Results to this question are presented in descending order of the 2015 responses. Consistent with last year, Morningstar.com garners the top spot for ETF research among providers, with over one-half of respondents indicating use of their online platform. And, approximately one-third of RIAs indicate they use Morningstar’s ETF specific research offering, a level fairly consistent with the past two years. However, not all Morningstar properties are seeing stable usage; its Principia service continues to fall, dropping to 16% from 20% last year and 24% in 2013. Lipper, the primary competitor to Morningstar in the wealth management space, actually reversed a declining trend in usage, with 13% of respondents indicating use of the Thomson-owned service compared to only 5% last year. Lipper has made some positive changes under new management and perhaps those investments are beginning to gain traction with advisors. ETF Guide, at 10% vs 6% last year, also registers a solid increase in usage. Moving in the opposition direction, ETF Trends and ETF.com/Index Universe both show notable declines in usage.
Next Part 4 of 6: Strategic Role of ETFs in the Portfolio
