Best Industry to Cover for Equity Research Exits to the Buy-Side?

I'm going to start my career in sell-side ER in a few months and I'm pretty open to what industry I cover (haven't been placed on a team yet). If I have the end-goal of getting a buy-side position in a few years, what would be the best/strongest industries for me to try and cover to have a good chance at being able to make the switch to the buy-side? (I'm thinking in terms of hedge funds are looking for analysts in that industry more so than they might in other industries and honestly any other input that I can get from people that I maybe am not thinking about).

I know a lot of exiting to the buy-side is dependent on the analyst you work under and other things, but I'm more so just curious about the best industries to cover to make the switch and why they're a good pick. 

3 Comments
 

Consumer/Industrials tend to be hiring frequently, although there's really only a handful of good PMs hiring, and I suspect this is size-adjusted for each industry.

The reason we say optimise for analysts is that you will learn the right things from them and be more competitive for the top seats. It's not worth working at an MM if you don't get a genuinely good seat.

 

Quos ab maxime dicta quasi esse. Aut eaque expedita autem. Doloremque molestiae quam hic occaecati ut modi.

Laborum voluptatem exercitationem nam autem maxime. Quidem consequatur aut minus ad.

Quibusdam dolor distinctio voluptatum laudantium expedita. Hic incidunt quis tempora est. Expedita quis odio esse non error in. Sequi quas eveniet autem ut autem a. Ducimus eum facere nihil maiores.

Career Advancement Opportunities

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.3%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.9%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.3%

Professional Growth Opportunities

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan No 97.3%

Total Avg Compensation

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (51) $260
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (26) $182
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”