the funds for
depositors. An analogy between a bank and a depository may be drawn as
follows:

BANK DEPOSITORY
Holds funds in an account Hold securities in an account
Transfers funds between Transfers securities between
accounts on the instruction of accounts on the instruction of the
the account holder account holder.
Facilitates transfers without Facilitates transfers of ownership
having to handle money without having to handle securities.
Facilitates safekeeping of Facilitates safekeeping of shares.
money

Which are the depositories in India?

There are two depositories in India which provide dematerialization of

securities. The National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL) and Central
Securities Depository Limited (CSDL).

What are the benefits of participation in a depository?

The benefits of participation in a depository are:

§ Immediate transfer of securities

§ No stamp duty on transfer of securities

§ Elimination of risks associated with physical certificates such as bad

delivery, fake securities, etc.

§ Reduction in paperwork involved in transfer of securities

§ Reduction in transaction cost

44
 § Ease of nomination facility

§ Change in address recorded with DP gets registered electronically

with all companies in which investor holds securities eliminating the
need to correspond with each of them separately

§ Transmission of securities is done directly by the DP eliminating

correspondence with companies

§ Convenient method of consolidation of folios/accounts

§ Holding investments in equity, debt instruments and Government

securities in a single account; automatic credit into demat account, of
shares, arising out of split/consolidation/merger etc.

Who is a Depository Participant (DP)?

The Depository provides its services to investors through its agents called
depository participants (DPs). These agents are appointed by the depository
with the approval of SEBI. According to SEBI regulations, amongst others,
three categories of entities, i.e. Banks, Financial Institutions and SEBI
registered trading members can become DPs.

Does one need to keep any minimum balance of securities in

his account with his DP?

No. The depository has not prescribed any minimum balance. You can have
zero balance in your account.

What is an ISIN?

ISIN (International Securities Identification Number) is a unique

identification number for a security.

What is a Custodian?

A Custodian is basically an organisation, which helps register and safeguard

the securities of its clients.

Besides safeguarding securities, a custodian also keeps track of corporate

actions on behalf of its clients:

45
 § Maintaining a client’s securities account
§ Collecting the benefits or rights accruing to the client in respect of
securities
§ Keeping the client informed of the actions taken or to be taken by the
issue of securities, having a bearing on the benefits or rights accruing
to the client.

How can one convert physical holding into electronic holding

i.e. how can one dematerialise securities?

In order to dematerialise physical securities one has to fill in a Demat

Request Form (DRF) which is available with the DP and submit the same
along with physical certificates one wishes to dematerialise. Separate DRF
has to be filled for each ISIN number.

Can odd lot shares be dematerialised?

Yes, odd lot share certificates can also be dematerialised.

Do dematerialised shares have distinctive numbers?

Dematerialised shares do not have any distinctive numbers. These shares

are fungible, which means that all the holdings of a particular security will
be identical and interchangeable.

Can electronic holdings be converted into Physical

certificates?

Yes. The process is called Rematerialisation. If one wishes to get back your
securities in the physical form one has to fill in the Remat Request Form
(RRF) and request your DP for rematerialisation of the balances in your
securities account.

Can one dematerialise his debt instruments, mutual fund

units, government securities in his demat account?

Yes. You can dematerialise and hold all such investments in a single demat
account.

46
7. MUTUAL FUNDS

What is the Regulatory Body for Mutual Funds?

Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is the regulatory body for all the
mutual funds. All the mutual funds must get registered with SEBI.

What are the benefits of investing in Mutual Funds?

There are several benefits from investing in a Mutual Fund:

Small investments: Mutual funds help you to reap the benefit of

returns by a portfolio spread across a wide spectrum of companies
with small investments.

Professional Fund Management: Professionals having

considerable expertise, experience and resources manage the pool of
money collected by a mutual fund. They thoroughly analyse the
markets and economy to pick good investment opportunities.

Spreading Risk: An investor with limited funds might be able to

invest in only one or two stocks/bonds, thus increasing his or her
risk. However, a mutual fund will spread its risk by investing a
number of sound stocks or bonds. A fund normally invests in
companies across a wide range of industries, so the risk is
diversified.

Transparency: Mutual Funds regularly provide investors with

information on the value of their investments. Mutual Funds also
provide complete portfolio disclosure of the investments made by
various schemes and also the proportion invested in each asset type.

Choice: The large amount of Mutual Funds offer the investor a wide
variety to choose from. An investor can pick up a scheme depending
upon his risk/ return profile.

Regulations: All the mutual funds are registered with SEBI and they
function within the provisions of strict regulation designed to protect
the interests of the investor.

47
What is NAV?

NAV or Net Asset Value of the fund is the cumulative market value of the
assets of the fund net of its liabilities. NAV per unit is simply the net value of
assets divided by the number of units outstanding. Buying and selling into
funds is done on the basis of NAV-related prices.

The NAV of a mutual fund are required to be published in newspapers. The

NAV of an open end scheme should be disclosed on a daily basis and the
NAV of a close end scheme should be disclosed at least on a weekly basis

What is Entry/Exit Load?

A Load is a charge, which the mutual fund may collect on entry and/or exit
from a fund. A load is levied to cover the up-front cost incurred by the
mutual fund for selling the fund. It also covers one time processing costs.
Some funds do not charge any entry or exit load. These funds are referred
to as ‘No Load Fund’. Funds usually charge an entry load ranging between
1.00% and 2.00%. Exit loads vary between 0.25% and 2.00%.

For e.g. Let us assume an investor invests Rs. 10,000/- and the current NAV
is Rs.13/-. If the entry load levied is 1.00%, the price at which the investor
invests is Rs.13.13 per unit. The investor receives 10000/13.13 = 761.6146
units. (Note that units are allotted to an investor based on the amount
invested and not on the basis of no. of units purchased).

Let us now assume that the same investor decides to redeem his 761.6146
units. Let us also assume that the NAV is Rs 15/- and the exit load is
0.50%. Therefore the redemption price per unit works out to Rs. 14.925.
The investor therefore receives 761.6146 x 14.925 = Rs.11367.10.

Are there any risks involved in investing in Mutual Funds?

Mutual Funds do not provide assured returns. Their returns are linked to
their performance. They invest in shares, debentures, bonds etc. All these
investments involve an element of risk. The unit value may vary depending
upon the performance of the company and if a company defaults in payment
of interest/principal on their debentures/bonds the performance of the fund
may get affected. Besides incase there is a sudden downturn in an industry
or the government comes up with new a regulation which affects a particular
industry or company the fund can again be adversely affected. All these
factors influence the performance of Mutual Funds.

48
Some of the Risk to whic h Mutual Funds are exposed to is given below:

Market risk

If the overall stock or bond markets fall on account of overall

economic factors, the value of stock or bond holdings in the fund's
portfolio can drop, thereby impacting the fund performance.

Non-market risk

Bad news about an individual company can pull down its stock price,
which can negatively affect fund holdings. This risk can be reduced
by having a diversified portfolio that consists of a wide variety of
stocks drawn from different industries.

Interest rate risk

Bond prices and interest rates move in opposite directions. When

interest rates rise, bond prices fall and this decline in underlying
securities affects the fund negatively.

Credit risk

Bonds are debt obligations. So when the funds invest in corporate

bonds, they run the risk of the corporate defaulting on their interest
and principal payment obligations and when that risk crystallizes, it
leads to a fall in the value of the bond causing the NAV of the fund to
take a beating.

What are the different types of Mutual funds?

Mutual funds are classified in the following manner:

(a) On the basis of Objective

Equity Funds/ Growth Funds

Funds that invest in equity shares are called equity funds. They carry
the principal objective of capital appreciation of the investment over
the medium to long-term. They are best suited for investors who are
seeking capital appreciation. There are different types of equity funds
such as Diversified funds, Sector specific funds and Index based
funds.

49
 Diversified funds

These funds invest in companies spread across sectors. These

funds are generally meant for risk-averse investors who want
a diversified portfolio across sectors.

Sector funds

These funds invest primarily in equity shares of companies in

a particular business sector or industry. These funds are
targeted at investors who are bullish or fancy the prospects of
a particular sector.

Index funds

These funds invest in the same pattern as popular market

indices like S&P CNX Nifty or CNX Midcap 200. The money
collected from the investors is invested only in the stocks,
which represent the index. For e.g. a Nifty index fund will
invest only in the Nifty 50 stocks. The objective of such funds
is not to beat the market but to give a return equivalent to
the market returns.

Tax Saving Funds

These funds offer tax benefits to investors under the Income Tax Act.
Opportunities provided under this scheme are in the form of tax
rebates under the Income Tax act.

Debt/Income Funds

These funds invest predominantly in high-rated fixed-income -bearing

instruments like bonds, debentures, government securities,
commercial paper and other money market instruments. They are
best suited for the medium to long-term investors who are averse to
risk and seek capital preservation. They provide a regular income to
the investor.

