After a very challenging year for financial markets, international institutional investors remained the largest stakeholders in the ATX prime at year-end 2015, though with some severe shifts occurring during the year.
Although domestic investors of all types – funds, banks, and insurances – were the largest detractors in the second half of the year, they were still the relatively largest buyers of ATX prime stocks in the twelve month-period of 2015. Foreign institutions on the other hand, changed from selling in the first half of 2015 back to buying Austrian stocks in the second half of the year. While especially US and UK-based as well as Norwegian investors increased their stakes, the majority of the remaining global institutional investors reduced their holdings in the ATX prime in 2015. US, UK, and Austrian institutional holders widened their positions at the top of the regional list, and therefore, Ipreo found an even higher concentration of the top three investor countries in the ATX prime.
The shifts in allocation were also reflected within Europe. Norway, France, and Germany remain predominant as continental European investment regions in the ATX prime, although – with the exception of Norway – the majority of European investors from countries such as Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, France, and Poland showed net selling in 2015. The changes were a result of active rotation in and out of some of the largest issuers at cheap valuations in Austria, as well as an even larger exposure to passively managed funds that focus on Austrian issuers. While it was, above all, international funds which pulled money out of Europe, alternative investors and deep value institutions added liquidity. However, risk-aversion remained a major issue due to political and economic instability in global markets, with the Asian, Syrian, and oil crisis having significant impacts on asset management.
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Ipreo-Survey: Institutional Investors And Austrian Stocks In 2015
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