Sellside analysts expect their workload to increase as they focus more on larger-cap firms, and smaller-caps coverage is likely to diminish as brokerage houses reduce numbers in their research departments, according to a new study by Broadgate Consulting, a US firm.

Alan Oshiki, senior vice-president at Broadgate, says: "Lay-offs mean that there are fewer analysts covering a wider spectrum of companies. However, there is less investment banking and trading business as well as less money to pay for that kind of broad coverage.