April's rebound
Every equity fund rose in April 2026. All 565 funds with a full month of NAVs ended it higher, and the median gained 10.64%, almost exactly reversing March's median loss of 10.70%.
Small-cap funds led with a median gain of 15.96%. Large-cap funds gained least, 8.34%.
All figures are for the Direct plan, Growth option, computed from daily NAVs between 31 March and 30 April 2026. April and the year so far are plain percentage changes; one, three and five years are compounded annual rates.
The scorecard
Twelve SEBI equity categories, ranked by April's median return.
| Category | Funds | April | 2026 so far | 1 year | 3 years | 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small Cap | 36 | 15.96% | 2.20% | 11.39% | 20.61% | 20.17% |
| Mid Cap | 33 | 12.57% | −1.10% | 12.20% | 22.34% | 19.34% |
| Multi Cap | 32 | 11.75% | −2.33% | 7.82% | 19.15% | 16.50% |
| Sectoral / Thematic | 251 | 10.67% | −2.98% | 6.65% | 18.35% | 15.39% |
| Large & Mid Cap | 33 | 10.22% | −3.80% | 5.67% | 18.23% | 16.75% |
| ELSS | 38 | 9.82% | −5.08% | 2.83% | 15.58% | 14.84% |
| Flexi Cap | 44 | 9.80% | −4.42% | 4.00% | 16.31% | 13.88% |
| Value | 22 | 9.63% | −3.81% | 5.01% | 18.59% | 17.05% |
| Focused | 28 | 9.36% | −5.00% | 4.05% | 16.61% | 14.76% |
| Contra | 3 | 8.75% | −6.38% | 1.69% | 18.90% | 18.01% |
| Large Cap | 35 | 8.34% | −6.50% | 1.74% | 13.90% | 12.76% |
| Dividend Yield | 11 | 7.92% | −4.05% | 4.98% | 18.01% | 18.37% |
| All equity funds | 566 | 10.64% | −3.44% | 6.09% | 17.66% | 15.92% |
"Funds" counts every Direct Growth plan on 30 April. A fund counts in a period only if it has a full record: 565 for April, 509 for one year, 373 for three years and 297 for five. Contra has only three funds.
Against the indices
Our estimates of total return, built from NSE's daily price and dividend yield, to the close of 30 April:
| Index (estimated total return) | April | 2026 so far | 1 year | 3 years | 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nifty 50 | 7.58% | −7.77% | −0.10% | 11.34% | 11.82% |
| Nifty 500 | 10.61% | −4.61% | 4.16% | 15.54% | 14.26% |
| Nifty Midcap 150 | 13.29% | −0.98% | 11.61% | 23.57% | 20.35% |
| Nifty Smallcap 250 | 17.17% | 0.53% | 9.71% | 22.23% | 19.21% |
The Nifty 50 rose 7.46% on its price in April, from 22,331.40 to 23,997.55.
What the numbers show
The rebound ran in order of company size. Small caps first, then mid caps, multi caps, large & mid caps, and large caps near the bottom. The indices line up the same way, from the Nifty Smallcap 250's estimated 17.17% to the Nifty 50's 7.58%.
Small caps have already made up March. In March the median small-cap fund fell least of any category, and in April it rose most. Over the two months together, from the NAV of 27 February, the median small-cap fund is up 5.87% and 32 of 34 are higher. The median large-cap fund is still down 3.98% over the same two months, and none of the 34 has made it back.
For all equity funds, the two months roughly cancel. From 27 February to 30 April the median equity fund is down 0.99%, and 211 of 556 are higher than they were. With January's losses on top, the year-to-date column is still negative for eleven of twelve categories.
The month's widest gains were in theme funds. Nippon India Taiwan Equity rose 36.83%. Four quant funds followed: Infrastructure, Commodities, PSU and Teck, each up between 22.70% and 24.33%. At the other end, technology funds rose least: Kotak Technology gained 3.17%.
The one-year column has turned positive. At the end of March the median equity fund was down 1.53% over a year. Now it is up 6.09%, and the number of funds down over a year has fallen from 317 to 65.
What this does not tell you
A month's rebound is not a trend. A 10.64% gain after a 10.70% fall still leaves a fund below where it began, because the gain is on a smaller base.
Category ranks swing between months. Small caps fell least in March and rose most in April. Two months are far too few to say that pattern will repeat.
The benchmarks are our estimates, the medians cover only surviving funds, and past returns do not predict future ones. Nothing here is advice to buy or sell any fund.
Where to go from here
The categories page has live numbers for every category. Last month's table is the March equity fund scorecard, and the month's market backdrop is in April 2026 in numbers.
For the strongest category in detail, see small-cap fund returns in April, and for the Nifty 50's 3.78% jump on 8 April, the Nifty's biggest one-day rise. Recency bias is worth a read after a month like this one.
Frequently asked questions
How did equity mutual funds do in April 2026?
Every one of the 565 equity funds (Direct plan, Growth option) with a full month of NAVs rose between 31 March and 30 April 2026. The median gained 10.64%. Small-cap funds led with a median of 15.96%; large-cap funds trailed at 8.34%.
Have equity funds recovered their March 2026 losses?
Not on the median. From the NAV of 27 February to 30 April 2026, the median equity fund was still down 0.99%, and 211 of 556 funds were higher. Small-cap funds were the clear exception: their median was up 5.87%, and 32 of 34 were above their end-February NAV.
Which equity fund category is up in 2026?
To 30 April 2026, small-cap funds were the only diversified equity category with a positive median for the year, at 2.20%. The median equity fund was down 3.44% for 2026, and large-cap funds were down 6.50%.
This is commentary on published data, not investment advice. WealthTicker is not a SEBI-registered adviser or distributor. Figures are as of the dates stated and can be revised by their source.
Keep reading
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A regular equity plan costs a median 1.16 points a year more than its direct twin, on AMFI's September 2026 data. Over ten years, direct ended 10.2% ahead.