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Alchemy High Growth Strategy: Investment Philosophy, Portfolio Construction & Performance

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Alchemy High Growth Strategy

Alchemy High Growth (AHG) is an equity-focused investment strategy designed to generate long-term returns by investing across market capitalizations using a growth-oriented investment philosophy.

The strategy combines:

  • top-down research
  • bottom-up stock selection
  • long-term investing discipline
  • portfolio risk management

The investment approach focuses on identifying:

  • growth businesses
  • scalable companies
  • quality management teams
  • businesses with strong capital efficiency

Alchemy High Growth (AHG)

Investment Objective

To generate long-term returns by investing in:

  • equities
  • equity-related instruments
  • companies across all market capitalizations

Investment Philosophy & Strategy

Alchemy’s investment philosophy is based on:

  • “Growth at Reasonable Price”

The philosophy assumes:

  • India is a high-growth economy
  • India has a strong entrepreneurial culture

The strategy aims to identify and invest in growth companies through:

  • top-down research
  • bottom-up fundamental analysis

The objective is long-term wealth creation through disciplined investing.


Fund Management

  • Fund Manager: Alok Agarwal

Securities & Investment Horizon

Type of Securities

  • Equity

Investment Horizon

  • 3 to 5 Years

Risk Profile

  • High Risk

Portfolio Allocation

  • Up to 100% allocation in equity
  • Cash portion may be invested in:
    • liquid funds
    • debt securities

Portfolio Construction

A typical portfolio may generally consist of:

  • maximum 25 stocks
  • diversified sector exposure

Alchemy High Growth (AHG) – Product Highlights

1. Relevant Universe

A relevant universe of approximately 500 companies is identified based on:

  • market capitalization
  • governance filters
  • long-term attractiveness
  • ROE profile
  • qualitative parameters

2. Investible Universe

The investible universe is created through assessment of:

  • revenue growth
  • EBITDA growth
  • cash flow conversion efficiency
  • core ROE
  • business-specific variables

Additional evaluation includes:

  • management quality
  • governance standards
  • competitive positioning

Valuation Framework

Valuation analysis may include:

  • P/E
  • P/B
  • EV/EBITDA
  • DCF valuation

The objective is to identify acceptable valuation ranges for investment.


3. Portfolio Construction

The Portfolio Manager constructs portfolios from the investible universe based on:

  • investment conviction
  • portfolio positioning
  • valuation comfort

Benchmark

  • S&P BSE 500 TRI (effective April 1, 2023)

Basis for Benchmark Selection

As per APMI Circular APMI/2022-23/02 dated March 23, 2023.


Alchemy High Growth – April 2024

Key Highlights

  • Group AUM exceeds USD 1.1 Billion
  • INR 1 crore invested in May 2002 could have grown to over INR 58.6 crores
  • Outperformed benchmark in 14 out of 22 calendar years
  • Generated annualized alpha of +305 bps (INR returns)

Alchemy High Growth Performance Highlights

Alchemy High Growth Performance Highlights

Portfolio Performance Overview

Alchemy High Growth Portfolio Performance

Portfolio Composition & Analysis

Portfolio Composition and Analysis

Our Investment Philosophy

Long-Term Investing

The investment philosophy focuses on generating:

  • consistent long-term returns
  • superior absolute returns
  • performance across market cycles

The strategy invests in:

  • growth-oriented companies
  • scalable businesses
  • strong management teams

Business Selection Criteria

Preferred businesses generally have:

  • large growth opportunities
  • competitive advantages
  • scalable business models
  • higher-than-average ROCE

Management Assessment

Management quality is considered critical.

The framework evaluates:

  • business aggression
  • governance standards
  • capital allocation discipline
  • alignment with business outcomes

Tactical Investment Opportunities

While growth businesses form the portfolio core, the strategy may also invest in:

  • deep value opportunities
  • special situations
  • cyclical market opportunities

3I Matrix: Idea, Investment, Intervention

3I Matrix

Idea Generation

Idea Generation Process

Investment Process

Investment Process

Intervention: Investment Team

Investment Team Structure

Intervention: Risk Management

Firm Level Risk Management

  • Performance pattern analysis
  • Dedicated pre-trade and post-trade checks
  • Ongoing internal reviews
  • Compliance and legal monitoring
  • Business risk management by CEO

Portfolio Level Risk Management

  • Daily monitoring by operations team
  • Monthly benchmark comparison reviews
  • CIO review meetings with fund managers
  • Monthly contribution analysis
  • Portfolio positioning discussions and action plans

Security Level Risk Management

  • Sectoral exposure limits
  • Individual stock exposure limits
  • Ownership monitoring at strategy level
  • Position limit monitoring by operations team

Intervention: Investment Committee

Committee Members

  • CEO
  • CIO
  • COO
  • Fund Managers
  • Business Heads
  • Head of Research

Investment Committee Responsibilities

The committee focuses on:

  • macroeconomic review
  • performance tracking
  • contribution analysis
  • outlier management
  • exception reporting
  • priority action planning

Macro View Analysis

The investment team evaluates:

  • macroeconomic changes
  • microeconomic developments
  • future market expectations

Fund Performance Review

Each fund manager reviews:

  • portfolio positioning
  • macro and micro impacts
  • underperforming positions
  • event triggers
  • corrective actions

Risk Monitoring

An in-depth contribution analysis is conducted to review:

  • outperformers
  • underperformers
  • portfolio positioning
  • future action plans

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is Alchemy High Growth Strategy?

Alchemy High Growth Strategy is an equity-focused portfolio management strategy designed to generate long-term returns through growth investing across market capitalizations.


What investment philosophy does the strategy follow?

The strategy follows a “Growth at Reasonable Price” investment philosophy focused on identifying scalable businesses with long-term growth potential.


What is the portfolio size?

The portfolio generally consists of up to 25 stocks across sectors.


What benchmark is used for the strategy?

The benchmark used is the S&P BSE 500 TRI.


The recommended investment horizon is 3–5 years.


Who manages the Alchemy High Growth Strategy?

The strategy is managed by Alok Agarwal.


Final Thoughts

Alchemy High Growth Strategy combines:

  • growth investing
  • bottom-up stock selection
  • top-down research
  • disciplined portfolio construction
  • active risk management

The strategy focuses on long-term wealth creation through scalable businesses and active portfolio management.