An Overview of Equity Research
The Indian finance industry has grown over the years to become one of the largest employment generators in the country. It is reasonably profitable and an outstanding career option for people looking to make an honest living. Equity researchers guide others (investors) to the treasure they can’t possess (best equities to invest in), well, actually they can but you get the point. Equity research management courses provide the platform for these people to first gain the skills required to successfully guide investors towards profitable equities to invest in. You can’t make an analytical prediction if you aren’t aware of the parameters involved in the prediction and don’t possess the analytical mindset required to handle the statistics and mathematics involved.
The investors, so to speak, are not just financially well-endowed individuals- companies, banks, non-banking finance corporations and startups can all be classified as investors. For these investors, an equity research manager will have to track the progress of companies and industrial sectors of interest, create excel financial models and draw valuations for various companies and equally diverse models customized according to the problem statement. Insurance companies, investment banks, Asset Management firms, and Investment advisory agencies are all major recruiters of equity research management candidates.
MBA, eligibility, fees and skills required
While there is no concrete rule that states a particular equity research management course are required for becoming an equity research management, it is not advised to try walking down a hit and trial path. Instead, a very good way to equip yourself with the right knowledge and know-how of equity research is going through an equity research management course. An MBA in equity research requires at least 60% aggregate score in your bachelor’s degree as well as 10+2 and again, while it is not set in stone, a bachelor’s in business administration with a strong foundation in commerce and finances will push you forward in your career and help you a great deal by taking away the painstaking job of learning the fundamentals of finance from scratch.
Chartered Accountants can easily switch careers and jump into equity research as they already possess some of the key qualities to excel in this field and are strong in their knowledge of financial basics. The entry into an MBA program is governed by national level entrance examinations such as CAT, XAT, GMAT, etc. and depending on your score and profile you may end up in a B-school that will set you back by 8 Lakh rupees for a traditional 2 years long, 4 semesters spanning on-campus degree. But there are chances of landing a spot in one of the premier schools and they have better prospects, sure, but the tuition goes as high as 23-25 Lakhs for the same.
Distance learning is a good alternative for people that are looking to expand their skills without taking a halt in their career path to pursue an MBA. It does lack some practical aspects of a traditional MBA though and this should duly be considered.
Jobs, career prospects and salary
The job profiles such as Associate Equity Analyst, Junior Analyst are available at entry-level, Senior Analyst and Equity Manager at the mid-career level of experience and Head of Equities, Senior Investment Manager, etc. as late-career profiles are available after competition of an MBA in equity research management or other equity research management courses, these scale-up in pay as well with experience and rank in the equity management hierarchy.
India with its diverse financial spectrum proves to be a unique place for this field but that is not to say that the career progression in the field is rocky. In fact, with the right skillset and an MBA, it just might be as smooth as career progressions get.
The Indian economy has been suffering a lot lately and as a result, there is very low risk-taking going on in the market and some of that can be attributed to a well-guided investment plan overlooked by an equity research manager. So in order for the smooth functioning of the economy and to prevent the shortage of capital investment, this is a crucial field and can’t lose momentum gave the current pandemic situation going on and how it has affected the economy.
The career prospects of equity research management are great, with a starting salary of 2.5 to 3 LPA, a mid-career (4-6 years of experience) salary of 5-8 LPA and late-career salary of even upwards of 12LPA which is decent, to say the least.
