In-person roadshows get higher investor ratings than virtual roadshows
Over the period Q3 2019 to Q2 2020, companies held twice as many in-person roadshows as virtual roadshows: more than six in 10 held virtual roadshows in this time, compared with more than 80 percent holding in-person roadshows.
The transition from in-person to virtual roadshows can be seen as the year unfolds. Approaching three quarters of in-person roadshows during this time were held in the second half of 2019 while three quarters of virtual roadshows were held in Q2 2020. This means that in the first half of 2020 companies typically held two virtual roadshows for every 1.2 roadshows in person.
The difference in company participation at in-person and virtual roadshows varies according to region. In North America, companies held fewer than half the number of virtual roadshows as they held in person: 1.8 compared with 4.1. In Asia, companies held two thirds as many virtual roadshows as in-person roadshows.
There is no great difference in the ratio of virtual to in-person roadshows according to cap size. The number of virtual roadshows held by small-cap companies is 53 percent of the number of in-person roadshows. This figures drops to 45 percent among mega-caps.
In the period Q4 2019 to Q3 2020 the typical investor attended around 10 more virtual roadshows than in-person roadshows, more than two and a half times the total number. Investors, however, prefer the experience of in-person roadshows to virtual roadshows, giving an average rating of 7.5/10 compared with 6.5/10.
More than six in 10 investors give a high rating of eight or more for in-person roadshows compared with just a third for virtual roadshows.