Liquid Funds/Money Market Funds

These funds invest in highly liquid money market instruments. The

period of investment could be as short as a day. They provide easy
liquidity. They have emerged as an alternative for savings and short-
term fixed deposit accounts with comparatively higher returns. These
funds are ideal for corporates, institutional investors and business
houses that invest their funds for very short periods.

50
Gilt Funds

These funds invest in Central and State Government securities. Since

they are Government backed bonds they give a secured return and
also ensure safety of the principal amount. They are best suited for
the medium to long-term investors who are averse to risk.

Balanced Funds

These funds invest both in equity shares and fixed-income -bearing

instruments (debt) in some proportion. They provide a steady return
and reduce the volatility of the fund while providing some upside for
capital appreciation. They are ideal for medium to long-term
investors who are willing to take moderate risks.

b) On the basis of Flexibility

Open-ended Funds

These funds do not have a fixed date of redemption. Generally they

are open for subscription and redemption throughout the year. Their
prices are linked to the daily net asset value (NAV). From the
investors' perspective, they are much more liquid than closed-ended
funds.
Close-ended Funds

These funds are open initially for entry during the Initial Public
Offering (IPO) and thereafter closed for entry as well as exit. These
funds have a fixed date of redemption. One of the characteristics of
the close-ended schemes is that they are generally traded at a
discount to NAV; but the discount narrows as maturity nears. These
funds are open for subscription only once and can be redeemed only
on the fixed date of redemption. The units of these funds are listed
on stock exchanges (with certain exceptions), are tradable and the
subscribers to the fund would be able to exit from the fund at any
time through the secondary market.

51
What are the different investment plans that Mutual Funds
offer?

The term ’investment plans’ generally refers to the services that the funds
provide to investors offering different ways to invest or reinvest. The
different investment plans are an important consideration in the investment
decision, because they determine the flexibility available to the investor.
Some of the investment plans offered by mutual funds in India are:

Growth Plan and Dividend Plan

A growth plan is a plan under a scheme wherein the returns from

investments are reinvested and very few income distributions, if any,
are made. The investor thus only realizes capital appreciation on the
investment. Under the dividend plan, income is distributed from time
to time. This plan is ideal to those investors requiring regular income.

Dividend Reinvestment Plan

Dividend plans of schemes carry an additional option for

reinvestment of income distribution. This is referred to as the
dividend reinvestment plan. Under this plan, dividends declared by a
fund are reinvested in the scheme on behalf of the investor, thus
increasing the number of units held by the investors.

What are the rights that are available to a Mutual Fund holder
in India?

As per SEBI Regulations on Mutual Funds, an investor is entitled to:

1. Receive Unit certificates or statements of accounts confirming

your title within 6 weeks from the date your request for a unit
certificate is received by the Mutual Fund.
2. Receive information about the investment policies, investment
objectives, financial position and general affairs of the scheme.
3. Receive dividend within 42 days of their declaration and receive
the redemption or repurchase proceeds within 10 days from the
date of redemption or repurchase.
4. The trustees shall be bound to make such disclosures to the unit
holders as are essential in order to keep them informed about any
information, which may have an adverse bearing on their
investments.

52
 5. 75% of the unit holders with the prior approval of SEBI can
terminate the AMC of the fund.
6. 75% of the unit holders can pass a resolution to wind-up the
scheme.
7. An investor can send complaints to SEBI, who will take up the
matter with the concerned Mutual Funds and follow up with them
till they are resolved.

What is a Fund Offer document?

A Fund Offer document is a document that offers you all the information you
could possibly need about a particular scheme and the fund launching that
scheme. That way, before you put in your money, you're well aware of the
risks etc involved. This has to be designed in accordance with the guidelines
stipulated by SEBI and the prospectus must disclose details about:

§ Investment objectives

§ Risk factors and special considerations

§ Summary of expenses

§ Constitution of the fund

§ Guidelines on how to invest

§ Organization and capital structure

§ Tax provisions related to transactions

§ Financial information

What is Active Fund Management?

When investment decisions of the fund are at the discretion of a fund

manager(s) and he or she decides which company, instrument or class of
assets the fund should invest in based on research, analysis, market news
etc. such a fund is called as an actively managed fund. The fund buys and
sells securities actively based on changed perceptions of investment from
time to time. Based on the classifications of shares with different
characteristics, ‘active’ investment managers construct different portfolio.
Two basic investment styles prevalent among the mutual funds are Growth
Investing and Value Investing:

53
 § Growth Investing Style

The primary objective of equity investment is to obtain

capital appreciation. A growth manager looks for
companies that are expected to give above average
earnings growth, where the manager feels that the
earning prospects and therefore the stock prices in
future will be even higher. Identifying such growth
sectors is the challenge before the growth investment
manager.

§ Value investment Style

A Value Manager looks to buy companies that they

believe are currently undervalued in the market, but
whose worth they estimate will be recognized in the
market valuations eventually.

What is Passive Fund Management?

When an investor invests in an actively managed mutual fund, he or she

leaves the decision of investing to the fund manager. The fund manager is
the decision- maker as to which company or instrument to invest in.
Sometimes such decisions may be right, rewarding the investor handsomely.
However, chances are that the decisions might go wrong or may not be right
all the time which can lead to substantial losses for the investor. There are
mutual funds that offer Index funds whose objective is to equal the return
given by a select market index. Such funds follow a passive investment
style. They do not analyse companies, markets, economic factors and then
narrow down on stocks to invest in. Instead they prefer to invest in a
portfolio of stocks that reflect a market index, such as the Nifty index. The
returns generated by the index are the returns given by the fund. No
attempt is made to try and beat the index. Research has shown that most
fund managers are unable to constantly beat the market index year after
year. Also it is not possible to identify which fund will beat the market index.
Therefore, there is an element of going wrong in selecting a fund to invest
in. This has lead to a huge interest in passively managed funds such as
Index Funds where the choice of investments is not left to the discretion of
the fund manager. Index Funds hold a diversified basket of securities which
represents the index while at the same time since there is not much active
turnover of the portfolio the cost of managing the fund also remains low.
This gives a dual advantage to the investor of having a diversified portfolio

54
while at the same time having low expenses in fund. There are various
passively managed funds in India today some of them are:

Principal Index Fund, an index fund scheme on S&P CNX Nifty

launched by Principal Mutual Fund in July 1999.

UTI Nifty Fund launched by Unit Trust of India in March 2000.

Franklin India Index Fund launched by Franklin Templeton Mutual

Fund in June 2000.

Franklin India Index Tax Fund launched by Franklin Templeton

Mutual Fund in February 2001.

Magnum Index Fund launched by SBI Mutual Fund in December

2001.

IL&FS Index Fund launched by IL&FS Mutual Fund in February 2002.

Prudential ICICI Index Fund launched by Prudential ICICI Mutual

Fund in February 2002.

HDFC Index Fund-Nifty Plan launched by HDFC Mutual Fund in July

2002.

Birla Index Fund launched by Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund in

September 2002.

LIC Index Fund-Nifty Plan launched by LIC Mutual Fund in November

2002.

Tata Index Fund launched by Tata TD Waterhouse Mutual Fund in

February 2003.

ING Vysya Nifty Plus Fund launched by ING Vysya Mutual Fund in
January 2004.

Canindex Fund launched by Canbank Mutual Fund in September 2004

55
What is an ETF?

Think of an exchange-traded fund as a mutual fund that trades like a stock.

Just like an index fund, an ETF represents a basket of stocks that reflect an
index such as the Nifty. An ETF, however, isn't a mutual fund; it trades just
like any other company on a stock exchange. Unlike a mutual fund that has
its net-asset value (NAV) calculated at the end of each trading day, an ETF's
price changes throughout the day, fluctuating with supply and demand. It is
important to remember that while ETFs attempt to replicate the return on
indexes, there is no guarantee that they will do so exactly.

By owning an ETF, you get the diversification of an index fund plus the
flexibility of a stock. Because, ETFs trade like stocks, you can short sell
them, buy them on margin and purchase as little as one share. Another
advantage is that the expense ratios of most ETFs are lower than that of the
average mutual fund. When buying and selling ETFs, you pay your broker
the same commission that you'd pay on any regular trade.

There are various ETFs available in India, such as:

NIFTY BeES: An Exchange Traded Fund launched by Benchmark

Mutual Fund in January 2002.

Junior BeES: An Exchange Traded Fund on CNX Nifty Junior,

launched by Benchmark Mutual Fund in February 2003.

SUNDER: An Exchange Traded Fund launched by UTI in July 2003.

Liquid BeES: An Exchange Traded Fund launched by Benchmark

Mutual Fund in July 2003.

Bank BeES: An Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) launched by Benchmark

Mutual Fund in May 2004.

