AIMR Survey on Disclosure Technology:
Tools for Researching Corporate Strategic and
Financial Information
In May 2001, the Association for Investment Management and Research
released the results of a survey of its members conducted in late 2000 as
a follow-up to a 1998 survey on their use of communications technologies
when researching corporate strategic and financial information. Both the
original 1998 survey and its 2000 follow-up were conducted for AIMR by
Stratcom Associates of Grantham, N.H.
AIMR sent the survey to 2,000 members and received a total of 270 usable responses - a response rate of 13.5%. Of these, 14% identified themselves as buy-side analysts, 4% as sell-side analysts, 67% as portfolio managers and 15% as "other."
Section One: Comparisons of Conference Calls, Web Sites and E-mail
Q. "How many of the companies that you follow:."
| 2000 Survey | ||||
| All | Almost all | Some | None | |
| Conduct analyst conference calls? | 10% | 64% | 23% | 3% |
| Have an IR section on their Web sites? | 20% | 64% | 16% | -- |
|
Use e-mail to communicate with the investment community? |
4% | 32% | 63% | 1% |
| 1998 Survey | ||||
| All | Almost all | Some | None | |
| Conduct analyst conference calls? | Not incl. | 58% | 38% | 4% |
| Have an IR section on their Web sites? | Not incl. | 44% | 55% | 1% |
|
Use e-mail to communicate with the investment community? |
Not incl. | 4% | 80% | 16% |
Q. "On a 6-point scale, where 6 = extremely
valuable and 1 = not at all valuable, generally how valuable do you
believe (each of the following) are as sources of strategic/financial
information?"
2000 Survey (vs. 1998 Survey)
| Very valuable | Somewhat valuable | Not valuable | |
| Conference calls | 42% (47%) | 51% (48%) | 7% (5%) |
| Internet | 34% (25%) | 53% (52%) | 13% (23%) |
| 33% (22%) | 54% (50%) | 13% (28%) |
Responses to the above question calculated as a mean score show, on a scale of 1 to 6:
| 2000 Survey (Mean Rating) | 1998 Survey (Mean Rating) | |
| Conference calls | 4.28 | 4.36 |
| Internet | 3.95* | 3.57 |
| 3.87* | 3.37 |
*statistically significant increase over 1998.
Q. "On a 6-point scale, where 6 = outstanding
and 1 = poor, please evaluate (conference calls/corporate Web sites)
for quality, timeliness and specificity of strategic/financial
information provided.
Responses to the above question calculated as a mean score show, on a scale of 1 to 6:
| 2000 Survey | 1998 Survey | |||
| Conference calls | Web IR section | Conference calls | Web IR section | |
| Quality | 4.07 | 3.97 | 4.17 | 3.72 |
| Timeliness | 4.19 | 3.67 | 4.43 | 3.32 |
| Specificity | 3.78 | 3.60 | 3.76 | 3.26 |
| Convenience, easeof use | 4.50 | 3.96 | Not included | Not included |
Section Two: Corporate Web Sites Detail
Q. "How important is it for companies to provide strategic/financial information on their Web sites?"
| 2000 Survey | 1998 Survey | |
| Very important | 63% | Not asked |
| Somewhat important | 31% | Not asked |
| Not important | 6% | Not asked |
Q. "On a 6-point scale, where 6 = extremely valuable and 1 = not at all valuable, generally how valuable do you believe these companies' Web sites are as a source of strategic/financial information?"
Responses to the above question calculated as a mean score show, on a scale of 1 to 6:
| 2000 Survey (Mean Rating) | 1998 Survey (Mean Rating) | |
| Buy-side Analyst | 4.16 | 3.59 |
| Sell-side Analyst | 3.9 | 3.67 |
| Portfolio Manager | 3.9 | 3.76 |
| Other | 4 | 3.3 |
| Average | 3.95 | 3.57 |
Q. "On a 6-point scale, where 6 = outstanding
and 1 = poor, please evaluate the following characteristics of the
strategic/financial information provided on these companies' Web
sites:"
| 2000 Survey | |||
| Good (5) or outstanding (6) | Average (3 or 4) | Poor (1) or fair (2) | |
| Quality of information | 29% | 66% | 5% |
| Timeliness of information | 25% | 62% | 13% |
|
Specificity of information |
16% | 73% | 11% |
|
Convenience/ease of use |
33% | 59% | 8% |
| 1998 Survey | |||
| Good (5) or outstanding (6) | Average (3 or 4) | Poor (1) or fair (2) | |
| Quality of information | 23% | 66% | 11% |
| Timeliness of information | 21% | 51% | 28% |
|
Specificity of information |
15% | 61% | 24% |
|
Convenience/ease of use |
Not included | Not included | Not included |
Q. "How often do you typically log on to the
Web sites of the companies you follow? Please check ONE.
