Mutual funds are generally meant for long-term investing. But some equity schemes can deliver impressive returns in a much shorter period when the sectors and stocks they hold perform strongly.
Six equity mutual funds delivered more than 30% returns in the past one year, with the best performer generating a return of 42.39%, according to Value Research data.
SBI Automotive Opportunities Fund topped the list, followed by TRUSTMF Small Cap Fund, HDFC Defence Fund, Motilal Oswal Active Momentum Fund, Aditya Birla Sun Life Manufacturing Equity Fund and Aditya Birla Sun Life Transportation and Logistics Fund.
However, the list reveals more than just a group of high-return funds. Most of the schemes have exposure to a specific sector, theme or investment style. Auto, defence, manufacturing, transportation and momentum were among the areas that powered the gains.
For investors, this is an important distinction. Strong one-year returns can come from concentrated bets that work in the right market cycle. The same concentration can also increase the risk of sharp losses when the cycle turns.
Here’s a look at the funds that topped the charts, their one-year returns compared to their respective benchmark and category.
Best mutual funds in 1 year with returns over 30%
The table below shows that six mutual funds delivered more than 30% returns over the one year, with the SBI Automotive Opportunities Fund – Direct Plan emerging as the top performer with a 42.39% return. The returns also came with significant outperformance over respective benchmarks.
| Funds | 1 Year Returns In % | Benchmark Returns In % | Category Average Returns In % | Returns Since Inception |
| SBI Automotive Opportunities Fund – Direct Plan | 42.39 | 25.12 | 24.98 | 16.09 |
| TRUSTMF Small Cap Fund – Direct Plan | 34.27 | 8.65 | 15.29 | 19.09 |
| HDFC Defence Fund – Direct Plan | 33.06 | 5.19 | – | 42.73 |
| Motilal Oswal Active Momentum Fund – Direct Plan | 31.03 | 5.19 | – | 27.96 |
| Aditya Birla Sun Life Manufacturing Equity Fund – Direct Plan | 30.48 | 10.64 | 20.2 | 13.85 |
| Aditya Birla Sun Life Transportation and Logistics Fund – Direct Plan | 30.18 | 25.12 | 24.98 | 24.41 |
Source: Value Research as of 10th August 2026
SBI Automotive Opportunities Fund
This sectoral fund from SBI was launched on June 07, 2024. Tanmaya Desai is the current fund manager of SBI Automotive Opportunities Fund, which has an expense ratio of 0.73%.
Benchmark: BSE Auto TRI
Top sector-wise holdings: Consumer Discretionary, Industrials, and Materials.
Top 5 stock holdings: Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki, Eicher Motors, TVS Motor, and Bharat Forge.
Risk profile: The fund does not yet have the minimum historical track record required to calculate the risk metrics. Fund-rating platforms like Value Research calculate these measures using a rolling three-year history or require a minimum number of observations. Since the fund was launched in June 2024, it has not yet completed three years of performance history.
TRUSTMF Small Cap Fund
This small cap fund from TRUST Mutual Fund was launched on November 04, 2024. Mihir Vora, Aakash Manghani and Saurabh Kataria are the current fund managers of TRUSTMF Small Cap Fund, which has an expense ratio of 0.45%.
Benchmark: BSE 250 SmallCap TRI
Top 5 sector-wise holdings: Consumer Discretionary, Financial, Industrials, Healthcare, and Materials.
Top 5 stock-wise holdings: Federal Bank, Cemindia Projects, MCX, Sansera Eng and City Union Bank.
Risk profile: The fund does not yet have the minimum historical track record required to calculate the risk metrics. Platforms such as Value Research generally use a rolling three-year performance history, and since the fund was launched on November 04, 2024, it has not yet completed the required period.
HDFC Defence Fund
This thematic fund from HDFC Fund House was launched on June 02, 2023. Rahul Baijal and Priya Ranjan are the current fund managers of HDFC Defence Fund, which has an expense ratio of 0.72%.