56
8. MISCELLANEOUS

8.1 Corporate Actions

What are Corporate Actions?

Corporate actions tend to have a bearing on the price of a security. When a

company announces a corporate action, it is initiating a process that will
bring actual change to its securities either in terms of number of shares
increasing in the hands on the shareholders or a change to the face value of
the security or receiving shares of a new company by the shareholders as in
the case of merger or acquisition etc. By understanding these different types
of processes and their effects, an investor can have a clearer picture of what
a corporate action indicates about a company's financial affairs and how that
action will influence the company's share price and performance.

Corporate actions are typically agreed upon by a company's Board of

Directors and authorized by the shareholders. Some examples are
dividends, stock splits, rights issues, bonus issues etc.

What is meant by ‘Dividend’ declared by companies?

Returns received by investors in equities come in two forms a) growth in the

value (market price) of the share and b) dividends. Dividend is distribution
of part of a company's earnings to shareholders, usually twice a year in the
form of a final dividend and an interim dividend. Dividend is therefore a
source of income for the shareholder. Normally, the dividend is expressed
on a 'per share' basis, for instance – Rs. 3 per share. This makes it easy to
see how much of the company's profits are being paid out, and how much
are being retained by the company to plough back into the business. So a
company that has earnings per share in the year of Rs. 6 and pays out Rs. 3
per share as a dividend is passing half of its profits on to shareholders and
retaining the other half. Directors of a company have discretion as to how
much of a dividend to declare or whether they should pay any dividend at
all.

57
What is meant by Dividend yield?

Dividend yield gives the relationship between the current price of a stock
and the dividend paid by its’ issuing company during the last 12 months. It
is calculated by aggregating past year's dividend and dividing it by the
current stock price.

Example:
ABC Co.
Share price: Rs. 360
Annual dividend: Rs. 10
Dividend yield: 2.77% (10/360)

Historically, a higher dividend yield has been considered to be desirable

among investors. A high dividend yield is considered to be evidence that a
stock is underpriced, whereas a low dividend yield is considered evidence
that the stock is overpriced. A note of caution here though. There have been
companies in the past which had a record of high dividend yield, only to go
bust in later years. Dividend yield therefore can be only one of the factors in
determining future performance of a company.

What is a Stock Split?

A stock split is a corporate action which splits the existing shares of a

particular face value into smaller denominations so that the number of
shares increase, however, the market capitalization or the value of shares
held by the investors post split remains the same as that before the split.
For e.g. If a company has issued 1,00,00,000 shares with a face value of Rs.
10 and the current market price being Rs. 100, a 2-for-1 stock split would
reduce the face value of the shares to 5 and increase the number of the
company’s outstanding shares to 2,00,00,000, (1,00,00,000*(10/5)).
Consequently, the share price would also halve to Rs. 50 so that the market
capitalization or the value shares held by an investor remains unchanged. It
is the same thing as exchanging a Rs. 100 note for two Rs. 50 notes; the
value remains the same .

Let us see the impact of this on the share holder: - Let's say company ABC
is trading at Rs. 40 and has 100 million shares issued, which gives it a
market capitalization of Rs. 4000 million (Rs. 40 x 100 million shares). An
investor holds 400 shares of the company valued at Rs. 16,000. The
company then decides to implement a 4-for-1 stock split (i.e. a shareholder
holding 1 share, will now hold 4 shares). For each share shareholders
currently own, they receive three additional shares. The investor will
therefore hold 1600 shares. So the investor gains 3 additional shares for

58
each share held. But this does not impact the value of the shares held by
the investor since post split, the price of the stock is also split by 25%
(1/4th), from Rs. 40 to Rs.10, therefore the investor continues to hold Rs.
16,000 worth of shares. Notice that the market capitalization stays the same
- it has increased the amount of stocks outstanding to 400 million while
simultaneously reducing the stock price by 25% to Rs. 10 for a capitalization
of Rs. 4000 million. The true value of the company hasn't changed.

An easy way to determine the new stock price is to divide the previous stock
price by the split ratio. In the case of our example, divide Rs. 40 by 4 and
we get the new trading price of Rs. 10. If a stock were to split 3-for-2, we'd
do the same thing: 40/(3/2) = 40/1.5 = Rs. 26.60.

Pre-Split Post-Split
2-for-1 Split

No. of shares 100 mill. 200 mill.

Share Price Rs. 40 Rs. 20
Market Cap. Rs. 4000 mill. Rs. 4000 mill.

4-for-1
No. of shares 100 mill. 400 mill.
Share Price Rs. 40 Rs. 10
Market Cap. Rs. 4000 mill. Rs. 4000 mill.

Why do companies announce Stock Split?

If the value of the stock doesn't change, what motivates a company to split
its stock? Though there are no theoretical reasons in financial literature to
indicate the need for a stock split, generally, there are mainly two important
reasons. As the price of a security gets higher and higher, some investors
may feel the price is too high for them to buy, or small investors may feel it
is unaffordable. Splitting the stock brings the share price down to a more
"attractive" level. In our earlier example to buy 1 share of company ABC you
need Rs. 40 pre-split, but after the stock split the same number of shares
can be bought for Rs.10, making it attractive for more investors to buy the
share. This leads us to the second reason. Splitting a stock may lead to
increase in the stock's liquidity, since more investors are able to afford the
share and the total outstanding shares of the company have also increased
in the market.

59
What is Buyback of Shares?

A buyback can be seen as a method for company to invest in itself by buying

shares from other investors in the market. Buybacks reduce the number of
shares outstanding in the market. Buy back is done by the company with
the purpose to improve the liquidity in its shares and enhance the
shareholders’ wealth. Under the SEBI (Buy Back of Securities) Regulation,
1998, a company is permitted to buy back its share from:

a) Existing shareholders on a proportionate basis through the offer

document.

b) Open market through stock exchanges using book building process.

c) Shareholders holding odd lot shares.

The company has to disclose the pre and post-buyback holding of the
promoters. To ensure completion of the buyback process speedily, the
regulations have stipulated time limit for each step. For example, in the
cases of purchases through stoc k exchanges, an offer for buy back should
not remain open for more than 30 days. The verification of shares received
in buy back has to be completed within 15 days of the closure of the offer.
The payments for accepted securities has to be made within 7 days of the
completion of verification and bought back shares have to be extinguished
within 7 days of the date of the payment.

8.2 Index

What is the Nifty index?

S&P CNX Nifty (Nifty), is a scientifically developed, 50 stock index, reflecting

accurately the market movement of the Indian markets. It comprises of
some of the largest and most liquid stocks traded on the NSE. It is
maintained by India Index Services & Products Ltd. (IISL), which is a joint
venture between NSE and CRISIL. The index has been co-branded by
Standard & Poor’s (S&P). Nifty is the barometer of the Indian markets.

60
8.3 Clearing & Settlement and Redressal

What is a Clearing Corporation?

A Clearing Corporation is a part of an exchange or a separate entity and

performs three functions, namely, it clears and settles all transactions, i.e.
completes the process of receiving and delivering shares/funds to the buyers
and sellers in the market, it provides financial guarantee for all transactions
executed on the exchange and provides risk management functions.
National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCCL), a 100% subsidiary of
NSE, performs the role of a Clearing Corporation for transactions executed
on the NSE.

What is Rolling Settlement?

Under rolling settlement all open positions at the end of the day mandatorily
result in payment/ delivery ‘n’ days later. Currently trades in rolling
settlement are settled on T+2 basis where T is the trade day. For example,
a trade executed on Monday is mandatorily settled by Wednesday
(considering two working days from the trade day). The funds and securities
pay-in and pay-out are carried out on T+2 days.

What is Pay-in and Pay-out?

Pay-in day is the day when the securities sold are delivered to the exchange
by the sellers and funds for the securities purchased are made available to
the exchange by the buyers.

Pay-out day is the day the securities purchased are delivered to the buyers
and the funds for the securities sold are given to the sellers by the
exchange.

At present the pay-in and pay-out happens on the 2nd working day after the
trade is executed on the stock exchange.

61
What is an Auction?

On account of non-delivery of securities by the trading member on the pay-

in day, the securities are put up for auction by the Exchange. This ensures
that the buying trading member receives the securities. The Exchange
purchases the requisite quantity in auction market and gives them to the
buying trading member.

What is a Book-closure/Record date?

Book closure and record date help a company determine exactly the
shareholders of a company as on a given date. Book closure refers to the
closing of the register of the names of investors in the records of a
company. Companies announce book closure dates from time to time. The
benefits of dividends, bonus issues, rights issue accrue to investors whose
name appears on the company's records as on a given date which is known
as the record date and is declared in advance by the company so that
buyers have enough time to buy the shares, get them registered in the
books of the company and become entitled for the benefits such as bonus,
rights, dividends etc. With the depositories now in place, the buyers need
not send shares physically to the companies for registration. This is taken
care by the depository since they have the records of investor holdings as
on a particular date electronically with them.

