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ASK Select

AUM (1715 cr) | Inc Date (4-Jan-2010)

Scheme Rating

IME Scheme Rating

3 of 5 stars

For investors looking for a concentrated portfolio, ASK India Select offers a concentrated strategy with one of the most established teams in the industry. However, we prefer ASK IEP & ASK Growth, given their more consistent longer-term returns.

IME Strategy Rating

4 of 5 stars

Invests in top value-creation ideas identified across more tightly defined strategies. The portfolio maintains a blend of opportunity size, earnings growth, business quality, and price-value gap; with a reasonably concentrated (20 stocks) portfolio. With a 10+ years track record, ASK – India Select has established its credibility by navigating through various market phases and consistently delivering above par returns.

AMC Rating

4 of 5 stars

AMC: ASK PMS (click link for detailed AMC review)

ASK is the market leader with a strong investment policy and in-house team. Blackstone acquired a majority stake in their asset management business. Their rating has been downgraded to 4-star due to recent underperformance, but an upgrade to 5-star is possible as performance improves.

PMS Scheme Ratings are driven by IME’s Proprietary Scheme Rating Methodology, which takes into account our ratings of the Scheme’s investment strategy, its maturity, the investment team, and our separate rating on the AMC that runs this particular scheme. Our views on each of these individual criteria are available via the IME RMS – which you can view by reaching out to one of our relationship managers (using either the live chat or book appointment feature on this site).

ASK India Select - Investment Strategy

Concentrated exposure to the ASK's top value-creation investment opportunities.

ASK’s India Select Portfolio invests in the top value-creation ideas that ASK has identified across other more tightly defined strategies. The portfolio tries to maintain a blend between the size of the opportunity, earnings growth, business quality, and the price-value gap.

Key Investment Attributes

Investments in ASK India Select Portfolio are driven by the following key investment attributes:

  • Size of Opportunity: Size of Pond vs. Size of Fish, Dominance, Resilience, Liquidity
  • Quality of Business: High quality of business (superior ROCE), Strong moat, Impregnability, Sustainability, Key pivot of strong wealth creation 
  • Earnings Growth: Quantum, Consistency, Durability, Predating (early vs later), Compounding power
  • Value: Favourable price-value gap, Margin of Safety
  • Management Quality: Good management quality is a given constant

Investment Process

The investment process is driven by a gradual filtering down of companies in a wider universe, based on specific criteria that ASK focuses on:

  • 500: Start with top 500 as per mkt cap 
  • 410: PBT above 75 cr for the trailing 4 quarters
  • 206: Subjective evaluation of management quality (integrity, vision, execution, capital allocation and capital distribution)
  • 92: Rigorous filters of minimum of 20% of ROCE (capital efficiency) and min of 15% annual earnings growth over the next 3 to 5 years
  • 20: Finally an investment approach emerges of 20 businesses, representing an optimal blend of the overall characteristics, and adequate diversity, with a minimum margin of safety of 15%

Trailing Performance

1yr 3yr 5yr Since Inception
ASK Select -5.2 6.4 14.5 14.4
S&P BSE 500 4.5 13.7 22.2 12.6
Alpha over Broad Mkt BM -9.7 -7.3 -7.7 1.8

Performance as of: 30-Apr-25 | Inception Date: 04-Jan-10

Fund Managers

Bharat Shah | 5-star rated FM

Executive Director | 33 yrs Experience | 17 yrs at current firm

Past Experience: Senior FM (Birla MF)

Bharat Shah is a highly respected investments professional, having overseen the growth of ASK PMS to the largest PMS in India over 2 decades. Prior to joining ASK, Bharat Shah was a very well respected equity fund manager at Birla PMS, known for large wealth creation in IT picks. Bharat Shah has been on the board of ASK since 2008.

Sumit Jain | 4-star rated FM

CIO | 20 yrs Experience | 20 yrs at current firm

Past Experience: First Global (Analyst)

Sumit has been with the ASK group for over 15 years, having started as an analyst to now being responsible for managing portfolios. Prior to joining ASK, Sumit worked as an analyst at First Global tracking the US macroeconomy and the FMCG sector.

Chetan Thacker | 4-star rated FM

Fund Manager | 18 yrs Experience | 10 yrs at current firm

Past Experience: Emkay Global (Analyst), HSBC InvestDirect (Analyst), McKinsey (Analyst)

With a strong equity research background, Chetan has sector research expertise in agriculture, chemicals, metals & mining and midcaps

Fee Structure

Fee Structure Fee
Fixed Fee Structure 2.5
Variable Fee Structures 1.5% fixed + 20% above 8% hurdle
Exit Fees

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