The Importance of Identifying Funds for IR Professionals

A crucial practice for Investor Relations professionals is identifying what funds and financial institutions hold their company’s shares. Monitoring this information allows a better understanding of their investors’ profile and enables the company to adopt more assertive strategies for attracting capital. Analyzing the shareholding structures of peers and comparable companies, alongside understanding how funds behave, is essential for enhancing investor relationships, maximizing capital raising, and ensuring the company’s sustainability in the capital markets.

With this in mind, MZ, who is constantly seeking to empower IR professionals by offering cutting-edge technology, exceptional customer service, and disseminating material content such as this, recently released two studies. These studies identify funds that declared shareholdings in companies listed in the Small Caps Index (SMLL) and the Bovespa Index (IBOVESPA), based on the latest composition of this indexes, effective from January to April 2025. With this data, it is possible to analyze investment patterns, identify new opportunities, and adapt communication strategies to meet market expectations.

How did we get this data?

For this study, MZ used its MZiQ Intelligence tool, which allows IR professionals to monitor changes in investment funds and their respective strategies. With this tool, we can access public information from global shareholder bases, analyzing investor profiles and their market behaviors. This analysis helps define goals for setting up non-deal roadshows, identifying new shareholder opportunities and improving communication with the market.

Furthermore, the MZiQ Intelligence targeting tool allows companies to compare their shareholding positions with other market peers. This makes it possible to identify investors holding shares in direct competitors and develop strategies to attract them. This type of analysis is especially valuable in highly competitive scenarios, in which attracting new investors can be a competitive differentiator.

Some of our key findings from the Studies

The Study for companies in the Small Caps Index revealed that 987 funds/institutions had reported 11,682 positions in 118 companies. The Study for companies in the IBOVESPA Index revealed that 2,280 funds/institutions declared holdings in 86 shares of 84 companies. The data illustrates how widespread institutional presence is in the markets, and how this can shape IR communication strategies.

Understanding investment distribution by sector is also a critical factor for the IR strategy. In the Small Caps Index, the sectors with the largest volume of identified investors were retail (19.5%), real estate (9.8%) and healthcare (7.7%). In the IBOVESPA Index, the predominant sectors were oil, gas and derivatives (12.9%), financial services (12.5%) and electricity (12.0%). This type of information allows companies to adapt their financial narratives and enhance engagement with relevant investors.

Another essential point is to analyze investor profiles. Investors in the IBOVESPA Index were predominantly Investment Advisers (71.2%) with Growth Investing strategies (51.4%) and low turnover (46.4%), which highlights the trend towards long-term investments focusing on growth. Understanding these profiles is key to adapting a company’s market communication and ensuring that the information being disclosed is aligned with institutional investors’ expectations is essential for any interaction.

In the IBOVESPA Study, the sectors with the highest increase in fund shareholding, compared to the previous report, were Participations & Investments (55.0%), Oil, Gas & Derivatives (52.7%) and Financial Services (49.3%), suggesting that investors considered these businesses attractive, possibly due to growth expectations and stability. On the other hand, the sectors with the highest loss in fund shareholding were Agriculture, Sugar & Alcohol (59.1%), Education (56.8%) and Machinery, Equipment & Others (56.7%). Leaving these sectors may indicate distrust on future performance or reallocation of capital to segments with better predictability and return, largely due to macroeconomic challenges expected in the near future. 

In the Small Caps Study, the Electric Energy sector had the greatest increase in identified fund shareholding, which represented 49.6% of the total funds that increased their positions. This growth may be associated with cash flow predictability and dividend attractiveness. On the other hand, the Participations & Investments sector had the highest outflow of funds, with 57.3% of investors reducing their stake. This movement may reflect a strategy in which funds are reassessing the sector in light of regulatory risks or lower potential for share appreciation in the short term.

Last but not least, the geographic location of investment funds is also a factor that can influence a company’s IR strategy, especially in terms of non-deal roadshows and the need to translate documents into multiple languages​with the necessary quality. In the Small Capos Study, 36.6% of the identified funds and institutions were located in North America, and Latin America accounted for 33.3%. In the IBOVESPA Study, North American investors represent 57.5% of the total, followed by European investors (20.7%). This data reinforces the importance of adapting corporate communication to different markets and investor profiles.

These Studies, as well as the MZiQ tool, help to elaborate efficient and precise investor targeting, which is essential for growing a company’s shareholder base. As the Studies highlighted, analyzing and comparing the investor base against market peers are key strategies for attracting new investors and strengthening relationships with existing stakeholders. Identifying the shareholder base and using targeting tools, such as the Intelligence features offered by MZiQ, expand the possibilities of attracting strategic investors.

Conclusion

Identifying and monitoring the shareholder base are key activities for Investor Relations professionals seeking to improve their company’s market positioning. Using targeting tools, such as the Intelligence feature on MZiQ, gives companies a competitive advantage by providing valuable insights into shareholder base and investor behavior.

By integrating this data into an effective and targeted communications strategy, companies can strengthen their investor relationships, optimize their shareholder base and attract capital in a sustainable way. Also, investor targeting and comparative peer analysis allows companies to elaborate more effective strategies for attracting new shareholders. Therefore, strategically managing the shareholder base becomes a key element for elevating and sustaining companies in the capital markets. 

MZ, as the leading solutions provider for empowering investor relations professionals, from companies to investment managers, reinforces its commitment to helping companies and their IR professionals to communicate increasingly better and more frequently with the market. We hope to have assisted by providing more information about these important studies for the IR ecosystem and we are always here, at your service! 😉

External Communications and MZ Research Team

About MZ

MZ (www.mzgroup.com.br) is the largest and leading independent global player in investor relations (IR) solutions.

Founded in 1999, the Company has surpassed the mark of 2,000 websites published, currently serving over 800 companies and investment management firms listed on 12 stock exchanges.

To empower IR strategies, MZ delivers innovative technologies and exceptional customer service, ensuring long-term partnerships.