ICICI Prudential Large & Mid Cap Fund - Direct Plan - IDCW

ICICI Prudential Large & Mid Cap Fund - Direct Plan - IDCW ranks among the stronger performers in the Large & Mid Cap Fund category, backed by a 5-star rating. Consistent 3-year performance combined with a strong rating makes this one of the more credible options in its space. TopFund's composite Health Score, which weighs rating, 3-year CAGR, expense ratio and fund size, puts it at 89/100.

Cost: At 0.86%, the expense ratio is meaningfully cheaper — about 25% below the Large & Mid Cap Fund category average of 1.15% (based on 32 comparable funds). Lower costs compound in your favour over long holding periods.

Risk-adjusted performance: Over the trailing 1-year period, the fund shows a negative Sharpe ratio of -0.41 — over the past year, returns haven't kept pace with the volatility involved, even before accounting for the risk-free rate. Separately, annualised volatility of 14.55% is fairly typical for actively managed equity funds.

Who should invest: This fund is best suited to investors with a 5+ year horizon comfortable with meaningfully higher volatility than large cap funds. The High risk rating means near-term volatility should be expected — this isn't a fund to check daily.