Benchmark: BSE 500 TRI
Top sector-wise holdings: Industrials, Consumer Discretionary, Materials, and Technology
Top 5 stock holdings: Bharat Forge, Bharat Electronics, Hindustan Aero, Solar, and Astra Microwave.
Risk profile:
| Standard Deviation (%) | Sharpe (%) | Sortino (%) | Beta (%) | Alpha (%) | |
| HDFC Defence Dir | 31.18 | 1.04 | 1.75 | 1.6 | 21.88 |
| BSE 500 TRI | 15.22 | 0.44 | 0.56 | — | — |
A higher standard deviation indicates greater volatility, and the fund’s figure is considerably above the BSE 500 TRI’s 15.22%.
The Sortino ratio of 1.75 is even higher, suggesting that the fund’s returns have been strong relative to its downside volatility.
HDFC Defence Fund’s historical numbers show strong returns and favourable risk-adjusted performance, but with substantially higher volatility.
Motilal Oswal Active Momentum Fund
On March 17, 2025, Motilal Oswal Mutual Fund introduced this thematic fund. The current fund managers of the Motilal Oswal Active Momentum Fund, which has an expense ratio of 1.85%, are Bhalchandra Shinde, Varun Sharma, Ajay Khandelwal, Vishal Ashar, and Rakesh Shetty.
Benchmark: BSE 500 TRI
Top 5 sector-wise holdings: Industrials, Financial, Materials, Technology and Consumer Discretionary.
Top 5 stock holdings: Ola Electric Mobility, Interglobe Aviation, Sterlite Tech, Garware Hi-Tech, and Aditya Infotech.
Risk profile: The fund does not yet have the minimum historical track record required to calculate these risk metrics. Platforms such as Value Research generally assess these parameters using a rolling three-year performance history. Since the fund was launched on March 17, 2025, it has not yet completed the required three-year period.
Aditya Birla Sun Life Manufacturing Equity Fund
This thematic fund from Aditya Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund was launched on January 31, 2015. Dhaval Joshi is the current fund manager of Aditya Birla Sun Life Manufacturing Equity Fund. The fund has a higher expense ratio of 1.07%.
Benchmark: BSE India Manufacturing TRI
Top 5 sector-wise holdings: Consumer Discretionary, Industrials, Materials, Healthcare and Energy & Utilities.
Top 5 stock holdings: Cummins India, Reliance Ind, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Steel and Sansera Eng.
Risk profile:
| Std Dev (%) | Sharpe (%) | Sortino (%) | Beta (%) | Alpha (%) | |
| ABSL Manufacturing Equity Dir | 17.67 | 0.84 | 1.24 | 0.99 | 7.02 |
| BSE India Manufacturing TRI | 15.16 | 0.52 | 0.66 | — | — |
| Equity: Thematic-Manufacturing | 17.28 | 0.84 | 1.11 | 1.01 | 6.47 |
Standard deviation, which measures the volatility of returns, stood at 17.67% for the fund, compared with 15.16% for the benchmark. This means the fund’s returns have fluctuated more than the benchmark.
The fund’s Sharpe ratio of 0.84 is higher than the benchmark’s 0.52, indicating that the fund generated better excess returns relative to the volatility undertaken, whereas the Sortino ratio of 1.24, compared with 0.66 for the benchmark, also indicates stronger historical returns relative to downside volatility.
Aditya Birla Sun Life Transportation and Logistics Fund
This sectoral fund from Aditya Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund was launched on November 17, 2023. Dhaval Shah is the current fund manager of Aditya Birla Sun Life Transportation and Logistics Fund. The fund has an expense ratio of 0.71%.
Benchmark: BSE Auto TRI
Top 5 sector-wise holdings: Consumer Discretionary, Industrials, Technology and Materials.
Top 5 stock-wise holdings: Mahindra & Mahindra, Eternal, Eicher Motors, TVS Motor and Interglobe Aviation.
Risk profile: The fund has not yet completed the minimum three-year track record generally required by platforms such as Value Research to calculate the risk metrics. Since it was launched on November 17, 2023, the required period is yet to be completed.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as investment advice. Mutual fund investments are subject to market risks. Please read all scheme-related documents carefully before investing.
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