View on banks pays off for JPMorgan Indian

22nd Dec 2010 17:21

FTSE 250 India-focused investment trust JPMorgan Indian Investment recovered from a slow start to bump up its net asset value (NAV) per share by just under one-third over the year, beating the performance of its benchmark index in the process.The diluted NAV per share rose by 32.4% to 504.0p in the year to 30 September, compared with a rise (in sterling terms) of 29.4% in the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) India Index over the same period.The outperformance was attributed largely to the overweight position taken in the banking sector, though the performance of Jaguar and Land Rover owner Tata Motors also contributed handily."Investors can expect more volatility from the (Indian) stock market, but the longer term economic and geopolitical prospects are stronger than ever," claimed the trust's investment managers, Ted Pulling, Raj Nair and Rukhshad Shroff.The investment managers noted that on a price/earnings ratio (PER) of around 16, the Indian stock market "looks fully valued" in comparison to other Asian markets, which trade on a PER of 13 or less, but added that India "deserves a higher valuation given its structurally higher return on equity and consistently higher earnings growth driven by consumption and investment."Total income for the year rose to £158.63m from £125.1m the year before. Profit before tax jumped to £150.8m from £120.4m.