Credit/Fixed Income Research Associate
I'm looking to learn a bit more about sell side credit/Fixed Income research and how it compares to Equity research in terms of Analyst-Associate structure, hours, comp, and exit opps?
There's been a lot of shade lately thrown at ER and people mentioning that it's a shrinking and dying career that adds little value to the buy side. I even read a thread about someone looking to leave their ER dream job because of it's cloudy future, and one asking why someone would even get into ER now. Is the sentiment the same for FI research? I would assume exit opps would be credit based hedge funds and asset managers? Does the role also revolve heavily around earnings season ?
Bump
You mean rating agencies?
Not as much. I've actually done this and...it's a bit of an up and down.
It's not as much of a high flying role, and my anecdotal perspective is comp tends to be lower. It DOES somewhat revolve around earnings but not in the same way. While earnings gets the most attention, those earnings reports also include a full set of audited financial statements which you will use to update your credit models.
The job also isn't ratings agencies. Fixed income funds, mutual funds, and other asset managers all hire credit researchers. So do banks and other providers of credit products.
Main difference is that the equity research is upside focused, the credit researcher is downside focused.
If say I couldn't get into a large AM only fund out of Undergrad, would sell side fixed income/credit research be a good start to move over to a fixed income role at an asset manager?
Would recommend you try your hardest for the buyside. SS feels pretty bleak from my perspective; buyside firms have pretty solid training programs today than they did in the past. I'd go as far to say choosing a different asset class in order to stay on the buyside (and also open your search to insurance buyside).
Fixed Income Research? (Originally Posted: 04/11/2016)
Besides the obvious, how does researching equities vs. debt differ. Does one field pay more/is looked upon more favorably? In what ways does the research differ in terms of what you're expected to know and what you do on a daily basis.
bump
Interested in this as well. And does anyone ever move from FIR to ER or vice versa? How common is that?
It seems like most banks have done away with FI research and have moved more to the desk analyst model. They cover a ton of industries and put out quicker notes and trading thoughts, instead of in-depth research on specific names. Moving from FI to equity would be way easier than the other way around.
I'd reach out to professors from your undergrad. I personally had a few who worked in FI at BB prior to their PhDs
Fixed Income Research (Originally Posted: 09/27/2012)
Hey guys,
can anyone says anything about FIR? How is life style & exit opportunities? How does it compare to DCM / M&A? What valuable skills can you develop? Is it a good road to HF?
Thanks for your answers.
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