The price fluctuations of 4 scrips in a stock market in the four quarters of a year are shown in the table below. Four different investors had the following portfolios of investment in the four companies throughout the year: Portfolios Investor 1: 10 of A, 20 of B, 30 of C and 40 of D Investor 2: 40 of A, 10 of B, 20 of C and 30 of D Investor 3: 30 of A, 40 of B, 10 of C and 20 of D Investor 4: 20 of A, 30 of B, 40 of C and 10 of D Stock Market Performance In the light of the above which one of the following statements is correct? [ | IQuarter | II Quarter | III Quarter | IV Quarter ; Scrip A | Up 10% | Down 15% | Up 10% | Down 10% ; Scrip B | Up 2% | Up 1% | Up 2% | Up 2% ; Scrip C | Up 1% | Up 1% | Down 5% | Down 1% ; Scrip D | Up 20% | Down 15% | Up 30% | Down 10%]

To find the best investment, we must evaluate the overall performance of each scrip over the four quarters.

Scrip A: Start with 100. After 10 percent up (110), 15 percent down (93.5), 10 percent up (102.85), and 10 percent down, it ends at approximately 92.56. This is a net loss.

Scrip B: It grows in every quarter (2, 1, 2, and 2 percent). This results in a steady net gain.

Scrip C: Small gains followed by small losses (1, 1, -5, -1 percent) lead to a slight net loss.

Scrip D: Start with 100. After 20 percent up (120), 15 percent down (102), 30 percent up (132.6), and 10 percent down, it ends at 119.34. This is a significant net gain.

Comparing the two profitable stocks, Scrip D (approx 19.3 percent gain) significantly outperforms Scrip B (approx 7.2 percent gain). Therefore, the investor with the highest concentration of Scrip D will perform the best.

Investor 1 holds 40 units of D, which is the highest among all portfolios. Investor 2 holds 30, Investor 3 holds 20, and Investor 4 holds 10. Since Scrip D is the most profitable asset by a large margin, Investor 1 makes the best investment. Options C and D are incorrect because the gains from B and D easily offset the minor losses in A and C for those investors.