In 2024, 36 per cent of companies in the broadbased BSE 200 index (69 out of 192) delivered returns of 30 per cent or more. By comparison, only 18 per cent of companies in the index have delivered returns of 30 per cent or more in 2025 so far. For equity investors, the reversal is striking. Of the 69 BSE 200 stocks that gained 30 per cent or more in 2024, as many as 39 have posted negative returns in 2025 so far. The stocks that ran the fastest last year have fallen the hardest this year. Similarly, 16 of the 35 stocks that are up 30 per cent or more year-to-date in 2025 delivered negative or flat returns in 2024. (See chart)
This pattern might tempt investors to rotate portfolios annually — booking profits in outperformers and shifting into laggards — in the hope of beating the broader market. Below are five stocks each from the BSE 200 that have outperformed and underperformed the benchmark by the widest margins in 2025 so far.
TOP GAINER
Aditya Birla Capital
* Non-bank financial company Aditya Birla Capital Ltd (ABCL) has been the top gainer among the BSE 200 companies in the current calendar year
* The Aditya Birla group firm’s stock price has nearly doubled in 2025 on expectation of a faster recovery in its earnings after three rate cuts by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in the current calendar year
* The company’s revenue and earnings, however, have struggled to grow in recent quarters due to a slowdown in its life insurance business and losses at its health insurance and other non-lending businesses
* In the second quarter of 2025-26 (Q2FY26), consolidated revenues were up just 2.6 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y), while net profit was down 14.1 per cent Y-o-Y
* Brokerages though expect a faster recovery in ABCL’s operational metrics driven by healthy growth in housing finance and general lending segments and a further improvement in asset quality
* TVS Motor is the best performing two-wheeler major with returns of about 55 per cent over past year
* The company continues to outperform its peers. It posted domestic volume growth of 14 per cent compared to 2 per cent gain year-to-date in the two-wheeler sector. It gained 190 basis points market share to 18.8 per cent during this period
* The demand outlook remains positive supported by GST rate cuts and improving rural sentiment among other macroeconomic tailwinds
* The company expects commodity costs to be softer in Q3 compared to Q2 while pricing discipline, favourable product mix and material cost saving initiatives are likely to support margin expansion. A sharp rise in commodity prices is a risk though for the sector
Maruti Suzuki
* The country’s largest passenger car maker posted a gain of 54 per cent on the bourses over the last year
* Maruti Suzuki is among the key beneficiaries of the cuts in GST with the rate on small passenger vehicles reduced from 28 per cent to 18 per cent
* Maruti’s two new launches, eVitara and Victoris are expected to strengthen its presence in the high growth utility vehicle segment
* Its presence across powertrains, including internal combustion engine (petrol), hybrid, compressed natural gas or CNG and electric vehicles, are key to helping regain long-term market share target of 50 per cent
* With a return of 61 per cent, the country’s second largest commercial vehicle (CV) player was the top gainer in the largecap auto space
* The second half of FY26 is set for robust growth, aided by the positive impact of GST 2.0 and a post-monsoon revival in mining, construction, and infrastructure capex
* Healthy fleet utilisation, firm freight rates, easing inflation, and accelerating government spending is expected to further support demand for CVs
* The Hinduja group firm has significantly reduced business cyclicality by diversifying into higher-margin, less cyclical segments with nearly 50 per cent of revenue now derived from non-truck businesses
* The country’s largest agricultural chemicals major enriched investors by 55 per cent over the past year
* UPL delivered a strong revenue and operating performance in the September quarter (Q2) boosting the Street’s confidence about the rally
* The operating profit was up a sharp 40 per cent on the back of favourable product mix, low cost inventory, and better absorption of fixed cost
* A strong Q2 show led the management to raise its FY26 operating profit outlook to 12-16 per cent growth from the earlier 10-14 per cent growth
* Possibility of price increases going ahead is expected to support UPL’s margin performance
TOP LOSER
