Asia-based IROs keen to improve their service can take note of the findings of IR Magazine’s latest survey of the local investment community.
Asked what single change investors and analysts would like to see in IR at the companies they follow or invest in, more than a third of respondents cite matters relating to poor financial reporting practices. ‘We want more detailed analysis at a glance instead of just static P&L reporting,’ says a Malaysian buy-side analyst. ‘It would be good to have consistent revenue and profitability breakdowns of each product,’ adds an Indonesian sell-side analyst.
The quality of disclosure and level of transparency are also top of mind, with a sell-sider from Indonesia asking for ‘more transparency about corporate strategy’ and a buy-side analyst from China begging local companies for ‘no tricks!’ and urging them to ‘go up a notch in terms of honest communications.’
A buy-side analyst from Singapore is keen to see ‘quarterly English-language company reports’, while a fellow portfolio manager would like the regulator to ‘force companies to disclose details of their debt. Singapore needs to learn from Indonesia.’
Second on the wish list are improvements in the IR role, with a quarter of respondents asking for better service regarding rapidity of response, ‘reactivity to the share price’, financial and industry knowledge and frequency in engaging with fixed income investors, among other things.
‘I want IROs to know how the company is placed in the market and how it is run,’ comments a buy-side analyst from Singapore. ‘Instead, this is usually left to the CEO and CFO.’
‘I want an annual investor/analyst day with all the business heads present,’ says a sell-side analyst from Taiwan. ‘Analyst briefings should be more frequent, as should conference calls, site visits and discussions with senior management,’ adds a Malaysian sell-sider.
‘Why can’t we have better access to management?’ asks a Hong Kong-based buy-side analyst, alongside 13 percent of respondents who cite this issue as their main concern. ‘We’d like greater access to senior management via conference calls,’ echoes a Malaysian buy-sider.
Twelve percent of investors and analysts are keen to see IR teams improve their websites and make better use of technology. A buy-side analyst from Thailand would like to see ‘details from the presentations on company websites’, while a sell-sider from Hong Kong believes IROs ‘should make more webcasts available for investors.’
Other complaints include the level of financial guidance and the quality of corporate governance. ‘We need to know what other responsibilities the members of senior management have outside the company,’ notes a sell-side analyst from China.
Get your copy of the Investor Perception Study – Asia 2015/2016 here.
