Monthly factor report · India

India Factor Report — August 2026

How the major equity style factors — value, momentum, quality and low volatility — are performing in India, tracked through their flagship NSE factor indices. Free, and updated every month.

Trailing 1-year total return Data as of 28 Aug 2026

The factor scoreboard

Ranked by trailing 1-year total return. Each factor is represented by its flagship NSE index (tracked via a low-cost index fund, Direct Plan). Nifty 50 is shown as the broad-market baseline.

1
Value LeaderNifty500 Value 50
+19.2%
2
MomentumNifty500 Momentum 50
+12.2%
3
Low VolatilityNifty500 Low Volatility 50
+2.9%
4
Quality LaggardNifty200 Quality 30
+2.1%
—
Broad market (baseline)Nifty 50
−0.1%

What led, what lagged

Value extended its lead for a second month. Over the trailing year the Nifty500 Value 50 returned about +19% — up from +17% last month — while the broad Nifty 50 finished essentially flat at −0.1%. That is a spread of roughly 19 percentage points between the best-performing style and the index. Cheaply-valued cyclicals, PSUs and capital-goods names again did the heavy lifting.

Momentum was the month's biggest mover. It came into August last of the four at +1.3% and left it second at +12.2% — a swing of nearly eleven points in a single month, as the trending names that had stalled through the spring re-accelerated. The two defensive styles went the other way: Low Volatility fell from +6.7% to +2.9%, and Quality from +3.4% to +2.1%, which now sits last of the four.

The one-line takeaway for August 2026: value led again, momentum came back hardest, and all four factors finished ahead of a flat Nifty 50. Factor leadership rotates — which is exactly why a rules-based, multi-factor process beats betting the house on a single style.

How MindForge uses factors

Our strategies are built on these same style factors — combined, risk-weighted and rebalanced monthly, so no single factor's bad year sinks the book.

Momentum & trendThe core engine of LargeMidcap 250 and SmallMicro 500 — ranking on multi-window momentum and a trend filter.
Low volatilityA volatility screen down-weights the most erratic names, so the concentrated books don't chase blow-off risk.
Quality & value tilts52-week strength and liquidity/relative-value checks keep the picks in resilient, tradable companies.
Multi-asset rotationMultiAsset rotates across equity, gold, silver and debt ETFs on momentum + volatility — factor investing beyond just stocks.
See the strategies these factors power →

Report archive

Every month's edition, kept for the record.

Methodology & sources

Each factor is represented by its flagship NSE factor index, measured through a low-cost index fund tracking that index (Direct Plan). Returns are trailing 1-year total returns as of the date shown, so every factor is compared on the same clock. Nifty 50 is the broad-market baseline.

  • Value — Nifty500 Value 50 (UTI Nifty 500 Value 50 Index Fund)
  • Low Volatility — Nifty500 Low Volatility 50 (Nippon India Nifty 500 Low Volatility 50 Index Fund)
  • Momentum — Nifty500 Momentum 50 (Nippon India Nifty 500 Momentum 50 Index Fund)
  • Quality — Nifty200 Quality 30 (UTI Nifty200 Quality 30 Index Fund)
  • Baseline — Nifty 50 (UTI Nifty 50 Index Fund)
  • Trailing 1-year returns computed from official AMFI daily NAVs (Direct Plan, Growth) — 29 Aug 2025 → 28 Aug 2026, the latest published NAV date.

Factor and index returns are historical and will change. This report is educational commentary, not investment advice or a recommendation of any index, fund or security. Past performance does not guarantee future results.