Mar 18, 2018

Equity Research in the 90s

Hello, how come Equity Research is not anymore one of the best jobs on the Street like it was in the 90s early 2000?

409 WSO Academy Equity Research Session Reviews: 4.83/5

Class of '25 Nov 2026 Cohort

5.00/5

Equity Research Career Roadmap (optional)

“Chris was very easy to talk to and made the session feel relaxed and genuinely useful. He gave me clear, actionable tasks that I can go away and work on straight away to expand my network. I hope to reconvene with him at a later date to discuss the progress I have made and get his feedback on the work I have been doing.”

Springfield College

Class of '29 Sep 2026 Cohort

4.85/5

Equity Research Mock Coffee Chat

“Craig gave me a really clear picture of how sell-side equity research actually works. The biggest takeaway was that research is a service business built on trust, not on picking stocks, and that analysts are paid on rankings rather than on whether a call is right. He was honest that even a 60% hit rate is excellent, and that it matters more to understand where you went wrong than where you were right. I also liked his point about not being “unintelligently wrong”: own the mistake and explain it well. On the practical side, he told me to start now by running a blog, posting on Seeking Alpha, using Koyfin as a cheap Bloomberg alternative, and using AI to draft commentary so I have more time to think deeply and explore other sectors. He also explained that research recruiting is much more targeted than IB, since sector teams are fairly autonomous, so I should reach out to senior analysts in specific sectors and recommend based on fit. His own path from no finance background, through China, to Wharton was encouraging. My one suggestion would be a quick walkthrough of what a strong first report looks like beyond the core pieces (recommendation, risks, summary, price target).”

See All 11,598 WSO Academy Reviews

4 Comments

integratedRebuttal

Quote

Report

Other

Authored by: Certified Equity Research Professional - 3rd+ Year AssociateCertified Equity Research Pro

ThatOtherGuy

Best Response

Before 2000, the golden days of research were fueled by 3 things...

Growth and value of active management: AUM's were growing and active management was receiving fund inflows. People weren't really questioning active vs passive like we do today and there wasn't crowding in trades or quants to worry about so active equities were an ideal place to be.
Reg FD: Reg FD was instituted in 2000 which requires fair disclosure of all material news by companies. Before then, equity analysts could receive important information exclusively which made them enormously valuable to the buy-side.
Chinese wall: Nowadays, compliance has a hawk eye on interactions between banking and research. Before, clients would often do banking business with the firm that they knew would give a favorable research report. The business used to go hand-in-hand and research used to be compensated for their role in bringing in banking. This is not the case anymore.

Today, all 3 aspects above are negative for the industry. Active management is in contraction, all information must be openly and fairly distributed, and research must be independent from banking.

Quote

Report

Other

Created a 1-step skincare solution for men. Purchase + reviews appreciated: www.w34th.com

derpherpderp4760

I think your grammar could be an underlying driver and partial reflection as to why Equity Research has fallen from its "glory" days ... but then again, maybe I just have a bias against individuals with poor grammar and are searching for careers in an industry where your primary responsibility is attention to detail, writing, communication, relationship management, and qualitative/quantitative research. shrug

Quote

Report

Other

Authored by: Certified Asset Management Professional - Investment AnalystCertified Asset Management Pro

Research Associate in AM - FI

Et quod nam quos assumenda quod. Est magni dicta cum incidunt et. Magnam et minima quia et. Voluptatem culpa similique consequuntur incidunt quos.

Necessitatibus suscipit sint autem eum atque modi. Soluta ea animi perspiciatis repellendus. Rerum repellendus provident velit ut accusamus. Ut in laborum incidunt aut. Minus eum ut ut.

Cumque iusto enim maxime perspiciatis non necessitatibus id. Consequatur officia repudiandae vel provident esse qui tempora. Id quidem eaque voluptatem nemo dolorum necessitatibus dolorem cum. Dolorem eaque voluptas vel corporis neque.

Quote

Report

Other

Authored by: Certified Asset Management Professional - Research AssociateCertified Asset Management Pro

+13	Is Equity Research Dying - Where Are the Future Opportunites?	4	2d
+10	Associates who stuck around for > 5 years working for the same analyst. Why?	4	1w
+9	Detailed Revenue and Cost Builds	3	1w
+7	Analyst with no coverage or ranking	5	1w
+6	Preparation for grad scheme - buyside ER	1	8h
+1	IB SA -> ER FT	4	2w
0	Equity Research Rankings	1	1w

1	redever	99.2
2	BankonBanking	99.0
3	kanon	99.0
4	Secyh62	99.0
5	GameTheory	98.9
6	CompBanker	98.9
7	DrApeman	98.9
8	dosk17	98.9
9	Betsy Massar	98.9
10	Linda Abraham	98.8

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

Equity Research in the 90s

Score Breakdown

Feedback

Score Breakdown

Feedback

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

Equity Research in the 90s

See All Comments - 100% Free

Trending Content - Equity Research Forum