Fund Flows, MERs and Managed Fund Ratings Initiations

Abstract

Published star ratings for managed funds, issued by independent agencies, are increasing in popularity, coverage in the academic literature, and influence as measured by the market share and money inflow dominance of rated funds. Hypothesising that fund ratings serve as a proxy for a fund's reputation, this article examines the managed fund inflow effect of the awarding of an initial rating by ASSIRT, Australia's largest fund rating agency. Retail equity funds record significant unexpected size changes at the announcement of the initial rating and over a one-year post-rating analysis period. Wholesale fund sizes take over six months to show the inflow effects of a ratings initiation. Cash and fixed interest funds exhibit volatile size changes whose pattern does not bear a significant relationship to the initial rating phenomenon. Finally, fund management expense ratios remain stable after the rating.