When it comes to long-term mutual fund investing, large-cap funds are often among the first choices for investors seeking a balance between return and stability. As a result, large-cap funds tend to be less volatile than mid-cap and small-cap funds, making them a preferred option for relatively conservative equity investors.
A 5-star rating further enhances a large-cap fund’s appeal. Such a rating indicates that the fund has delivered superior risk-adjusted returns compared with its peers over a specified period.
An analysis of Value Research data shows that among 181 direct large-cap funds, only four 5-star-rated large-cap mutual funds have ranked among the top performers across the 10 year, 5 year and 3-year periods.
If you’re planning to invest in large-cap funds for the long term, this performance check could help you separate the best outperformers from the rest. Using the latest data, we compare their returns based on the stated period to see how these highly rated schemes have performed against their benchmark and category.
Top-rated large-cap mutual funds
10-year lump sum performance
| Funds | 10-Year Returns In % | Benchmark Returns In % | Category Average Returns In % |
| Nippon India Large Cap Dir | 15.11 | 13.02 | 12.56 |
| Invesco India Largecap Dir | 14.25 | 13.02 | 12.53 |
| ICICI Pru Large Cap Dir | 14.25 | 13.02 | 12.56 |
| DSP Large Cap Dir | 11.87 | 13.02 | 12.53 |
5-year lump sum performance
| Funds | 5-Year Returns In % | Benchmark Returns In % | Category Average Returns In % |
| Nippon India Large Cap Dir | 15.83 | 11.04 | 11.11 |
| Invesco India Largecap Dir | 13.92 | 11.04 | 11.09 |
| ICICI Pru Large Cap Dir | 13.83 | 11.04 | 11.11 |
| DSP Large Cap Dir | 11.31 | 11.04 | 11.09 |
3-year lump sum performance
| Funds | 3-Year Returns In % | Benchmark: BSE 100 TRI Returns In % | Category Average Returns In % |
| Invesco India Largecap Dir | 14.72 | 10.13 | 11.55 |
| Nippon India Large Cap Dir | 13.51 | 10.13 | 11.59 |
| ICICI Pru Large Cap Dir | 13.25 | 10.13 | 11.59 |
| DSP Large Cap Dir | 13 | 10.13 | 11.55 |
SIP performance
| Funds | 10 Year SIP Returns In % | 5-Year SIP Returns In % | 3-Year SIP Returns In % |
| Invesco India Largecap Dir | 14.95 | 13.61 | 10.59 |
| Nippon India Large Cap Dir | 15.54 | 13.46 | 7.49 |
| DSP Large Cap Dir | 12.52 | 11.93 | 6.92 |
| ICICI Pru Large Cap Dir | 14.53 | 11.6 | 6.8 |
Source: Value Research as of 8th July 2026
Nippon India Large Cap Fund – Direct Plan
Since its launch on January 1st, 2013, the fund has produced returns of 15.22%. Sailesh Raj Bhan and Bhavik Dave are the current fund managers of the Nippon India Large Cap Fund. The fund’s expense ratio is 0.58%.
Top 5 holdings: HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Reliance Ind, Axis Bank and Bajaj Finance.
Top 5 sector-wise holdings: Financial, Consumer Discretionary, Consumer Staples, Energy & Utilities and Technology.
Risk profile: Despite being categorised as a Very High Risk fund, the Nippon India Large Cap Fund Direct has produced an average return of 14.28%, far above both the large-cap category average (12.39%) and the BSE 100 TRI (10.97%).
The fund’s standard deviation of 14.04% is lower than both the benchmark (14.38%) and the category average (15.19%), indicating that it has experienced relatively lower volatility than most large-cap peers.
With a Sharpe ratio of 0.60, the fund significantly outperforms the benchmark (0.36) and the category average (0.41), indicating producing better risk-adjusted returns.
The Sortino ratio of 0.76 is substantially higher than the benchmark (0.47) and the category average (0.54), indicating that the fund has managed downside risk effectively while maintaining strong performance.
The fund has a beta of 0.96, which is lower than the category average of 1.02, indicating that the fund is less volatile than its benchmark index.
The fund has also generated a healthy alpha of 3.53%, well above the category average of 1.30%.
