Who are the most-used brokers and who impresses the most?
Citi was the most-used broker for roadshows in 2019, with nearly three in 10 companies globally having gone on the road with it over the past year. UBS and Bank of America Merrill Lynch are the next most-used brokers, with both being used by more than 26 percent of global respondents. These brokers, along with JPMorgan Chase, are the only ones to have been used by at least a quarter of those companies that went on the road.
All companies in the top 10 most-used brokers for 2019 also featured in the top 10 list in 2018. Kepler Cheuvreux and Macquarie were also joint 10th in 2018 but have dropped slightly to 11th and 13th, respectively, this year.
There is little change overall year on year within the top 20. Goldman Sachs is the only broker to fall out of the top 20 this year and is replaced by Daiwa in 19th place. None of the other brokers has risen or fallen by more than three places, with Stifel and Wells Fargo being the biggest climbers.
Stifel is the most-used broker for roadshows among North American companies in 2019. The company’s focus on smaller companies means it has captured a large share of the market for services among mid-cap firms in North America, resulting in it taking the top spot. Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Barclays Capital share second place.
Deutsche Bank has dropped out of the top 10 this year and is replaced by Jefferies and Morgan Stanley.
Kepler Cheuvreux is the most-used broker among European companies, climbing one place from joint second in 2018. It is followed by Exane BNP Paribas in second place, which has risen four places from sixth in last year’s table.
The only other notable mover is UBS, which has fallen from joint second in 2018 to seventh place this year. Barclays Capital and Berenberg were joint 10th in 2018. Both have dropped out of the top 10 to be replaced by HSBC in 2019.
Citi remains the most-used broker for roadshows among Asian companies in 2019. HSBC and Morgan Stanley were joint 10th in 2018 and both have risen six places this year to claim the joint-fourth spot. The same firms that comprised the top 10 brokers in 2018 feature in this year’s table.
Citi, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and JPMorgan Chase appear in the top five most-used brokers for both small/mid-cap companies and large/mega-cap companies. Jefferies, Kepler Cheuvreux and Stifel performed particularly well for smaller companies, while UBS and Morgan Stanley do better with larger-cap firms.
Number of brokers At 5.2, the global average number of brokers used by each company for roadshows is unchanged from 2018. North American companies use fewer brokers for roadshows, while European and Asian companies both used an average of 6.1 brokers for their roadshow activity in the past year.
There is a sizable difference in the number of brokers used for roadshows according to company size, with small-cap companies using an average of 3.3 brokers over the past 12 months. This increases with company size to 9.3 brokers among mega-cap companies.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch has been chosen for the third year running as the broker that hosts the most impressive roadshows, having topped the poll in 2017 and 2018. Citi remains in second place, having held that position in 2018. Jefferies and Berenberg have also proved popular among their clients and feature in the top five for the first time.