ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, February 22, 1997 TAG: 9702240088
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-7 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
SOURCE: Associated Press
Minorities, women and youths are joining the middle-aged white male on Wall Street
Generation X investors are optimistic and usually more aggressive than other groups, according to a new stock market survey that reflects the growing participation in recent years by women and young people.
What's more, the study says fewer than 1 in 10 investors overall would bail out of stocks if the market ever collapses from its record-setting performance.
The survey released Friday by the Nasdaq stock market, the nation's second-largest securities exchange, illustrates how millions of people have grabbed on to the long-running bull market. It says that stock ownership among Americans has doubled in the past seven years, to 43 percent of the adult population.
Investing is no longer the exclusive province of affluent, middle-aged white men. According to the survey, 47 percent of investors now are women, of whom 45 percent say they are primarily responsible for making family investment decisions.
Also, 55 percent of investors are under the age of 50, and one-half are not college graduates. The study found that 9 percent are black, Hispanic or members of other minorities, and 13 percent have annual household income between $30,000 and $40,000.
``The market looks like America now in terms of people participating,'' Nasdaq President Alfred Berkeley said.
The soaring popularity of mutual funds, 401(k) plans and IRAs for retirement income, as opposed to dependence on pension plans and Social Security, shows that ``people are intensely aware that they have to rely on themselves for their financial future,'' Berkeley said.
Investments in mutual funds have tripled over the past seven years, from 13 percent of American adults in 1990 to 40 percent today.
The survey, conducted by political pollster Peter D. Hart Research Associates, was based on 20-minute telephone interviews between Jan. 11 and 18 of a national sample of 1,214 investors. The margin of error is 3.2 percentage points.
Members of so-called Generation X, ages 18 to 34, now account for 19 percent of all U.S. investors, according to the survey.
``These people are optimistic and they're aggressive,'' said Peter Hart, who heads the polling firm.
Three-quarters of the respondents in that age group said they were confident that they will be able to retire with financial security; 41 percent described themselves as aggressive investors, willing to take risks in exchange for a potentially higher return.
By contrast, 28 percent of investors overall described themselves as aggressive.
LENGTH: Medium: 60 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: Chart by AP.by CNB