* The fashion and lifestyle retailer, Trent has been the top underperformer among BSE 200 companies weighed down by slowdown in consumer demand and high valuations
* The stock is down 41 per cent YTD, erasing nearly 70 per cent of the market cap gains made by the company in CY24
* The decline in stock price has coincided with a sharp growth deceleration in Trent’s revenues and earnings in FY26 after two years of high double digit growth
* Trent’s consolidated net sales were up 15.9 per cent Y-o-Y in Q2FY26 while net profits were up 11.3 per cent Y-o-Y, its worst show in the last 18 quarters
* Growth slowdown has led to earnings downgrade with Axis Securities cutting Trent’s FY27 estimated net profit by 15 per cent post its Q2FY26 results
* Brokerages however maintain their ‘buy’ rating, given likely gains from store additions and company’s foray into new retail formats
Oracle Financial Services Software
* IT Services exporter Oracle Financial Services Software (OFSS) has been the biggest underperformer in its industry with 39 per cent YTD decline in its share price
* The underperformance has been driven by a slowdown in OFSS’s revenues and earnings in recent quarters
* In Q2FY26, OFSS’s net sales were up just 6.9 per cent Y-o-Y, while its net profit was down 5.5 per cent Y-o-Y
* Some analysts expect OFSS to outperform going forward fuelled by its parent company, Oracle Corp’s ambitious growth outlook for its cloud business, driven by soaring demand for AI infrastructure and cloud services
* Besides, there has been a sharp decline in OFSS’s equity valuation in recent quarters after its persistent underperformance last year
* The electronic manufacturing services (EMS) major has lost nearly 30 per cent of its stock value over the past year
* Dixon’s September quarter performance was a mixed bag with revenues growing 29 per cent Y-o-Y on the back of a strong growth (41 per cent) in the mobile and EMS segment
* Consumer electronics and home appliances revenue declined 25 per cent Y-o-Y due to demand deferment following the GST rate cut
* The company is targeting ₹1 trillion in sales over the next three to four years even as it is expected to end FY26 with revenues of ₹58,700 crore
* While Dixon posted operating profit margin of 3.8 per cent in Q2, it has guided margins to be at 4-4.5 per cent through backward integration and original design manufacturing business growth
* Capital goods maker, Thermax has been one of the top losers in BSE 200 and its stock price is down 25.9 per cent year-to-date (YTD) in CY25 underperforming BSE Sensex (up 9.3 per cent YTD) by a big margin
* The stock’s underperformance has followed a decline in Thermax’s revenues and earnings in recent quarters due a slowdown in corporate capex
* The company’s net sales were down 5.4 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) in Q1FY26 while its net profit was down 39.3 per cent Y-o-Y, its worst show since FY18 barring the Covid19 period; trailing twelve months (TTM) show also lags with net profit down 19.9 per cent Y-o-Y
* Analysts however bet on a turnaround in Thermax’s earnings on the expectations of a rebound in industrial capex going forward. The company is also expected to gain from its expertise in energy transition & de-carbonisation technologies and solutions
* According to analysts at Prabhudas Lilladher, Thermax’s management expects 10-11 per cent compound annual growth (CAGR) for next 5 years with better margins and second half of 2025-26 (H2FY26) is expected to be better than the first half
* There has been a decline in Thermax’s valuation from record highs last year but they remain rich compared to the past
* The public sector power project financier, REC is one of the top underperformers in the NBFC space in CY25 as investors worry about its growth and margins trajectory
* REC’s share price is down 29 per cent YTD in CY25, underperforming the benchmark BSE Sensex by a big margin
* The public sector firm’s gross interest income was up 10.6 per cent Y-o-Y in Q2FY26, growing at a slowest pace in the last two years
* The lender’s net profit was up 9.3 per cent Y-o-Y in the Q2FY26, its worst show in nearly three years as margins shrunk and provisions for bad loans rose
* According to Elara Capital, REC’s net profit growth in Q2FY26 was broadly in line with their estimates; however net interest income declined 0.9 per cent Q-o-Q, weighed by muted interest income growth
* Elara Capital remains upbeat on the stock’s long-term prospects given its strong asset book, low valuation and relatively high return on net worth of about 19 per cent