What is a No-delivery period?

Whenever a company announces a book closure or record date, the

exchange sets up a no-delivery period for that security. During this period
only trading is permitted in the security. However, these trades are settled
only after the no-delivery period is over. This is done to ensure that
investor's entitlement for the corporate benefit is clearly determined.

What is an Ex-dividend date?

The date on or after which a security begins trading without the dividend
included in the price, i.e. buyers of the shares will no longer be entitled for
the dividend which has been declared recently by the company, in case they
buy on or after the ex-dividend date.

62
What is an Ex-date?

The first day of the no-delivery period is the ex-date. If there is any
corporate benefits such as rights, bonus, dividend announced for which book
closure/record date is fixed, the buyer of the shares on or after the ex-date
will not be eligible for the benefits.

What recourses are available to investor/client for redressing

his grievances?

You can lodge complaint with the Investor Grievances Cell (IGC) of the
Exchange against brokers on certain trade disputes or non-receipt of
payment/securities. IGC takes up complaints in respect of trades executed
on the NSE, through the NSE trading member or SEBI registered sub-broker
of a NSE trading member and trades pertaining to companies traded on
NSE.

What is Arbitration?

Arbitration is an alternative dispute resolution mechanism provided by a

stock exchange for resolving disputes between the trading members and
their clients in respect of trades done on the exchange. If no amicable
settlement could be reached through the normal grievance redressal
mechanism of the stock exchange, then you can make application for
reference to Arbitration under the Bye-Laws of the concerned Stock
exchange.

What is an Investor Protection Fund?

Investor Protection Fund (IPF) is maintained by NSE to make good investor

claims, which may arise out of non-settlement of obligations by the trading
member, who has been declared a defaulter, in respect of trades executed
on the Exchange. The IPF is utilised to settle claims of such investors where
the trading member through whom the investor has dealt has been declared
a defaulter. Payments out of the IPF may include claims arising of non
payment/non receipt of securities by the investor from the trading member
who has been declared a defaulter. The maximum amount of claim payable
from the IPF to the investor (where the trading member through whom the
investor has dealt is declared a defaulter) is Rs. 10 lakh.

63
9. CONCEPTS & MODES OF ANALYSIS

What is Simple Interest?

Simple Interest: Simple Interest is the interest paid only on the principal
amount borrowed. No interest is paid on the interest accrued during the
term of the loan.

There are three components to calculate simple interest: principal, interest

rate and time.

Formula for calculating simple interest:

I = Prt
Where,
I = interest
P = principal
r = interest rate (per year)
t = time (in years or fraction of a year)

Example:
Mr. X borrowed Rs. 10,000 from the bank to purchase a household item. He
agreed to repay the amount in 8 months, plus simple interest at an interest
rate of 10% per annum (year).

If he repays the full amount of Rs. 10,000 in eight months, the interest
would be:
P = Rs. 10,000 r = 0.10 (10% per year) t = 8/12 (this denotes fraction of a
year)

Applying the above formula, interest would be:

I = Rs. 10,000*(0.10)*(8/12) = Rs. 667.

This is the Simple Interest on the Rs. 10,000 loan taken by Mr. X for 8
months.

If he repays the amount of Rs. 10,000 in fifteen months, the only change is
with time.

Therefore, his interest would be:

I = Rs. 10,000*(0.10)*(15/12) = Rs. 1,250

64
What is Compound Interest?

Compound Interest: Compound interest means that, the interest will

include interest calculated on interest. The interest accrued on a principal
amount is added back to the principal sum, and the whole amount is then
treated as new principal, for the calculation of the interest for the next
period.

For example, if an amount of Rs. 5,000 is invested for two years and the
interest rate is 10%, compounded yearly:

• At the end of the first year the interest would be (Rs. 5,000 * 0.10)
or Rs. 500.

• In the second year the interest rate of 10% will applied not only to
Rs. 5,000 but also to the Rs. 500 interest of the first year. Thus, in
the second year the interest would be (0.10 * Rs. 5,500) or Rs. 550.

For any loan or borrowing unless simple interest is stated, one should
always assume interest is compounded. When compound interest is used we
must always know how often the interest rate is calculated each year.
Generally the interest rate is quoted annually. E.g. 10% per annum.

Compound interest may involve calculations for more than once a year, each
using a new principal, i.e. (interest + principal). The first term we must
understand in dealing with compound interest is conversion period.
Conversion period refers to how often the interest is calculated over the
term of the loan or investment. It must be determined for each year or
fraction of a year.

E.g.: If the interest rate is compounded semiannually, then the number of

conversion periods per year would be two. If the loan or deposit was for five
years, then the number of conversion periods would be ten.

65
Formula for calculating Compound Interest:

n
C = P (1+i)

Where
C = amount
P = principal
i = Interest rate per conversion period
n = total number of conversion periods

Example:

Mr. X invested Rs. 10,000 for five years at an interest rate of 7.5%
compounded quarterly

P = Rs. 10,000
i = 0.075 / 4, or 0.01875
n = 4 * 5, or 20, conversion periods over the five years

Therefore, the amount, C, is:

C = Rs. 10,000(1 + 0.01875)^20
= Rs 10,000 x 1.449948
= Rs 14,499.48

So at the end of five years Mr. X would earn Rs. 4,499.48 (Rs.14,499.48 –
Rs.10,000) as interest. This is also called as Compounding.

Compounding plays a very important role in investment since earning a

simple interest and earning an interest on interest makes the amount
received at the end of the period for the two cases significantly different.

If Mr. X had invested this amount for five years at the same interest rate
offering the simple interest option, then the amount that he would earn is
calculated by applying the following formula:

S = P (1 + rt),
P = 10,000
r = 0.075
t=5

Thus, S = Rs. 10,000[1+0.075(5)]

= Rs. 13,750

Here, the simple interest earned is Rs. 3,750.

66
A comparison of the interest amounts calculated under both the method
indicates that Mr. X would have earned Rs. 749.48 (Rs.4,499.48 – Rs.
3,750) or nearly 20% more under the compound interest method than
under the simple interest method.

Simply put, compounding refers to the re-investment of income at the same

rate of return to constantly grow the principal amount, year after year.
Should one care too much whether the rate of return is 5% or 15%? The
fact is that with compounding, the higher the rate of return, more is the
income which keeps getting added back to the principal regularly generating
higher rates of return year after year.

The table below shows you how a single investment of Rs 10,000 will grow
at various rates of return with compounding. 5% is what you might get by
leaving your money in a savings bank account, 10% is typically the rate of
return you could expect from a one-year company fixed deposit, 15% - 20%
or more is what you might get if you prudently invest in mutual funds or
equity shares.

The Impact of Power of Compounding:

The impact of the power of compounding with different rates of return and
different time periods:

At end of Year 5% 10% 15% 20%

1 Rs 10500 Rs 11000 Rs 11500 Rs 12000
5 Rs 12800 Rs 16100 Rs 20100 Rs 24900
10 Rs 16300 Rs 25900 Rs 40500 Rs 61900
15 Rs 20800 Rs 41800 Rs 81400 Rs 154100
25 Rs 33900 Rs 1,08300 Rs 3,29200 Rs 9,54,000

What is meant by the Time Value of Money?

Money has time value. The idea behind time value of money is that a rupee
now is worth more than rupee in the future. The relationship between value
of a rupee today and value of a rupee in future is known as ‘Time Value of
Money’. A rupee received now can earn interest in future. An amount
invested today has more value than the same amount invested at a later
date because it can utilize the power of compounding. Compounding is the
process by which interest is earned on interest. When a principal amount is
invested, interest is earned on the principal during the first period or year.
In the second period or year, interest is earned on the original principal plus

67
the interest earned in the first period. Over time, this reinvestment process
can help an amount to grow significantly.

Let us take an example:

Suppose you are given two options:

(A) Receive Rs. 10,000 now OR

(B) Receive Rs.10,000 after three years.

Which of the options would you choose?

Rationally, you would choose to receive the Rs. 10,000 now instead of
waiting for three years to get the same amount. So, the time value of
money demonstrates that, all things being equal, it is better to have money
now rather than later.

Back to our example: by receiving Rs.10,000 today, you are poised to

increase the future value of your money by investing and gaining interest
over a period of time. For option B, you don't have time on your side, and
the payment received in three years would be your future value. To
illustrate, we have provided a timeline:

Present Value Future Value

0 1 2 3 Years

Option A: Rs. 10,000 Rs. 10,000 + Interest

Option B: Rs. 10,000 - Interest Rs. 10,000

If you are choosing option A, your future value will be Rs. 10,000 plus any
interest acquired over the three years. The future value for option B, on the
other hand, would only be Rs. 10,000. This clearly illustrates that value of
money received today is worth more than the same amount received in
future since the amount can be invested today and generate returns.