| 2000 Survey | 1998 Survey | |
| Quarterly or less often | 41% | 24% |
| Monthly | 28% | 41% |
| Weekly | 19% | 24% |
| Daily | 9% | 9% |
| Never | 3% | 0% |
| Hourly | 0% | 2% |
| Q. "What is the most valuable information a company can provide on the IR section of its Web site? Check your top THREE choices." | Q. "Which of the following types of corporate information do the companies you follow typically provide now on the IR sections of their Web sites? Check ALL THAT APPLY." |
| 1. Their SEC filings (41%) | 1. Annual report (89%) |
| 2. Transcripts of past presentations (36%) | 2. Earnings news releases (88%) |
| 3. Annual report (35%) | 3. Quarterly report (84%) |
| 4. Downloadable data (34%) | 4. SEC filings (77%) |
| 5. Earnings news releases (34%) | 5. IR contact information (77%) |
| 6. Multi-quarter financial history (30%) | 6. Other news releases (75%) |
| 7. Quarterly reports (24%) | 7. Fact book/FAQ/corporate profile (56%) |
| 8. Links to analysts' research (23%) | 8. Information request forms (47%) |
| 9. Fact books/FAQ/corporate profile (21%) | 9. List of directors and officers (45%) |
| 10. Slides of past presentations (20%) | 10. Multi-quarter financial history (32%) |
| 11. Webcasts of past presentations (20%) | 11. Calendar of key events (30%) |
| 12. IR contact information (20%) | 12. E-mail service answering questions (28%) |
Q. "What are your most frequent frustrations
with corporate IR Web sites? Check ALL THAT APPLY.
1. Out of date information (54%)
2. Difficulty finding desired information (50%)
3. Insufficient historical information (46%)
4. Incomplete information (42%)
Section Three: Conference Call Detail
Q. "On a 6-point scale, where 6 = outstanding
and 1 = poor, please evaluate the following characteristics of the
strategic/financial information provided in companies' conference
calls:"
| 2000 Survey | |||
| Good (5) or outstanding (6) | Average (3 or 4) | Poor (1) or fair (2) | |
| Quality of information | 27% | 69% | 4% |
| Timeliness of information | 39% | 56% | 5% |
|
Specificity of information |
17% | 75% | 8% |
|
Convenience/ease of use |
58% | 38% | 4% |
| 1998 Survey | |||
| Good (5) or outstanding (6) | Average (3 or 4) | Poor (1) or fair (2) | |
| Quality of information | 35% | 62% | 3% |
| Timeliness of information | 53% | 43% | 4% |
|
Specificity of information |
20% | 70% | 10% |
|
Convenience/ease of use |
Not included | Not included | Not included |
Q. "What additional information would you like from company management during the call?
| 2000 Survey | 1998 Survey | |
| Breakdown of financials by business line | 82% | 80% |
| Breakdown of financials by sector | 64% | 59% |
| Breakdown of financials by product | 62% | 63% |
| Breakdown of financials by geographic area | 49% | 59% |
| Other | 8% | 11% |
Q. "How do you prefer to receive
earnings-related news releases and other financial information from the
companies you follow? Please check up to TWO."
| 2000 | 1998 | |
| 77% | Not included | |
| Fax | 34% | Not included |
| Bloomberg terminal | 21% | Not included |
| News release | 14% | Not included |
| 8% | Not included | |
| Other | 1% | Not included |
Q. Which of the following technological features
would you use if companies offered them in conjunction
with their conference calls?
Q. Which of the following technological
enhancements to conference calls that some companies offer
have
you personally used at least once?
Q. How many of the conference calls that you participate in currently offer any of the following electronic features?
| Would use if offered | Have personally used at least once | Currently offered by all / almost all / some companies | |
| 1. Electronic copy of presentation e-mailed in advance to participants or available via Web | 66% | 47% | 53% (but 32% don't know) |
| 2. Simultaneous audio Webcast | 66% | 69% | 75% (but 22% don't know) |
| 3. Simultaneous video Webcast | 64% | 37% |
47% (but 34% don't know) |
| 4. Delayed/archived audio Webcast | 62% | 63% |
69% (but 28% don't know) |
| 5. Live questions from call-in participants submitted by e-mail in real time during the call. | 58% | 21% | 41% (but 36% don't know) |
| 6. Delayed/archived video Webcast | 53% | 28% |
40% (but 43% don't know) |
| 7. Video conferencing | 39% | 20% | 32% (but 37% don't know) |
| 8. Electronic copy of presentation available by modem dial-in, controlled by presenters as they speak (e.g., Microsoft Net Meeting) | 35% | 17% |
32% (but 54% don't know) |
| 9. Instant surveys of callers by e-mail or TouchTone phone during the call | 25% | 12% |
19% (but 49% don't know) |
| 10. Other technologies (please explain) |
Q: What is the best time for a company to schedule a conference call?
| 2000 Survey | 1998 Survey | |
| After market closes | 38% | 33% |
| Before or during market hours | 34% | 67% |
| No preference | 28% | -- |
The Association for Investment Management and Research is a global, non-profit association of financial analysts, portfolio managers and other investment professionals that promotes high standards of professional practice and full and fair disclosure of financial information to investors and all those involved in investment decision-making. Headquartered in Charlottesville, Va., AIMR has 49,000 members in 97 countries.
AIMR is best known for administering the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA®) program to candidates in 143 countries and for its standard-setting for investment-performance measurement and presentation standards - AIMR-PPS (in North America) and Global Investment Performance Standards, or GIPS (worldwide). More information on AIMR and its programs and services is available by calling 800-247-8132 or 434-951-5499 or visiting www.cfainstitute.org.