Analyst - QEP

Overview of QEP Team

The QEP Investment Team consists of 26 members, located in London, Sydney, New York and Hong Kong. It currently manages c.$37 billion across a range of global and emerging market equity strategies on behalf of clients around the world.

The team is organized across three key functions:

• The research team is responsible for researching new investment strategies and enhancing existing models.
• The portfolio implementation team is responsible for the day-to-day management of client portfolios, ensuring that trades are executed in a timely and effective manner.
• A product management team located in London and key international offices oversees relationship management, client service and business development.

Additionally, the QEP Investment Team utilizes Schroders' global resources in areas such as Trading, IT, Risk and Compliance.

Overview of the Role

We are looking for a technically strong individual with experience working in a quantitative equity investment team or quantitative equity research role at an investment bank. Our ideal candidate will be solutions-focused, pro-active and reliable. The market environment changes rapidly and we are looking for an individual who wants to continue to develop their skills in a fast-paced, dynamic team environment. The ability to work productively with others and to communicate effectively will be essential to success in this role. Key responsibilities include

• Participate in quantitative research projects under the guidance of portfolio management to support investment decision processes
• Conduct exploratory data analysis on new data sources
• Monitor financial literature and perform empirical research to improve stock selection processes
• Improve the management of investment risk and develop portfolio construction tools that optimise the way alpha and risk inputs are combined
• Create and maintain research tools and work with the Quantitative Developer team in improving investment tools

Essential Background/Skills:

• Analytical academic background (e.g. statistics, economics, econometrics, computer science, mathematics, ... )
• Quantitative equity research experience
• Interest in and affinity with financial markets and research
• Familiarity with traditional quantitative equity data sources (market data, accounting data, analyst estimates, ...)
• Strong programming skills in statistical languages (Matlab (preferred), R, Python, ...)
• Advanced Microsoft Office skills (Excel, PowerPoint, Word), including VBA
• Knowledge of SQL (ability to write complex queries)
• Ability to work in a intellectually challenging, collaborative team environment
• Hard-working, self-motivated with a proactive approach and strong attention to detail
• Composition and publication skills in order to transfer research into well structured research papers for internal (and occasionally external) use

Other Useful Background/Skills:

• Experience with (portfolio) optimisation techniques (linear/quadratic/conic)
• Experience with building equity risk models (fundamental factor and macro-economic)
• Interest and affinity with alternative data sources (news sentiment, online statistics, industry specific data, ...)
• Familiarity with machine learning and/or artificial intelligence techniques
• Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) certification or ambition to enrol in the program