All rankings and other results in this survey are based on a poll by questionnaire of the opinions of the SA brokerage firms' domestic institutional clients.
Many of the broking firms produce investment research, or offer other services such as dealing, for foreign clients. Foreign clients' views were not considered for this survey, except where they might have been managing assets in SA.
The structure of the survey is devised largely by the FM. Ipsos-Markinor, an independent market research firm, oversees the processing of the data and compilation of the results. Spreadsheets were designed and run by Vickie Watt of Training Services & Solutions. The SA Bureau of Standards audited the processes. Questionnaires were distributed in an electronic form in March and completed versions were returned by the end of April. Respondents were asked to return one co-ordinated response directly to Ipsos-Markinor. This year questionnaires were sent to 28 financial institutions and asset managers, including life assurers, private client investment managers and some hedge funds. The return rate was 89%.
Respondents were asked to provide separate rankings, down to five places, for broking firms and analysts in each of the 40 research sectors covered. Dealing, sales teams and administration rankings were to 10 places. For the weighted rankings, fund manager votes were weighted on the value of domestic assets under management. In the firms' overall rankings for research, JSE sectors were weighted on market capitalisation in the shareholders' weighted index. In all cases, weighted and unweighted rankings are presented.
- A detailed version appears on www.fm.co.za.