68
Let us take an another example:

If you choose option A and invest the total amount at a simple annual rate
of 5%, the future value of your investment at the end of the first year is Rs.
10,500, which is calculated by multiplying the principal amount of Rs.
10,000 by the interest rate of 5% and then adding the interest gained to the
principal amount.

Thus, Future value of investment at end of first year:

= ((Rs. 10,000 X (5/100)) + Rs. 10,000

= (Rs.10,000 x 0.050) + Rs. 10,000

= Rs.10,500

You can also calculate the total amount of a one-year investment with a
simple modification of the above equation:

Original equation: (Rs.10,000 x 0.050) + Rs.10,000 = Rs.10,500

Modified formula: Rs.10,000 x [(1 x 0.050) + 1] = Rs.10,500

Final equation: Rs. 10,000 x (0.050 + 1) = Rs. 10,500

Which can also be written as:

S = P (r+ 1)

Where,
S = amount received at the end of period
P = principal amount
r = interest rate (per year)

This formula denotes the future value (S) of an amount invested (P) at a
simple interest of (r) for a period of 1 year.

69
How is time value of money computed?

The time value of money may be computed in the following circumstances:

1. Future value of a single cash flow

2. Future value of an annuity
3. Present value of a single cash flow
4. Present value of an annuity

(1) Future Value of a Single Cash Flow

For a given present value (PV) of money, future value of money (FV) after a
period ‘t’ for which compounding is done at an interest rate of ‘r’, is given
by the equation

FV = PV (1+r)t

This assumes that compounding is done at discrete intervals. However, in

case of continuous compounding, the future value is determined using the
formula

FV = PV * ert

Where ‘e’ is a mathematical function called ‘exponential’ the value of

exponential (e) = 2.7183. The compounding factor is calculated by taking
natural logarithm (log to the base of 2.7183).

Example 1: Calculate the value of a deposit of Rs.2,000 made today, 3

years hence if the interest rate is 10%.

By discrete compounding:
FV = 2,000 * (1+0.10)3 = 2,000 * (1.1)3 = 2,000 * 1.331 = Rs. 2,662

By continuous compounding:
FV = 2,000 * e (0.10 *3) =2,000 * 1.349862 = Rs.2699.72

70
2. Future Value of an Annuity

An annuity is a stream of equal annual cash flows. The future value (FVA) of
a uniform cash flow (CF) made at the end of each period till the time of
maturity ‘t’ for which compounding is done at the rate ‘r’ is calculated as
follows:

FVA = CF*(1+r) t-1 + CF*(1+r) t-2 + ... + CF*(1+r)1 +CF

 (1 + r) t − 1 
= CF  
 r 

 (1 + r) t − 1 
The term   is referred as the Future Value Interest factor for an
 r 
annuity (FVIFA). The same can be applied in a variety of contexts. For e.g.
to know accumulated amount after a certain period, to know how much to
save annually to reach the targeted amount, to know the interest rate etc.

Example 1: Suppose, you deposit Rs.3,000 annually in a bank for 5 years

and your deposits earn a compound interest rate of 10 per cent, what will be
value of this series of deposits (an annuity) at the end of 5 years? Assume
that each deposit occurs at the end of the year.
Future value of this annuity is:
=Rs.3000*(1.10)4 + Rs.3000*(1.10)3 + Rs.3000*(1.10)2 + Rs.3000*(1.10)
+ Rs.3000
=Rs.3000*(1.4641)+Rs.3000*(1.3310)+Rs.3000*(1.2100)+Rs.3000*(1.10)
+ Rs.3000
= Rs. 18315.30

3. Present Value of a Single Cash Flow

Present value of (PV) of the future sum (FV) to be received after a period ‘t’
for which discounting is done at an interest rate of ‘r’, is given by the
equation
In case of discrete discounting: PV = FV / (1+r) t

Example 1: What is the present value of Rs.5,000 payable 3 years hence, if

the interest rate is 10 % p.a.
PV = 5000 / (1.10)3 i.e. = Rs.3756.57
In case of continuous discounting: PV = FV * e- rt

71
Example 2: What is the present value of Rs. 10,000 receivable after 2 years
at a discount rate of 10% under continuous discounting?
Present Value = 10,000/(exp^(0.1*2)) = Rs. 8187.297

4. Present Value of an Annuity

The present value of annuity is the sum of the present values of all the cash
inflows of this annuity.

Present value of an annuity (in case of discrete discounting)

PVA = FV [{(1+r)t - 1 }/ {r * (1+r) t }]

The term [(1+r)t - 1/ r*(1+r) t ] is referred as the Present Value Interest

factor for an annuity (PVIFA).

Present value of an annuity (in case of continuous discounting) is calculated

as:
PVa = FVa * (1-e- rt)/r

Example 1: What is the present value of Rs. 2000/- received at the end of
each year for 3 continuous years
= 2000*[1/1.10]+2000*[1/1.10]^2+2000*[1/1.10]^3
= 2000*0.9091+2000*0.8264+2000*0.7513
= 1818.181818+1652.892562+1502.629602
= Rs. 4973.704

What is Effective Annual return?

Usually while applying for a fixed deposit or a bond it is stated in the

application form, that the annual return (interest) of an investment is 10%,
but the effective annual return mentioned is something more, 10.38%. Why
the difference? Essentially, the effective annual return accounts for intra-
year compounding and the stated annual return does not. The difference
between these two measures is best illustrated with an example. Suppose
the stated annual interest rate on a savings account is 10%, and say you
put Rs 1,000 into this savings account. After one year, your money would
grow to Rs 1,100. But, if the account has a quarterly compounding feature,
your effective rate of return will be higher than 10%. After the first quarter,
or first three months, your savings would grow to Rs 1,025. Then, in the
second quarter, the effect of compounding would become apparent: you
would receive another Rs 25 in interest on the original Rs 1,000, but you

72
would also receive an additional Rs 0.63 from the Rs. 25 that was paid after
the first quarter. In other words, the interest earned in each quarter will
increase the interest earned in subsequent quarters. By the end of the year,
the power of quarterly compounding would give you a total of Rs 1,103.80.
So, although the stated annual interest rate is 10%, because of quarterly
compounding, the effective rate of return is 10.38%. The difference of
0.38% may appear insignificant, but it can be huge when you're dealing
with large numbers. 0.38% of Rs. 100,000 is Rs 380! Another thing to
consider is that compounding does not necessarily occur quarterly, or only
four times a year, as it does in the example above. There are accounts that
compound monthly, and even some that compound daily. And, as our
example showed, the frequency with which interest is paid (compounded)
will have an effect on effective rate of return.

How to go about systematically analyzing a company?

You must look for the following to make the right analysis:

Industry Analysis: Companies producing similar products are

subset (form a part) of an Industry/Sector. For example, National
Hydroelectric Power Company (NHPC) Ltd., National Thermal Power
Company (NTPC) Ltd., Tata Power Company (TPC) Ltd. etc. belong to
the Power Sector/Industry of India. It is very important to see how
the industry to which the company belongs is faring. Specifics like
effect of Government policy, future demand of its products etc. need
to be checked. At times prospects of an industry may change
drastically by any alterations in business environment. For instance,
devaluation of rupee may brighten prospects of all export oriented
companies. Investment analysts call this as Industry Analysis.

Corporate Analysis: How has the company been faring over the
past few years? Seek information on its current operations,
managerial capabilities, growth plans, its past performance vis-à-vis
its competitors etc. This is known as Corporate Analysis.

Financial Analysis: If performance of an industry as well as of the

company seems good, then check if at the current price, the share is
a good buy. For this look at the financial performance of the company
and certain key financial parameters like Earnings Per Share (EPS),
P/E ratio, current size of equity etc. for arriving at the estimated
future price. This is termed as Financial Analysis. For that you need
to understand financial statements of a company i.e. Balance Sheet
and Profit and Loss Account contained in the Annual Report of a
company.

73
What is an Annual Report?

An annual report is a formal financial statement issued yearly by a

corporate. The annual report shows assets, liabilities, revenues, expenses
and earnings - how the company stood at the close of the business year,
how it fared profit-wise during the year, as well as other information of
interest to shareholders. Companies publish annual reports and send
abridged versions to shareholders free of cost. A detailed annual report is
sent on request. Remember an annual report of a company is the best
source of information about the financial health of a company.

Which features of an Annual Report should one read carefully?

One must read an Annual Report with emphasis on the following:

§ Director’s Report and Chairman’s statement which are

related to the current and future operational
performance of a company.
§ Auditors’ Report (including Annexure to the Auditors
Report)
§ Profit and Loss Account.
§ Balance Sheet.
§ Notes to accounts attached to the Balance Sheet.

