In recent years, a new route to Investing directly in companies has opened up through Corporate Bonds. Corporate bond funds are essentially a certificate of debt issued by major companies. These are issued as a way of raising money for businesses. Corporate bond funds are a great option when it comes to good return and low-risk type investment. Investors can earn a regular Income which is usually higher than that you would get as interest on your Fixed Deposits (FDs).
Companies that have a threat of going bust also usually offer higher interest rates. Investors who are keen to invest in corporate bond funds can consider the following schemes to invest in.
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Fund NAV Net Assets (Cr) Rating 3 MO (%) 6 MO (%) 1 YR (%) 3 YR (%) 2024 (%) Debt Yield (YTM) Mod. Duration Eff. Maturity Exit Load Aditya Birla Sun Life Corporate Bond Fund Growth ₹113.311
↓ -0.16 ₹28,598 ☆☆☆☆☆ -0.1 3.7 7.7 7.5 8.5 6.9% 4Y 6M 11D 6Y 10M 17D NIL HDFC Corporate Bond Fund Growth ₹32.71
↓ -0.05 ₹35,968 ☆☆☆☆☆ 0 3.9 7.8 7.5 8.6 6.88% 4Y 2M 12D 6Y 9M 11D NIL ICICI Prudential Corporate Bond Fund Growth ₹30.0807
↓ -0.03 ₹33,574 ☆☆☆☆ 0.8 4.3 8.1 7.8 8 6.78% 2Y 5M 26D 4Y 6M 29D NIL Kotak Corporate Bond Fund Standard Growth ₹3,801.18
↓ -4.69 ₹17,811 ☆☆☆☆ 0.5 4.3 8.2 7.5 8.3 6.83% 3Y 3M 4D 4Y 11M 16D NIL Sundaram Corporate Bond Fund Growth ₹40.4553
↓ -0.05 ₹798 ☆☆☆ 0.5 4.3 8 7.2 8 6.65% 3Y 1M 6D 4Y 3M 22D NIL Note: Returns up to 1 year are on absolute basis & more than 1 year are on CAGR basis. as on 26 Aug 25 Research Highlights & Commentary of 5 Funds showcased
Commentary Aditya Birla Sun Life Corporate Bond Fund HDFC Corporate Bond Fund ICICI Prudential Corporate Bond Fund Kotak Corporate Bond Fund Standard Sundaram Corporate Bond Fund Point 1 Lower mid AUM (₹28,598 Cr). Highest AUM (₹35,968 Cr). Upper mid AUM (₹33,574 Cr). Bottom quartile AUM (₹17,811 Cr). Bottom quartile AUM (₹798 Cr). Point 2 Oldest track record among peers (28 yrs). Established history (15+ yrs). Established history (16+ yrs). Established history (17+ yrs). Established history (20+ yrs). Point 3 Top rated. Rating: 5★ (upper mid). Rating: 4★ (lower mid). Rating: 4★ (bottom quartile). Rating: 3★ (bottom quartile). Point 4 Risk profile: Moderately Low. Risk profile: Moderately Low. Risk profile: Moderately Low. Risk profile: Moderately Low. Risk profile: Moderately Low. Point 5 1Y return: 7.69% (bottom quartile). 1Y return: 7.81% (bottom quartile). 1Y return: 8.11% (upper mid). 1Y return: 8.16% (top quartile). 1Y return: 8.05% (lower mid). Point 6 1M return: -0.52% (bottom quartile). 1M return: -0.43% (bottom quartile). 1M return: -0.05% (top quartile). 1M return: -0.24% (lower mid). 1M return: -0.18% (upper mid). Point 7 Sharpe: 1.54 (bottom quartile). Sharpe: 1.46 (bottom quartile). Sharpe: 2.12 (top quartile). Sharpe: 1.80 (upper mid). Sharpe: 1.55 (lower mid). Point 8 Information ratio: 0.00 (top quartile). Information ratio: 0.00 (upper mid). Information ratio: 0.00 (lower mid). Information ratio: 0.00 (bottom quartile). Information ratio: 0.00 (bottom quartile). Point 9 Yield to maturity (debt): 6.90% (top quartile). Yield to maturity (debt): 6.88% (upper mid). Yield to maturity (debt): 6.78% (bottom quartile). Yield to maturity (debt): 6.83% (lower mid). Yield to maturity (debt): 6.65% (bottom quartile). Point 10 Modified duration: 4.53 yrs (bottom quartile). Modified duration: 4.20 yrs (bottom quartile). Modified duration: 2.49 yrs (top quartile). Modified duration: 3.26 yrs (lower mid). Modified duration: 3.10 yrs (upper mid). Aditya Birla Sun Life Corporate Bond Fund
HDFC Corporate Bond Fund
ICICI Prudential Corporate Bond Fund
Kotak Corporate Bond Fund Standard
Sundaram Corporate Bond Fund
Fincash has employed the following parameters for shortlisting the top performing funds:
Past Returns: Return analysis of last 3 years.
Parameters & Weights: Information ratio with some modifications for our ratings and rankings.
Qualitative & Quantitative Analysis: Quantitative measures like Average Maturity, Credit Quality, Expense Ratio, Sharpe Ratio, Sortino Ratio, Alpa, including fund age and the size of the fund has been considered. Qualitative analysis like the reputation of the fund along with the fund manager is one of the important parameters that you would see in the listed funds.
Asset Size: The minimum AUM criteria for debt mutual fund are INR 100 Crores with some exceptions at times for new funds that are doing well in the Market.
Performance with Respect to Benchmark: Peer average.
Some of the important tips to consider while investing in corporate bond funds are:
Investment Tenure: Investors planning to invest in corporate bond funds should stay invested for minimum three years.
Invest via a SIP: SIP or Systematic Investment plan is the most efficient way to invest in a Mutual Fund. They not only provide a systematic way of investing, but also ensures regular investment growth. You can invest in a SIP with an amount as low as INR 500.