Around 10 equity mutual funds have delivered returns of more than 25% so far in the current calendar year, with one fund doubling investors' money during the period, according to an ETMutualFunds analysis. The analysis covered 590 equity mutual funds across categories.It was further revealed that these 10 funds were thematic and sectoral funds, particularly international funds.Nippon India Taiwan Equity Fund delivered the highest return of around 102.23% YTD. This was followed by Motilal Oswal Nasdaq 100 FOF which delivered a return of 40.34% in the same time period.Also Read |Planning mutual fund investments for H2 2026? Experts favour largecap, flexicap and multi-asset funds Four funds based on emerging markets themes - HSBC Global Emerging Markets Fund, Edelweiss Emerging Markets Opp Eq. Offshore Fund, Kotak Global Emerging Market Overseas Equity Omni FOF and PGIM India Emerging Markets Equity FoF delivered 35.32%, 34.59%, 34.53% and 34.01% respectively in the current calendar year so far.Mirae Asset Global X Artificial Intelligence & Technology ETF FoF offered a return of 32.29% YTD. Franklin Asian Equity Fund was the next fund to follow which delivered 29.21% return.The other two funds on the list were Mirae Asset Global Electric & Autonomous Vehicles Equity Passive FoF and DSP Global Clean Energy Overseas Equity Omni FoF, which delivered returns of 28.43% and 25.67%, respectively, during the same period.Should one chase returns or stick to diversified equity funds?Rajesh Minocha, a Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Founder of Financial Radiance told ETMutualFunds investors should avoid chasing recent “winners.” Thematic and international funds may perform well for a time but can experience significant declines when market cycles change. Minocha further said that for most investors, diversified equity funds should remain the core of the portfolio and thematic or international funds are best used selectively and should generally not exceed 10-15% of the total equity allocation.Other funds in the said periodHDFC Defence Fund, the only actively managed fund based on the defence sector, delivered a return of 24.70% in the said time period. Edelweiss Greater China Equity Off-shore Fund posted a gain of 21.22% in the same time period.Bank of India Small Cap Fund delivered a return of 19.55% in 2026 so far. Nippon India Japan Equity Fund delivered a return of 18.98% in the said time period.TRUSTMF Small Cap Fund delivered a return of 17.31% in the current calendar year so far. Quant Value Fund delivered a return of 16.35% in 2026 so far. Two infrastructure funds - Invesco India Infrastructure Fund and DSP India T.I.G.E.R Fund posted a gain of 15.09% and 15.04% respectively in 2026 so far.Also Read |Mutual fund returns stuck at 1% in four years? Expert says next phase could matter the most Axis Greater China Equity FoF delivered a return of 13.83% so far in 2026, followed by Motilal Oswal Innovation Opportunities Fund with a return of 12.89% during the same period. Aditya Birla Sun Life Small Cap Fund posted a return of 11.27% so far in 2026.Helios Small Cap Fund posted a gain of 10.79% in 2026 so far. Quant Small Cap Fund and Motilal Oswal Focused Fund delivered a return of 10.50% each in 2026 so far. HDFC Mid Cap Fund, the largest mid cap fund, delivered a return of 0.68% in the said time period.HDFC Banking & Financial Services Fund was the last one in the list to deliver a positive return as the fund gave 0.02% return in 2026 so far.Negative performersThe bottom 10 performers were predominantly technology-focused funds. HDFC Technology Fund was the worst performer, declining 22.83% so far in 2026, followed by SBI Technology Opportunities Fund, which fell 21.88% during the same period.ICICI Prudential FMCG Fund was the last scheme to post a double-digit loss, declining 11.23% so far in 2026. SBI Contra Fund, the country's largest and oldest contra fund, lost 6.53% during the period.Parag Parikh Flexi Cap Fund, the largest active and flexi cap fund by assets under management, delivered a negative return of 6.02% so far in 2026. The last two schemes on the list were Kotak Focused Fund and Bandhan Focused Fund, both of which slipped 0.07% during the same period.Time to book profits from top performing mutual funds or hold back?Minocha said that the decisions should be based on asset allocation rather than short-term performance which means that if strong returns have increased a thematic or international fund’s NAV beyond your target, consider partial profit-taking and rebalancing. However, do not exit solely due to exceptional returns. If your original investment rationale remains sound and the position is within your target range, holding may be the better option, Minocha further said.We considered all equity funds including sectoral and thematic funds. We considered regular and growth oriented schemes. We calculated their performance in 2026 so far starting from January 1 to June 25. Also Read | JioBlackRock Mutual Fund launches Prism Hybrid Long-Short Fund, its first SIFNote, the above exercise is not a recommendation. The exercise was done to find how equity mutual funds performed in 2026 so far or in the first six months of the current calendar year. One should not make investment or redemption decisions based on the above exercise. One should always consider risk appetite, investment horizon and financial goals before making any investment decisions.(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)If you have any mutual fund queries, message on ET Mutual Funds on Facebook/Twitter. We will get it answered by our panel of experts. Do share your questions on ETMFqueries@timesinternet.in alongwith your age, risk profile, and twitter handle.