What is a Balance Sheet and a Profit and Loss Account

Statement? What is the difference between Balance Sheet and
Profit and Loss Account Statements of a company?

The Balance sheet of a company shows the financial position of the company
at a particular point of time. The balance sheet of a company/firm,
according to the Companies Act, 1956 should be either in the account form
or the report form.

Balance Sheet: Account Form

Liabilities Assets
Share Capital Fixed Assets
Reserves and Surplus Investments
Secured loans Current Assets, loans and advances
Unsecured loans Miscellaneous expenditure
Current liabilities and provisions

74
Balance Sheet: Report Form

I. Sources of Funds

1. Shareholders’ Funds
(a) Share Capital
(b) Reserves & surplus
2. Loan Funds
(a) Secured loans
(b) Unsecured loans

II. Application of Funds

(i) Fixed Assets

(ii) Investments
(iii) Current Assets, loans and advances
Less: Current liabilities and provisions
Net current assets
(iv) Miscellaneous expenditure and losses

The Profit and Loss account (Income Statement), on the other hand, shows
the financial performance of the company/firm over a period of time. It
indicates the revenues and expenses during particular period of time. The
period of time is an accounting period/year, April-March. The accounting
report summarizes the revenue items, the expense items, and the difference
between them (net income) for an accounting period.

How to interpret Balance Sheet and Profit and Loss Account of a

company?

Let’s start with Balance Sheet. The Box-1 gives the balance sheet of XYZ
Ltd. company as on 31s t March 2005. Let us understand the balance sheet
shown in the Box-1.

BOX-1
XYZ COMPANY LTD.,
As at As at
31st 31st
March, March,
2005 2004
Balance sheet as on 31st March, 2005
Rs. Cr Rs. Cr Rs. Cr
SOURCES OF FUNDS Schedule Page

1 SHAREHOLDERS' FUNDS

(a) Capital 1 19 103.87 104.44

75
 (b) Reserves and Surplus 2 20 479.21 387.70

583.08 483.14

2 LOAN FUNDS

(a) Secured 3 21 353.34 387.76

(b) Unsecured 4 21 129.89 101.07

483.23 488.83

3 TOTAL FUNDS EMPLOYED 1066.31 971.97

APPLICATION OF FUNDS

4 FIXED ASSETS

(a) Gross Block 5 22 946.84 870.44

(b) Less: Depreciation 482.19 430.70

(c) Net Block 464.65 439.74

(d) Capital Work in Progress 62.10 44.44

526.75 484.18

5 INVESTMENTS 6 23 108.58 303.48

CURRENT ASSETS, LOANS AND

6 ADVANCES
(a) Inventories 7 24 446.34 350.25

(b) Sundry Debtors 8 24 458.47 300.32

(c) Cash and Bank Balances 9 25 66.03 5.67

(d) Loans and Advances 10 25 194.36 110.83

1165.20 767.07

Less: CURRENT LIABILITIES AND

7 PRIVISIONS
(a) Current Liabilities 11 26 595.22 500.19

(b) Provisions 12 26 139.00 82.57

734.22 582.76

76
 NET CURRENT ASSETS [(6) les s
8 (7)] 430.98 184.31

9 TOTAL ASSETS (NET) 1066.31 971.97

NOTES TO BALANCE SHEET AND

10 CONTINGENT LIABILITIES 13 27

For and on behalf of the

As per our report attached Board.

ASDFG

For A. SDF & CO. XXXXX AAAA

Chartered Accountants, Chairman BBBB LKJH

Q.W. TYUR CCCC TYUB

Partner. REFGH POIUY Directors

For HIJKL YYYY NSDF

Vice-
Chairman
Chartered Accountants , and QWER
Managing
WERT Director MNBV

Partner. ZZZZZZ
Bombay, 28th June,
Bombay 10th July, 2004 Secretary 2004.

The balance sheet of a company is a record showing sources of funds and

their application for creating/building assets. However, since company’s fund
structure and asset position change everyday due to fund inflow and
outflow, balance sheets are drawn on a specific date, say 31s t March.

What do these sources of funds represent?

As shown in a sample balance sheet in Box-1, there are two sources of

funds:

(a) Shareholders’ Fund (also known as Net Worth) is the fund coming
from the owners of the company; and

(b) Loan Fund is the fund borrowed from outsiders.

When a company/firm starts operations, its owners, called shareholders,

contribute funds called Share Capital. Note that in Box-1 XYZ COMPANY
LTD.’s capital in 2005 was Rs. 103.87 crore. The shareholders being the
owners, share part of the profit of the company, as dividend. Share capital
has been further divided into equity capital and preference capital.
Equity capital does not have fixed rate of dividend. The preference capital

77
represents contribution of preference shareholders and has fixed rate of
dividend.

After distributing dividends, a part of the profit is retained by the company

for meeting fund requirements in future. The retained profits accumulated
over the years are called reserves and surplus, which are shareholders’
property. In case of XYZ COMPANY LTD., note that the reserves and surplus
increased from Rs. 387.70 crore in 2004 to Rs. 479.21 crore in 2005.

What is the difference between Equity shareholders and

Preferential shareholders?

Equity Shareholders are supposed to be the owners of the company, who

therefore, have right to get dividend, as declared, and a right to vote in the
Annual General Meeting for passing any resolution.

The act defines a preference share as that part of share capital of the
Company which enjoys preferential right as to: (a) payment of dividend at a
fixed rate during the life time of the Company; and (b) the return of capital
on winding up of the Company.

But Preference shares cannot be traded, unlike equity shares, and are
redeemed after a pre-decided period. Also, Preferential Shareholders do
not have voting rights.

What do terms like authorized, issued, subscribed, called up and

paid up capital mean?

§ Authorized capital is the maximum capital that a company is

authorized to raise.

§ Issued capital is that part of the authorized capital which is offered

by the company for being subscribed by members of the public or
anybody.

§ Subscribed capital is that part of the issued capital which is

subscribed (accepted) by the public.

§ Called up capital is a part of subscribed capital which has been

called up by the company for payment. For example, if 10,000 shares
of Rs. 100 each have been subscribed by the public and of which Rs.
50 per share has been called up. Then the subscribed capital of the

78
 Company works out to Rs. 1,00,000 of which the called up capital of
the Company is Rs. 50,0000.

§ Paid Up capital refers to that part of the called up capital which has
been actually paid by the shareholders. Some of the shareholders
might have defaulted in paying the called up money. Such defaulted
amount is called as arrears. From the called up capital, calls in
arrears is deducted to obtain the paid up capital.

What is the difference between secured and unsecured loans

under Loan Funds?

Secured loans are the borrowings against the security i.e. against
mortgaging some immovable property or hypothecating/pledging some
movable property of the company. This is known as creation of charge,
which safeguards creditors in the event of any default on the part of the
company. They are in the form of debentures, loans from financial
institutions and loans from commercial banks. Notice that in case of the XYZ
COMPANY LTD., it was Rs. 353.34 crore as on March 31, 2005. The
unsecured loans are other short term borrowings without a specific security.
They are fixed deposits, loans and advances from promoters, inter-corporate
borrowings, and unsecured loans from the banks. Such borrowings amount
to Rs. 129.89 crore in case of the XYZ COMPANY LTD.

What is meant by application of funds?

The funds collected by a company from the owners and outsiders are
employed to create following assets:

Fixed Assets: These assets are acquired for long-terms and are used
for business operation, but not meant for resale. The land and
buildings, plant, machinery, patents, and copyrights are the fixed
assets. In case of the XYZ COMPANY LTD., fixed assets are worth Rs.
526.75 crore.

Investments: The investments are the financial securities created by

investing surplus funds into any non-business related avenues for
getting income either for long-term or short-term. Thus incomes and
gains from the investments are not from the business operations.

Current Assets, Loans, and Advances: This consists of cash and other
resources which can be converted into cash during the business
operation. Current assets are held for a short-term period for

79
 meeting day-to day operational expenditure. The current assets are
in the form of raw materials, finished goods, cash, debtors,
inventories, loans and advances, and pre-paid expenses. For the XYZ
COMPANY LTD., current assets are worth Rs. 1165.20 crore.

Miscellaneous Expenditures and Losses: The miscellaneous

expenditures represent certain outlays such as preliminary expenses
and pre-operative expenses not written off. Though loss indicates a
decrease in the owners’ equity, the share capital can not be reduced
with loss. Instead, share capital and losses are shown separately on
the liabilities side and assets side of the balance sheet, respectively.

What do the sub-headings under the Fixed Assets like ‘Gross

block’ ‘Depreciation’, ‘Net Block’ and Capital-Work in
Progress’ mean?

The total value of acquiring all fixed assets (even though at different points
of time) is called ‘Gross Block’ or ‘Gross Fixed Asset’.

