Administration May 2, 2002

Few Diversifying From Company Stock

February 5, 2002 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Almost three-quarters of investors, who have worked for a public company, say they've been given stock options or other stock compensation.
Reported by

That was one of the findings from a survey released by Eaton Vance Corp., which also found that those securities, awarded as options or compensation now represent a larger piece of their total financial assets than five years ago.

The survey also found that:

  • almost 40% of investors holding employer stock or options say they are concerned about owning a large block of company stock.
  • just over 40% say their views about investing heavily in a single company stock have changed for the worse in the past year.
  • almost 20% of those said they had greater exposure to a single stock than is prudent, and
  • nearly one in five investors say they maintain greater exposure to a single stock

Crystal Ball

Investor sentiment is split over whether the US economy will experience a continued recession or an economic recovery in 2002, 43% believing the US will experience a continued recession, while 52% are more optimistic. A further 5% are not sure whether the recession will continue.

In addition, 45% of investors say that investments in index funds have become more risky over the past five years, compared to 39% in 2001.

And 50% of investors say that they are less likely to invest in index funds over the next couple of years.

The survey was conducted between January 17 and 22, 2002.


 

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