Comparing Changes in Stockholdings of Different Institutional Investors

Abstract

This paper examines differences in the changes in stockholdings of five groups of institutional investors: banks, insurance companies, investment companies, investment advisors, and “other” institutions (consisting of colleges and universities, private foundations, and private and public pensions). Other institutions have the fewest quarterly changes in holdings, followed by banks, insurance companies, investment companies, and investment advisors. There are significant differences in the length of time that institutional investors hold their portfolios (their investment horizons). These results are one input into understanding the impact of institutional investors' time horizons on managerial decision-making.