The latest report from IR Magazine is an investigation into how companies and their IR professionals in particular approach the targeting of investors, as well as any recent developments in these programs. Based on responses from more than 200 IR professionals and more than 100 investors, data is broken down by region, cap size and job title.
The report looks at the methods and criteria used for targeting potential investors and how successful these programs are in attracting new investment. It also examines the changing role of brokers in corporate access and targeting.
Key findings
- More than a third of investor targets globally are directly identified by the investor relations team.
- There is a net 12 percentage-point difference between the number of IROs who have seen a decrease in the use of brokers for investor targeting in the past year and those who have seen an increase.
- More than half of companies globally use tech platforms to enhance their investor targeting.
- Investment style is the most important factor cited by IROs in determining investor targets, followed by peer ownership.
- Peer ownership and sector focus are the most important criteria for small-cap companies in targeting new investors.
- Globally, 22 percent of new investment targets will end up taking a position in the company. It takes an average of between four and five meetings with targets before they take up a position.
- North American companies are the most domestically focused in their targeting. A minority of investment targets for Asian companies are from within Asia.
- Investors have seen a net decrease in their reliance on brokers for corporate access over the past year.
- The decrease in reliance on brokers for corporate access among investors closely mirrors the decrease in reliance on brokers for targeting among IROs.
