Mahindra Manulife Balanced Advantage Fund Direct Growth Review 2026: NAV, Returns, Portfolio & Should You Invest?

Mahindra Manulife Balanced Advantage Fund Direct Growth Plan has a NAV of ₹15.952 as of 16 September 2026 and an AUM of ₹922 Cr. Its 1-year, 3-year and 5-year returns are 2.79%, 10.52% and 0% respectively, and the scheme is tagged High Risk.

Our view is that this is a fund for investors who can tolerate uneven short-term moves and want a hybrid allocation that has kept some upside over three years, while recent one-year and one-month behaviour has been softer. The portfolio mix is spread across equities, debt and cash-like holdings, which may help moderate swings, but the return pattern is not smooth enough to treat it as a steady defensive option.

Quick facts

Particular	Details
NAV	₹15.952 as of 16 Sep 2026
AUM	₹922 Cr
Expense Ratio	0.53%
Launch Date	30 Dec 2021
Min SIP	₹500
Risk Category	High Risk
Benchmark	Nifty 50
Fund Category	Hybrid
Exit Load	Nil upto 10% of units and 1% for remaining units on or before 3M, Nil after 3M
Fund Managers	Neelesh Dhamnaskar, Rahul Pal, Amit Garg

The fund is managed by Neelesh Dhamnaskar, Rahul Pal and Amit Garg.

Source data date: as of 16 Sep 2026

Performance

Period	Fund return	Benchmark return
1M	-2.34%	-4.41%
3M	1.06%	-3.6%
1Y	2.79%	-7.76%
3Y	10.52%	5.74%
5Y	Data not available	Data not available

The short-term picture is mixed, but it is still better than the benchmark. Over one month, the fund was down 2.34% while the benchmark fell 4.41%, so relative protection looked better even though the fund itself was negative. Over three months and one year, the fund stayed positive while the benchmark remained negative, which points to a more resilient path through a weak market backdrop.

The three-year number is more important for judging the rhythm of the fund. At 10.52%, the fund has compounded well over that stretch and is ahead of the benchmark’s 5.74%. That tells us the strategy has been able to build returns over a fuller cycle, even if the ride has not been perfectly smooth. The daily pattern also shows periods of drift and recovery rather than a straight climb, which is typical for a balanced-advantage style fund.

What stands out is that the recent one-year pace is much lower than the three-year result. That gap suggests the last year has been more subdued than the broader three-year phase, and the benchmark comparison reinforces that the fund has held up better than Nifty 50 in the same windows. The 5-year row is not available because the scheme has not had a full five-year track record yet.

Source data date: as of 16 Sep 2026

Should you BUY or HOLD Mahindra Manulife Balanced Advantage?

A fund's past returns alone don't tell you whether you should buy it today or continue holding it.

The right decision depends on factors such as your current allocation, purchase price, risk profile, investment horizon and the role this fund plays in your overall portfolio.

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Peer comparison

Fund	1Y return	3Y return	5Y return
Mahindra Manulife Balanced Advantage Fund Direct Growth Plan	2.79%	10.52%	Data not available
Unifi Dynamic Asset Allocation Fund Direct Growth Plan	8.6%	Data not available	Data not available
Aditya Birla SL Balanced Advantage Fund Direct Growth Plan	5.17%	10.96%	9.97%
Baroda BNP Paribas Balanced Advantage Fund Direct Growth Plan	4.23%	11.11%	10.62%
360 ONE Balanced Hybrid Fund Direct Growth Plan	3.64%	Data not available	Data not available
Bank of India Balanced Advantage Fund Direct Growth Plan	3.62%	8.24%	10.21%

This assessment is prepared by Uniapps Investment Adviser Pvt. Ltd. under SEBI Registered Investment Adviser registration INA000017639. The fund’s 1-year return trails the stronger peer numbers shown here, while its 3-year figure is competitive but still below the best available peer readings. The short-term and longer-term pictures are not identical: recent performance looks softer than some peers, yet the three-year result still shows the fund has been able to compound at a respectable pace.

