Axis ESG Integration Strategy Fund
Direct · GrowthAI Summary
Axis ESG Integration Strategy Fund has delivered mixed performance, with a 3Y SIP XIRR of 12.18% lagging the category average of 16.17% and a 1Y XIRR of 6.9% well below the category's 10.56%. Against the NIFTY 50, the fund shows a modest 3Y alpha of 1.66%, though 1Y and 5Y alphas are negative at -1.00% and -1.27% respectively. The fund's downside capture consistently below 100% (75.38% over 15Y) indicates it has protected capital better than the index in corrections.
The fund exhibits defensive risk characteristics, with beta declining from 0.86 (1Y) to 0.71 (10Y+) and downside capture at 75.38-85.53% across periods, meaning it falls less than the market. Three drawdown events exceeding 10% have occurred, and a long recovery cycle of 517 days from the maximum drawdown suggests patience is required after corrections. Calmar ratios of 0.51-0.62 across 1Y-5Y windows indicate moderate risk-adjusted returns.
The portfolio is diversified across 44 holdings, led by a significant banking allocation of 20.3% with State Bank of India (6.17%), HDFC Bank (4.87%), ICICI Bank (3.67%) and Axis Bank (3.63%) among the top 10. No single stock exceeds 6.17% of NAV, and the top 10 holdings collectively are moderately sized, limiting concentration risk. Sector exposure beyond banks is spread across IT (7.5%), Consumer Durables (7.1%), Pharma (6.6%) and Finance (6.4%), providing reasonable thematic balance.
The fund trails sectoral/thematic peers meaningfully on SIP XIRR, with a 5Y figure of 10.4% versus the category average of 17.43% and a 3Y figure of 12.18% versus 16.17%. Its large-cap-heavy, low-beta structure makes it behave more like a diversified conservative fund than an aggressive thematic bet, which may explain the return gap. Long-term alpha versus NIFTY 50 is positive (1.13% over 10Y, 2.50% over 7Y), but this has not translated into category-leading returns.
This fund suits conservative investors seeking an ESG-oriented large-cap style portfolio with lower volatility than typical thematic funds, rather than those chasing sectoral outperformance. A time horizon of 5-7 years or more is appropriate given the extended drawdown recovery of 517 days and recent calendar-year losses in 2022 and 2026. Investors should accept that it may underperform peers during strong bull markets, given upside capture of 79-87%.
- Consistently low downside capture (75.38% over 15Y) and beta near 0.71, cushioning losses in market corrections
- Diversified 44-stock portfolio with top-10 holdings capped below 6.17% of NAV and balanced sector spread beyond the 20.3% banking allocation
- Positive alpha versus NIFTY 50 over longer horizons, including 2.50% over 7Y and 1.13% over 10Y
- Material underperformance versus category SIP XIRR averages across all horizons, with the 5Y gap at 7 percentage points (10.4% vs 17.43%)
- Recent weak returns, including -10.37% in calendar 2026 and a negative 1Y alpha of -1.00%, alongside a lengthy 517-day drawdown recovery period
Generated on 01-11-2026, 3:00 AM. Verify before investing.
Gives more importance to longer time periods (10Y, 20Y) than shorter ones (1Y, 3Y). This balances out recent outperformance and gives a more realistic picture of what long-term returns might look like.
The largest peak-to-trough decline in the fund's NAV. Shows the worst-case loss an investor would have experienced at any point in the fund's history.
If you invested ₹1,00,000 every month via SIP, here's how this fund has historically performed across different time horizons.
| Duration | Invested | Median Value | XIRR | Min XIRR | Max XIRR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Year | ₹12.00 L | ₹12.50 L | 14.9% | -32.4% | 78.3% |
| 3 Years | ₹36.00 L | ₹42.75 L | 11.7% | -3.2% | 27.4% |
| 5 Years | ₹60.00 L | ₹79.39 L | 10.5% | 4.0% | 17.6% |
SIP returns vs benchmark & category
Annualised SIP return (XIRR) over each rolling horizon — like-for-like, not lump-sum.
| Duration | Fund SIP XIRR | NIFTY 50 | Category avg | Fund edge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Year | 14.9% | 14.3% | 10.6% | +0.6% |
| 3 Years | 11.7% | 11.0% | 16.2% | +0.7% |
| 5 Years | 10.5% | 10.4% | 17.4% | +0.1% |
| Duration | Mean | Median | Min | Max | Sharpe | Sortino | % Positive | Cat. Mean | Cat. Median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Year | 15.0% | 9.6% | -16.4% | 70.8% | 0.44 | 1.24 | 72% | — | — |
| 3 Years | 13.4% | 13.2% | 7.1% | 22.2% | 2.35 | — | 100% | — | — |
| 5 Years | 12.4% | 12.0% | 3.7% | 21.2% | 1.30 | 10.84 | 100% | — | — |
Calmar Ratio by Duration
Compared against NIFTY 50
| Duration | Alpha | Beta | Upside Capture | Downside Capture | Fund CAGR | Bench CAGR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Year | -1.97 | 0.85 | 84.1% | 85.5% | -10.3% | -10.9% |
| 3 Years | +1.29 | 0.83 | 86.5% | 83.6% | 7.7% | 6.4% |
| 5 Years | -1.38 | 0.82 | 81.8% | 82.1% | 4.0% | 5.2% |
| 7 Years | +2.35 | 0.71 | 79.0% | 75.4% | 11.1% | 9.6% |
| 10 Years | +1.03 | 0.71 | 79.0% | 75.4% | 7.6% | 6.6% |
| 12 Years | +0.53 | 0.71 | 79.0% | 75.4% | 6.3% | 5.5% |
| 15 Years | +0.04 | 0.71 | 79.0% | 75.4% | 5.0% | 4.4% |
| # | Stock | % of NAV |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Reliance Industries Limited | 8.25% |
| 2 | Clean Max Enviro Energy Solutions Limited | 6.94% |
| 3 | ICICI Bank Limited | 6.21% |
| 4 | Bajaj Finance Limited | 5.66% |
| 5 | Titan Company Limited | 5.08% |
| 6 | Shriram Finance Limited | 4.29% |
| 7 | Axis Bank Limited | 3.70% |
| 8 | Piramal Finance Limited | 3.05% |
| 9 | Pidilite Industries Limited | 2.95% |
| 10 | PVR INOX Limited | 2.80% |