UBS, Citigroup, and JPMorgan Chase & Co. claimed the top three spots in the 2019 All-Europe Research Team: Hedge Fund Cut. This echoed the results of II’s broader All-Europe Research Team survey, which included responses from long-only asset managers and asset owners in addition to hedge funds.
For the second year in a row, UBS led the hedge-fund only ranking. Citi and JPMorgan took second and third in the hedge fund survey, respectively, matching their positions in the main All-Europe Research Team ranking.
More than 440 hedge fund managers at 270 firms managing roughly $163 billion in European equities responded to the survey. These responses were then weighted based on each respondent’s assets under management to determine the rankings.
When survey responses were weighted by commissions — to reflect the firms earning the highest share of research dollars — UBS’s ranking remained unchanged at No. 1. Citi and JPMorgan, however, switched positions, with JPMorgan claiming second in the commission-weighted ranking.
To determine hedge funds’ favorite European sell-side equity analysts and economists, we retabulated the results of the 2019 All-Europe Research Team survey counting only votes cast by hedge fund personnel. II tapped opinions of more than 440 hedge fund managers at 270 firms overseeing an estimated $163 billion in European equity assets. The individual names of the survey respondents are kept confidential to ensure their continuing cooperation.
Participants voted for individual analysts and economist/strategists and these votes were combined for each firm to form a team in each sector. A numerical score was produced by weighting each vote with the respondent’s European equity assets under management and the place awarded (first, second, third or fourth). Ranks were determined using those scores. Teams were designated runners‐up when their scores came within 35 percent of the third team’s scores.
This year we also produced an additional ranking weighted by commissions instead of assets under management.
Voters must meet eligibility requirements, and winners must achieve a minimum vote count. In the industry sectors, only those analysts who publish independent research as defined by the Financial Conduct Authority are eligible to be recognized as team members. No such restriction applies to team members in Countries & Regions and Economics & Strategy. All ballots are subject to review by our Research Operations Group.
Out of the 44 sectors polled, participation was sufficient to field teams in 33 sectors with 29 fielding complete teams (first through third).
This ranking was compiled by Senior Project Managers Tucker Ewing and Denise Hoguet along with Associate Project Managers Denise Best, Amy Tan, and Xiao Lu.