Sundaram Alternates SISOP
Sundaram Alternates PMS | Equity | | PMSIME's View on Sundaram Alternates SISOP
Strategy
Investment Fund
Can be considered for investors seeking a concentrated Large & Mid-cap portfolio, with a proven long-term track record.
Fund's Strategy View
Sundaram SISOP (Sundaram India Secular Opportunities Portfolio) is a multi-cap (skewed towards large-cap), concentrated (~15 stocks), and sector-agnostic portfolio. At the scheme level, the strategy is quite tightly defined with clear concentration, style & fundamental benchmarks that are being followed. Strategy bias towards large-cap, but there is a reasonably high concentration in mid-caps (reflected in the core skills of Sundaram AMC). The strategy has matured successfully by investing in businesses with a large and mid-cap bias, capitalizing on their secular growth opportunities.
Fund Performance
The fund has outperformed peers in the last 5 year trailing returns. In terms of longer-term annual performance, performance consistency has been mixed, with the fund having outperformed & underperformed the bechmark roughly in half the years.
IME's View on Sundaram Alternates PMS
View on AMC
Sundaram Alternates PMS is a mature provider specializing in small- and mid-cap strategies, offering differentiation compared to larger AMC-promoted PMS firms. However, like many MF-promoted PMSs, it faces structural limitations, and recent churn in the investment team raises additional concerns. While its pedigree and past performance are notable, we currently do not recommend the PMS.
AMC's Pedigree
Sundaram is a mid-sized AMC specializing in small and mid-cap investments, particularly for South India-based businesses.
AMC Team
Madanagopal, who had been with Sundaram AMC for seven years and played a key role in building its PMS division since 2018, has recently exited the firm. A replacement has not yet been identified, which raises concerns given our earlier view that investment team churn is a recurring risk at MF-driven PMS platforms, particularly where fund managers do not hold significant equity ownership.
Investment Philosophy
Investment philosophy is not clearly defined at the PMS level, but at the portfolio level, strategies are well-defined and strictly followed compared to other AMC peer PMSs.
Focused on sector agnostic portfolio and looking for companies with compounding stories
Sundaram SISOP aims to generate capital appreciation across market cycles by investing in a concentrated portfolio of around 15 stocks by following its “3Q” approach to stock selection:- Quality of business: Scalability, self-sustaining business models, Differentiating factors in business
- Quality of financials: Ability to double earnings in 4-5 years, min-ROIC of 15%, OCF/EBITDA>50%, D/E< 0.5x.
- Quality of Management: Track record, vision, high sustainable growth, identifying and investing in profitable opportunities, good corporate governance
Trailing Performance
| 1yr | 3yr | 5yr | Since Inception | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sundaram Alternates SISOP | 5.3 | 17.8 | 21 | 17.9 |
| S&P BSE 500 | -6.6 | 14.7 | 19.2 | 13.1 |
| Alpha over Broad Mkt BM | 11.9 | 3.1 | 1.8 | 4.8 |
Performance as of: 30-Sep-25 | Inception Date: 01-Feb-10 | Performance are post-fees, pre-taxes. Global funds denominated in USD or fund currency.
Investment team
Karthik Athreya | 3-star rated FM
FM (Alternatives) | 27 yrs Experience
Past Experience: Altico Capital, Clearwater Capital, Rabo, Arthur Andersson, PWC, Yes Bank
Karthik Athreya is in charge of the Alternative Financing strategy at Sundaram AMC. He has almost 22 years of expertise in corporate finance, investment banking, and principal investing. Prior to this, He established Altico Capital and oversaw Clearwater Capital’s India division. He worked at Rabo, Arthur Andersson, and PWC before becoming a founding employee of Yes Bank.
