Perceptions regarding the sources of financial information for South African institutional investors

Abstract

The sources of financial information of institutional investors used for the purpose of making decisions regarding the buying, holding and selling of ordinary shares is the focus of this article. The results of a survey of a sample of institutional Investors regarding general sources of information used followed by more specific sources, notably the company annual report are documented. In addition, three other constituencies in the financial information market, namely the companies who provide the information, the analysts who further process the information and the accounting regulators who establish the body of generally accepted accounted practice were surveyed. Their perceptions of the sources used by institutional investors were established and tested for statistically significant differences in perception using predominantly discriminant analysis.

Key Words:

• Financial Information Market
• Institutional Investors
• Information Source

Additional information

Notes on contributors

D.K. Flynn

Dave Flynn is Associate Professor in Accounting at the University of Cape Town