Emerging Bluechips

Mid Caps have turned trendy, just like the youngsters. Guided and invested in by funds, these companies, some of them doubtful starters till a few months or years ago, have come into their own. So much so that some of these are now ready to take on the market adults, the large caps. As part of the Value Research trend-spotting, we bring you the stocks which are now everybody's babies. First, we have shortlisted the stocks which have been there for quite some time, say for over one year. The list could have been more exhaustive but for the fact that we have dumped those companies which turned large caps. For example we did not include Siemens, which was a mid-cap company till five years back (Rs 670 crore market cap). Even in December 2004, it remained a mid cap though its market cap (Rs 4,380 crore) went up significantly. Over the years it turned too big to be accommodated in our list. Siemens now figures in Nifty Fifty with a market cap of over Rs 19,000 crore. Then we also did not highlight stocks in which there were less than 10 funds had invested. So passing through all this rigour, we finally zeroed in on to 12 mid cap stocks, which are high on funds and FII radar. We start with Kalpataru Power, in which the funds and FIIs have gone high octane. Kalpataru Power is a leading player in design, testing, fabrication, erection and construction of transmission lines and substation structures. The government's ambitious Rs 1,70,000 crore planned investment by 2012 for rural electrification has thrown up opportunities for players like Kalpataru. A healthy order book of Rs 2,000 crore, high margins and the entry into the pipeline contracting business hold great prospects for the company. The export opportunities in the Middle East are expected to boost the order flow. With its entry into biomass power generation and pipeline infrastructure projects, the company is slowly diversifying, without diluting its core competence. This is one company where FII and mutual fund interest has been the largest. The FIIs increased their holding in the company by 154 per cent in the September quarter over June quarter. Similarly the funds also more than doubled their holding in the stock from a mere 3.65 per cent in June quarter to 8 per cent in September quarter. India Cements is the other fancied stock. Key reasons for the new charm - the sector outlook, rising capacity and increased cost efficiency. With the cement sector on an upswing, most players are expanding capacities and India Cements is no exception. The company has been able to reduce its power and fuel costs by using more captive power and better conservation of energy. This has pushed the stock to around Rs 24