As per accounting convention, all fixed assets except land have a fixed life.
It is assumed that every year the worth of an asset falls due to usage. This
reduction in value is called ‘Depreciation’. The Companies Act 1956
stipulates different rates of depreciation for different types of assets and
different methods calculating depreciation, namely, Straight Line Method
(constant annual method) and Written Down Value Method (depreciation
rate decreases over a period of time).

The worth of the fixed assets after providing for depreciation is called ‘Net
Block’. In case of the XYZ COMPANY LTD., Net Block was Rs. 464.65 crore
as on March 31, 2005.

Gross Block-Depreciation = Net Block

Rs. 946.84- Rs. 482.19 = Rs. 464.65

The capital/funds used for a new plant under erection, a machine yet to be
commissioned etc. are examples of ‘Capital Work in Progress’, which also
has to be taken into account while calculating the fixed assets as it will be
converted into gross block soon.

80
What are Current Liabilities and Provisions and Net Current
Assets in the balance sheet?

A company may receive many of its daily services for which it does not have
to pay immediately like for raw materials, goods and services brought on
credit. A company may also accept advances from the customer. The
company thus has a liability to pay though the payment is deferred. These
are known as ‘Current Liabilities’. Similarly the company may have to
provide for certain other expenses (though not required to be paid
immediately) like dividend to shareholders, payment of tax etc. These are
called ‘Provisions’. In short, Current Liabilities and Provisions are amounts
due to the suppliers of goods and services brought on credit, advances
payments received, accrued expenses, unclaimed dividend, provisions for
taxes, dividends, gratuity, pensions, etc.

Current Liabilities and Provisions, therefore, reduce the burden of day-to-

day expenditure on current assets by deferring some of the payments. For
daily operations the company requires funds equal to the current assets less
the current liabilities. This amount is called ‘Net Current Assets’ or ‘Net
Working Capital’. In case of the XYZ COMPANY LTD., Net Current Asset
figure of Rs. 430.98 cr. has been arrived at by deducting Current Liabilities
(Rs. 595.22 cr.) and Provisions (Rs. 139 cr.) from Current Assets worth Rs.
1165.20 crore.

How is balance sheet summarized?

A balance sheet indicates matching of sources of funds with application of

funds. In case of the XYZ Company Ltd., ‘Total Funds Employed’ to the tune
of Rs. 1066.31 cr. are from the said two Sources of Funds-Shareholders
Funds and Loan Funds. These funds have been utilized to fund Total (Net)
Assets of Rs. 1066.31 cr. that consist of Fixed Assets (Rs. 526.75 cr.),
Investments (Rs. 108.58 cr.) and Net Current Assets (Rs. 430.98 cr.).

Thus in a balance sheet,

Total Capital Employed = Net Assets.

81
What does a Profit and Loss Account statement consists of?

A Profit and Loss Account shows how much profit or loss has been incurred
by a company from its income after providing for all its expenditure within a
financial year. One may also know how the profit available for appropriation
is arrived at by using profit after tax as well as portion of reserves. Further,
it shows the profit appropriation towards dividends, general reserve and
balance carried to the balance sheet.

The Box-2 exhibits Profit and Loss Account of XYZ Company Ltd. Item-1
represents income , Items from 2 to 6 show various expenditure items.
Items from 7 to 12 show the profits available for appropriation and items 13
(a), (b), and (c) indicate appropriation of profits.

BOX – 2
PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED
31ST MARCH, 2005

PARTICULARS RUPEES RUPEES RUPEES

(in crores) (in crores) (in crores)
As at As at
31st March, 31st March,
2005 2004
INCOME
1. SALE OF PRODUCTS AND OTHER INCOME 2595.99 1969.10

EXPENDITURE
2. MANUFACTURING AND OTHER EXPENSES 2275.37 1742.54
3. DEPRECIATION 54.26 48.91
4. INTEREST 81.63 73.63
5. EXPENDITURE TRANSFERRED TO CAPITAL
ACCOUNTS 49.82 (44.27)
6. TOTAL EXPENDITURE 2316.44 1820.81

PROFIT BEFORE TAX 234.55 148.29

7. TAX FOR THE YEAR 92.5 45.75

PROFIT AFTER TAX 142.05 102.54

8. INVESTMENT ALLOWANCE RESERVE
ACCOUNT 4.66 3.55
9. INVESTMENT ALLOWANCE (UTILISED)
RESERVE WRITTEN BACK (15.2) (11.2)
10. DEBENTURE REDEMPTION RESERVE (0.57) (0.57)
11. CAPITAL REDEMPTION RESERVE

82
12. BALANCE BROUGHT FORWARD FROM
PREVIOUS YEAR 86.71 33.65

AMOUNT AVAILABLE FOR

APPROPRIATIONS 217.65 127.97
13. APPROPRIATIONS
(a) Proposed Dividends* 41.54 31.26
(b) General Reserve 100 10
(c) Balance credited to Balance Sheet 76.11 86.71
217.65 127.97
14. NOTES TO PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT
* Details as per Directors Report

As per our report attached

to the Balance Sheet For and on behalf of the Board
For XYZ & co. PQR AAA
Chartered Accountants, Chairman BBB
ABC CCC
Partner DDD Directors
For LMN & co. GHI
Vice-
Chairman
Chartered Accountants, and
Managing
DEF Director
Partner STU
Mumbai, 10th July 2004 Secretary Mumbai, 28th June 2004

What should one look for in a Profit and Loss account?

For a company, the profit and loss statement is the most important
document presented to the shareholders. Therefore, each company tries to
give maximum stress on its representation/ misrepresentation. One should
consider the following:

§ Whether there is an overall improvement of sales as well as profits

(operating, gross and net) over the similar period (half-yearly or
annual) previous year. If so, the company’s operational management
is good.

§ Check for the other income carefully, for here companies have the
scope to manipulate. If the other income stems from dividend on the
investments or interest from the loans and advances, it is good,
because such income is steady. But if the other income is derived by

83
 selling any assets or land, be cautious since such income is not an
annual occurrence.

§ Also check for the increase of all expenditure items viz. raw material
consumption, manpower cost and manufacturing, administrative and
selling expenses. See whether the increases in these costs are more
than the increase in sales. If so, it reveals the operating conditions
are not conducive to making profits. Similarly, check whether ratio of
these costs to sales could be contained over the previous year. If so,
then the company’s operations are efficient.

§ Evaluate whether the company could make profit from its operations
alone. For this you should calculate the profits of the company, after
ignoring all other income except sales. If the profit so obtained is
positive, the company is operationally profitable, which is a healthy
sign.

§ Scrutinize the depreciation as well as interest for any abnormal

increase. The increase in depreciation is attributed to higher addition
of fixed assets, which is good for long term operations of the
company. High depreciation may suppress the net profits, but it’s
good for the cash flow. So instead of looking out for the net profits,
check the cash profits and compare whether it has risen. High
interest cost is always a cause of concern because the increased debt
burden cannot be reduced in the short run.

§ Calculate the earnings per share and the various ratios. In case of
half yearly results, multiply half yearly earnings per share by 2 to get
approximately the annualized earnings per share.

84
10. RATIO ANALYSIS

Mere statistics/data presented in the different financial statements do not

reveal the true picture of a financial position of a firm. Properly analyzed and
interpreted financial statements can provide valuable insights into a firm’s
performance. To extract the information from the financial statements, a
number of tools are used to analyse such statements. The most popular tool
is the Ratio Analysis.

Financial ratios can be broadly classified into three groups: (I) Liquidity
ratios, (II) Leverage/Capital structure ratio, and (III) Profitability ratios.

(I) Liquidity ratios:

Liquidity refers to the ability of a firm to meet its financial obligations in the
short-term which is less than a year. Certain ratios, which indicate the
liquidity of a firm, are (i) Current Ratio, (ii) Acid Test Ratio, (iii) Turnover
Ratios. It is based upon the relationship between current assets and current
liabilities.

Current .Assets
(i) Current ratio =
Current .Liabilitie s

The current ratio measures the ability of the firm to meet its current
liabilities from the current assets. Higher the current ratio, greater the
short-term solvency (i.e. larger is the amount of rupees available per rupee
of liability).

Quick . Assets
(ii) Acid-test Ratio =
Current .Liabilitie s

Quick assets are defined as current assets excluding inventories and prepaid
expenses. The acid-test ratio is a measurement of firm’s ability to convert
its current assets quickly into cash in order to meet its current liabilities.
Generally speaking 1:1 ratio is considered to be satisfactory.

85
(iii) Turnover Ratios:

Turnover ratios measure how quickly certain current assets are converted
into cash or how efficiently the assets are employed by a firm. The
important turnover ratios are:

Inventory Turnover Ratio, Debtors Turnover Ratio, Average Collection

Period, Fixed Assets Turnover and Total Assets Turnover

CostofGoodsSold
Inventory Turnover Ratio =
AverageInventory

Where, the cost of goods sold means sales minus gross profit. ‘Average
Inventory’ refers to simple average of opening and closing inventory. The
inventory turnover ratio tells the efficiency of inventory management.
Higher the ratio, more the efficient of inventory management.

