Jefferies ‘Greed And Fear’ Report: Chris Wood Adds MakeMyTrip, Zomato, RIL, Reducing Weightage In SBI, HDFC Bank

As per the recent Greed and Fear note by Chris Wood, Global Head of Equity Strategy at Jefferies, shared information on the latest long-only portfolio readjustments, with a major focus on domestic real estate, banks, non-banking financial companies (NBFC), metals, autos and more.

Betting Big on Digital, Travel Boom

One of the most notable changes was the introduction of MakeMyTrip Ltd., an online travel firm, into the global long-only equity portfolio. The company has been allocated a 4 per cent weighting by replacing Axis Bank from the portfolio.

Zomato Ltd, an online food delivery platform, stood out as another winner in this reshuffle. Jefferies had raised its holding in Zomato by one percentage point. This reshuffle has been balanced by reducing exposure to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), indicating a shift in priority toward high-growth internet stocks.

This announcement came shortly after Zomato was included in the Nifty 50 index on March 27, 2025. Zomato share price closed in the red, down 2.46 per cent at Rs 201.20, on NSE, on March 28.

Real Estate Sector Shake-Up

Wood has made substantial changes in the Indian real estate space. Godrej Properties Ltd. has been removed from the Asia ex-Japan long-only portfolio, with its capital redirected to Macrotech Developers Ltd., which held a 4 per cent weighting. Additionally, realty major DLF was added to the portfolio with a 3 per cent allocation.

Macrotech Developers' share price closed in the green today, up 3.58 per cent, at Rs 1,196.90, on NSE.

In the India long-only portfolio, Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL) saw a two-percentage-point increase in allocation, indicating a bullish outlook on the conglomerate’s diverse business model spanning energy, telecom, and retail. To balance this shift, investments in HDFC Bank Ltd. and State Bank of India (SBI) have each been trimmed by one percentage point.

RIL share price closed in the red, down 0.33 per cent at Rs 1,274, on March 28, on NSE. SBI share price closed marginally low as well during the same period, down 0.14 per cent at Rs 771.20, on NSE. Additionally, HDFC Bank's share price showed a flat note, up 0.01 per cent at Rs 1,825.5.

The decision to pare down bank holdings came as interest rate cycles near a peak, potentially impacting net interest margins. Meanwhile, Reliance continued to expand aggressively into e-commerce, green energy, along digital services.

Jefferies’ strategy note also offered broader information on the sectoral inclinations of the brokerage firm. The brokerage remained underweight on information technology (IT) and pharmaceutical stocks, citing global economic uncertainty and margin pressures. Meanwhile, banks, NBFCs, metals, autos, property, and power companies continue to be preferred plays.

The Nifty 50 index has recovered up to 6.6 per cent in this March, inching towards 23,600 levels. The Nifty CPSE Index also increased by around 14 per cent.