Invesco India Largecap Fund – Direct Plan
Since its launch on January 1st, 2013, the fund has produced a return of 14.87%. The fund has an expense ratio of 0.67%, and its current fund manager is Hiten Jain.
Top 5 holdings: ICICI Bank, ICICI Prudential Asset Management, HDFC Bank, Infosys and Larsen & Toubro.
Top 5 sector-wise holdings: Financial, Technology, Industrials, Consumer Discretionary and Healthcare.
Risk profile: The Invesco India Largecap Fund Direct is classified as a Very High Risk fund by Value Research; however, the fund has generated a mean return of 15.34%, comfortably outperforming both the BSE 100 TRI (10.97%) and the large-cap category average (12.39%).
The fund’s standard deviation of 15.63% is slightly higher than both the benchmark (14.38%) and the category average (15.19%). This means the fund has experienced marginally higher volatility than its peers.
The fund’s Sharpe ratio of 0.61 is significantly higher than the benchmark (0.36) and category average (0.41), suggesting the fund has delivered superior risk-adjusted returns.
With a Sortino ratio of 0.79, the fund outperforms both the benchmark (0.47) and the category average (0.54), indicating better management of downside risk by the fund manager.
The fund has generated an impressive alpha of 4.08%, substantially higher than the category average of 1.30%.
ICICI Prudential Large Cap Fund – Direct Plan
This large-cap fund was also launched on January 01, 2013, and since its inception, the fund has generated 14.67% returns. Sankaran Naren, Vaibhav Dusad, and Sharmila D’Silva are the current fund managers of ICICI Prudential Large Cap Fund, which has an expense ratio of 0.71%.
Top 5 holdings: ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Reliance Ind, Larsen & Toubro and Axis Bank.
Top 5 sector-wise holdings: Financial, Consumer Discretionary, Energy & Utilities, Industrials and Technology.
Risk profile: Despite being categorised by Value Research as a Very High Risk fund, the ICICI Prudential Large Cap Fund Direct has outperformed both the large-cap category average (12.39%) and the BSE 100 TRI (10.97%) with a mean return of 13.62%.
The fund’s standard deviation of 13.37% is lower than the benchmark (14.38%) and significantly lower than the category average (15.19%), indicating that the fund has experienced relatively lower volatility.
The fund’s Sharpe ratio of 0.59 is considerably higher than the benchmark (0.36) and the category average (0.41), indicating better risk-adjusted return.
The fund’s Sortino ratio of 0.75 comfortably exceeds the benchmark (0.47) and the category average (0.54), indicating better management of downside risk for rewarding investors with strong performance.
With a beta of 0.91, the fund is less volatile than both the broader market and the category average (1.02), whereas the fund has generated a healthy alpha of 3.10%, well above the category average of 1.30%, indicating that the fund manager has beaten the benchmark in terms of generating returns against the risk taken.
DSP Large Cap Fund – Direct Plan
Since its launch on January 1st, 2013, the fund has produced an average return of 11.59%. The DSP Large Cap Fund, which has an expense ratio of 0.75%, is currently managed by the fund manager Anish Tawakley.
Top 5 holdings: ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, ITC and Infosys.
Top 5 sector-wise holdings: Financial, Technology, Energy & Utilities, Consumer Discretionary and Consumer Staples.
Risk profile: Value Research categorised the DSP Large Cap Fund Direct as a Very High Risk fund; yet, the fund has outperformed the large-cap category average (12.39%) and the BSE 100 TRI (10.97%) with a mean return of 13.42%. This shows that the fund has continuously outperformed its benchmark and peers in terms of long-term performance.
With a standard deviation of 13.12%, the fund has lower volatility compared to the benchmark (14.38%) and the category average (15.19%).
The fund’s Sharpe ratio of 0.58 is considerably higher than the benchmark (0.36) and the category average (0.41), which means that the fund performed well in terms of generating risk-adjusted returns.
The Sortino ratio of 0.79 is well above the benchmark (0.47) and the category average (0.54), indicating the fund manager’s ability to better manage the downside risk of the fund.
The fund’s beta of 0.88 is noticeably lower than the category average of 1.02, whereas it has generated an alpha of 3.05%, substantially higher than the category average of 1.30%.
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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