NetCreditSales
Debtors’ Turnover Ratio =
AverageAccounts Re ceivable( Debtors )

The ratio shows how many times accounts receivable (debtors) turn over
during the year. If the figure for net credit sales is not available, then net
sales figure is to be used. Higher the debtors turnover, the greater the
efficiency of credit management.

AverageDebtors
Average Collection Period =
AverageDailyCreditSa les

Average Collection Period represents the number of days’ worth credit sales
that is locked in debtors (accounts receivable).

Please note that the Average Collection Period and the Accounts Receivable
(Debtors) Turnover are related as follows:

365 Days
Average Collection Period =
DebtorsTur nover

86
Fixed Assets turnover ratio measures sales per rupee of investment in fixed
assets. In other words, how efficiently fixed assets are employed. Higher
ratio is preferred. It is calculated as follows:

Net.Sales
Fixed Assets turnover ratio =
NetFixedAssets

Total Assets turnover ratio measures how efficiently all types of assets are
employed.

Net.Sales
Total Assets turnover ratio =
AverageTotalAssets

(II) Leverage/Capital structure Ratios:

Long term financial strength or soundness of a firm is measured in terms of

its ability to pay interest regularly or repay principal on due dates or at the
time of maturity. Such long term solvency of a firm can be judged by using
leverage or capital structure ratios. Broadly there are two sets of ratios:
First, the ratios based on the relationship between borrowed funds and
owner’s capital which are computed from the balance sheet. Some such
ratios are: Debt to Equity and Debt to Asset ratios. The second set of ratios
which are calculated from Profit and Loss Account are: The interest coverage
ratio and debt service coverage ratio are coverage ratio to leverage risk.

(i) Debt-Equity ratio reflects relative contributions of creditors and owners to

finance the business.
Total Debt
Debt-Equity ratio =
Total Equity

The desirable/ideal proportion of the two components (high or low ratio)

varies from industry to industry.

(ii) Debt-Asset Ratio: Total debt comprises of long term debt plus current
liabilities. The total assets comprise of permanent capital plus current
liabilities.

Total Debt
Debt-Asset Ratio =
Total Assets

87
The second set or the coverage ratios measure the relationship between
proceeds from the operations of the firm and the claims of outsiders.

Earnings Before Interest and Taxes

(iii) Interest Coverage ratio =
Interest

Higher the interest coverage ratio better is the firm’s ability to meet its
interest burden. The lenders use this ratio to assess debt servicing capacity
of a firm.

(iv) Debt Service Coverage Ratio (DSCR) is a more comprehensive and apt
to compute debt service capacity of a firm. Financial institutions calculate
the average DSCR for the period during which the term loan for the project
is repayable. The Debt Service Coverage Ratio is defined as follows:

Pr ofit .after.tax + Depreciation + OtherNoncashExpenditure + Interest .on.term.loan

Interest on Term loan + Re payment of term loan

(III) Profitability ratios:

Profitability and operating/management efficiency of a firm is judged mainly

by the following profitability ratios:

Gross Profit
(i) Gross Profit Ratio (%) = * 100
Net Sales

Net Profit
(ii) Net Profit Ratio (%) = * 100
Net Sales

Some of the profitability ratios related to investments are:

Pr ofit.Before.Interest . And .Tax

(iii) Return on Total Assets =
FixedAssets + CurrentAssets

Net ProfitAfterTax
(iv) Return on Capital Employed =
TotalCapital Employed

(Here, Total Capital Employed = Total Fixed Assets + Current Assets -

Current Liabilities)

88
(v) Return on Shareholders’ Equity

Net Pr ofit After Tax

=
AverageTotal Shareholders ' Equity or NetWorth

(Net worth includes Shareholders’ equity capital plus reserves and surplus)

A commo n (equity) shareholder has only a residual claim on profits and

assets of a firm, i.e., only after claims of creditors and preference
shareholders are fully met, the equity shareholders receive a distribution of
profits or assets on liquidation. A measure of his well being is reflected by
return on equity. There are several other measures to calculate return on
shareholders’ equity of which the following are the stock market related
ratios:

(i) Earnings Per Share (EPS): EPS measures the profit available to the equity
shareholders per share, that is, the amount that they can get on every share
held. It is calculated by dividing the profits available to the shareholders by
number of outstanding shares. The profits available to the ordinary
shareholders are arrived at as net profits after taxes minus preference
dividend.

It indicates the value of equity in the market.

Net Profit. Available.To.The.Shareholder

EPS =
Number of Ordinary Shares Outstanding

(ii) Price-earnings ratios = P/E Ratio = Market Pr ice per Share

EPS

89
Illustration:

Balance Sheet of ABC Co. Ltd. as on March 31, 2005

(Rs. in Crore)

Liabilities Amount Assets Amount

Share Capital 16.00 Fixed Assets (net) 60.00
(1,00,00,000 equity shares
of Rs.10 each)
Reserves & Surplus 22.00 Current Assets: 23.40
Secured Loans 21.00 Cash & Bank 0.20
Unsecured Loans 25.00 Debtors 11.80
Current Liabilities & Provisions 16.00 Inventories 10.60
Pre-paid expenses 0.80
Investments 16.60
Total 100 Total 100

Profit & Loss Account of ABC Co. Ltd. for the year ending on March
31, 2005:

Particulars Amount Particulars Amount

Opening Stock 13.00 Sales (net) 105.00

Purchases 69.00 Closing Stock 15.00

Wages and Salaries 12.00

Other Mfg. Expenses 10.00

Gross Profit 16.00

Total 120.00 Total 120.00

Administrative and Personnel Expenses 1.50 Gross Profit 16.00

Selling and Distribution Expenses 2.00

Depreciation 2.50

Interest 1.00

Net Profit 9.00

Total 16.00 Total 16.00
Income Tax 4.00 Net Profit 9.00

Equity Dividend 3.00

Retained Earning 2.00
Total 9.00 Total 9.00

Market price per equity share = Rs. 20.00

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Current Ratio = Current Assets / Current Liabilities
= 23.40/16.00 = 1.46

Quick Ratio = Quick Assets / Current Liabilities

=Current Assets-(inventory + prepaid expenses)/Current Liabilities
= [23.40-(10.60+0.8)]/16.00 = 12.00/16.00 = 0.75

Inventory Turnover Ratio = Cost of goods sold/Average Inventory

= (Net Sales-Gross Profit)/ [(opening stock+closing stock)/2]
= (105-16)/ [(15+13)/2] = 89/14 = 6.36

Debtors Turnover Ratio= Net Sales/Average account receivables

(Debtors)
=105/11.80 =8.8983

Average Collection period = 365 days / Debtors turnover

= 365 days/8.8983 = 41 days

Fixed Assets Turnover ratio = Net Sales / Net Fixed Assets

= 105/60 = 1.75

Debt to Equity Ratio = Debt/ Equity

= (21.00+25.00)/(16.00+22.00) = 46/38 = 1.21

Gross Profit Ratio = Gross Profit/Net Sales

= 16.00/105.00 = 0.15238 or 15.24%

Net Profit Ratio = Net Profit / Net Sales

= 9/105.00 = 0.0857 or 8.57 %

Return on Shareholders’ Equity = Net Profit after tax/Net worth

= 5.00/(16.00+22.00) =0.13157 or 13.16%

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Abbreviations:

§ NSE- National Stock Exchange of India Ltd.

§ SEBI - Securities Exchange Board of India
§ NCFM - NSE’s Certification in Financial Markets
§ NSDL - National Securities Depository Limited
§ CSDL - Central Securities Depository Limited
§ NCDEX - National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange Ltd.
§ NSCCL - National Securities Clearing Corporation Ltd.
§ FMC – Forward Markets Commission
§ NYSE- New York Stock Exchange
§ AMEX - American Stock Exchange
§ OTC- Over-the-Counter Market
§ LM – Lead Manager
§ IPO- Initial Public Offer
§ DP - Depository Participant
§ DRF - Demat Request Form
§ RRF - Remat Request Form
§ NAV – Net Asset Value
§ EPS – Earnings Per Share
§ DSCR - Debt Service Coverage Ratio
§ S&P – Standard & Poor
§ IISL - India Index Services & Products Ltd
§ CRISIL- Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited
§ CARE - Credit Analysis & Research Limited
§ ICRA - Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency of India
§ IGC – Investor Grievance Cell
§ IPF – Investor Protection Fund
§ SCRA - Securities Contract (Regulation) Act
§ SCRR – Securities Contract (Regulation) Rules

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