Source data date: as of 16 Sep 2026

Portfolio: where your money goes

Holding	Sector	Weight
ICICI Bank Limited	Bank	4.06%
8.52% Muthoot Finance Limited 2028 **	Corporate Debt	3.78%
Triparty Repo	Cash & Cash Equivalents and Net Assets	3.46%
7.44% National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development 2029 **	Corporate Debt	2.69%
Bharti Airtel Limited	Telecom	2.32%
Reliance Industries Limited	Crude Oil	2.28%
Indusind Bank Limited	Bank	2.27%
HDFC Bank Limited	Bank	2.24%
7.71% Government of India 2066	Government Securities	2.19%
Eternal Limited	Retailing	2.15%

The top 10 holdings account for approximately 27.44% of the portfolio.

To see all holdings, visit the Mahindra Manulife Balanced Advantage Fund Direct Growth Plan page

The largest holding is ICICI Bank Limited at 4.06%, which is not an outsized single-position exposure on its own. The drop from the first holding to the tenth is fairly modest, from 4.06% to 2.15%, so the visible book is not built around one or two very dominant positions.

The mix of banks, corporate debt, government securities, telecom, crude oil, retailing and cash-like assets suggests a diversified structure across instruments and sectors. Because the top 10 holdings together make up 27.44% of the portfolio and the scheme discloses 76 holdings in total, the remainder appears spread across a longer tail of smaller positions. That kind of spread may reduce reliance on any single security, although the debt and equity blend can still move differently through market cycles.

Source data date: as of 16 Sep 2026

Who should invest

This fund may suit investors who can accept High Risk classification and are comfortable with a return path that can vary from month to month. The three-year result is stronger than the one-year number, so the better fit is someone with a medium-to-long horizon rather than a short holding period.

The main trade-off is that the fund has shown better resilience than the Nifty 50 benchmark in the recent windows, but the short-term pace has been uneven and the five-year track record is not yet available. Investors who want some diversification through equity, debt and cash-like holdings may find that mix useful, but they should be comfortable with the fact that the fund has not delivered a steady straight-line return pattern.

Tax and exit load

Holding period	Tax rate	Description
Units held less than 1 year	20%	Short-term capital gains tax
Units held more than 1 year	12.5%	Long-term capital gains tax

Exit load: Nil for units sold after 3 months. For units sold on or before 3 months, there is no exit load on up to 10% of units and 1% on the remaining units.

Source data date: as of 16 Sep 2026

Frequently asked questions

What is the current NAV of Mahindra Manulife Balanced Advantage Fund Direct Growth Plan?
Its NAV is ₹15.952 as of 16 September 2026.

What are the fund’s 1-year, 3-year and 5-year returns?
The fund’s returns are 2.79% for 1 year, 10.52% for 3 years and Data not available for 5 years.

How has it performed versus the benchmark?
It has beaten the Nifty 50 benchmark across the available 1-month, 3-month, 1-year and 3-year periods. The gap is most visible over 1 year and 3 years.

How does it compare with peer funds on available return data?
Its 1-year return is below several peers shown here, while its 3-year return is competitive but not the highest among the available peer figures. The short-term and longer-term peer pictures do not point in exactly the same direction.

What is the minimum SIP amount?
The minimum SIP amount is ₹500.

Who manages the fund and what is the exit load?
The fund is managed by Neelesh Dhamnaskar, Rahul Pal and Amit Garg. The exit load is nil after 3 months; on or before 3 months, there is no exit load on up to 10% of units and 1% on the remaining units.

Bottom line

Mahindra Manulife Balanced Advantage Fund Direct Growth Plan has a better three-year story than a one-year one, which points to a fund that has compounded reasonably well over a fuller stretch but has looked softer more recently. It has also held up better than the benchmark in the periods shown, even though the recent pace has not been especially strong. The portfolio is diversified across 76 holdings, and the visible top positions are not heavily dominated by a single name, which may support a more balanced risk profile within a High Risk scheme.

Published on 17 September 2026 at 12:58 PM IST

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RIA disclosure

Mutual fund investments are subject to market risks. Read all scheme-related documents carefully before investing. This review is prepared by Uniapps Investment Adviser Pvt. Ltd. (earlier known as Uniapps Global Research Pvt. Ltd.) under SEBI Registered Investment Adviser registration INA000017639 for general informational purposes and is not personalized investment advice.