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Intermediate

Understanding Cyclical vs Defensive Stocks

A deep guide to the two behaviours that shape every Indian portfolio: stocks whose earnings rise and fall with the economy, and stocks whose earnings hold steady through it. Built for experienced retail investors, mutual fund investors, and salaried professionals who want to know what they actually own and how it will behave in the next downturn. Covers how to classify and measure cyclicality on Screener.in, the economics of commodity, demand, and rate cyclicals, why defensives command a premium and when it stops paying, valuing stocks across the cycle with normalised earnings and price to book, tracking Indian leading indicators and RBI rate cycles, and building a balanced portfolio through direct stocks, sector funds, and ETFs, using real NSE companies and Nifty sector index history throughout.

MODULES

6

DURATION

~4.1 hrs

TRACK

Stock Market Basics

Access Level

LEARNER

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Everything included

Full Text Playbooks

Actionable Exercises

Mobile Reading Mode

Lifetime Updates

Curriculum Breakdown

Chapter 1: What Makes a Stock Cyclical or Defensive

4 Lessons

Cyclical vs Defensive: It's About Earnings, Not Share Price9 min read

The Spectrum: Deep Cyclicals, Early Cyclicals, Quasi-Defensives, and True Defensives10 min read

Measuring It Yourself: Earnings Volatility, Beta, and Drawdowns on Screener.in11 min read

Moving Targets: When Defensives Turn Cyclical and Cyclicals Turn Defensive10 min read

Chapter 2: Anatomy of a Cyclical

4 Lessons

Operating and Financial Leverage: Why Cyclical Profits Swing Harder Than Revenue11 min read

Commodity Cyclicals: Metals, Cement, and Chemicals11 min read

Demand and Rate Cyclicals: Autos, Real Estate, Capital Goods, and Banks11 min read

Case Study: Tata Steel Through a Full Commodity Cycle12 min read

Chapter 3: Anatomy of a Defensive

4 Lessons

Why Defensives Hold Up: Staples, Pricing Power, and Repeat Demand10 min read

Pharma, Utilities, and Telecom: Non-Discretionary and Regulated Earnings11 min read

The Defensive Premium: Why Safety Is Expensive and When It Stops Paying10 min read

Case Study: Nifty FMCG vs Nifty Metal Through the 2020 Crash and Recovery11 min read

Chapter 4: Valuing Stocks Across the Cycle

4 Lessons

The Cyclical P/E Paradox: Buy When P/E Is High, Sell When It Is Low10 min read

Normalised Earnings and Mid-Cycle Margins11 min read

Price to Book, EV/EBITDA, and Replacement Cost for Cyclicals11 min read

Valuing Defensives: Growth, ROCE Durability, and the Cost of Overpaying11 min read

Chapter 5: Reading the Economic Cycle

3 Lessons

Leading Indicators You Can Track: PMI, IIP, GST Collections, Credit Growth, and Auto Sales12 min read

RBI Rate Cycles, Inflation, and What They Do to Each Group11 min read

Sector Rotation in Practice: What Nifty Sector Indices Show Across Past Cycles11 min read

Chapter 6: Building Your Portfolio

4 Lessons

Balancing Cyclicals and Defensives by Life Stage and Risk Appetite10 min read

Getting Exposure Through Mutual Funds and ETFs: Sector Funds, Consumption, and Low Volatility Indices11 min read

Common Mistakes: Chasing Peak Cyclicals, Overpaying for Safety, and Timing the Turn10 min read

Your Cyclical vs Defensive Checklist on Screener.in10 min read