Data Research Specialist - Equity Strategy

Acuity Analytics; Bengaluru; On-site; INR 1,800,000 - 3,400,000; Full time

Job summary

Acuity Analytics, Bangalore, seeks a Data & Research Specialist to join its equity strategy research group on a long-term embedded engagement with a global investment bank. The role spans quantitative research, data infrastructure, and client-facing research delivery.

You will design PIT data infrastructure for factor research, conduct factor construction and validation, and support stock selection models with backtesting and evaluation of inputs. Emphasis on accuracy and timely production.

Qualifications

• 5-7 years of experience in quantitative equity research or related field.
• Strong SQL skills and Python (pandas)
• Deep understanding of PIT data methodology and lookahead bias avoidance
• Familiarity with value, momentum, quality factor investing concepts
• Experience with large-scale securities datasets and cloud data warehouses (Snowflake)
• Excellent client communication skills and ability to translate data for technical and non-technical stakeholders

Responsibilities

• Lead PIT data infrastructure design and maintenance for fundamentals and estimates datasets.
• Conduct quantitative factor research, validation, and performance analysis for equity strategy research.
• Support stock selection models and backtesting of factor inputs.
• Construct and maintain factor scores to identify top and bottom stocks.
• Own data quality control processes and QC scripts for large securities datasets.
• Evaluate third-party data vendors for research use cases.
• Produce client-facing research reports and notes with strategists.

Skills

SQL

Python

Pandas

Polars

PIT data

Factor investing

Snowflake

Communication

CFA track

Education

MBA (Finance)

CFA charter or progress toward CFA

Tools

Snowflake

Job description

Position Title

Data Research Specialist - Equity Strategy

Experience Level

5 - 8 Years

Department

Investment Operations & Risk Services (IORS)

Location

Bangalore

Position reports to

Associate Director

Job Purpose

Acuity Analytics is seeking a Data & Research Specialist to join our team on a long-term embedded engagement with a leading global investment bank's equity strategy research group. The role sits at the intersection of quantitative research, data infrastructure, and client relationship management, supporting factor-based research production for institutional clients.

Key responsibilities

• Lead point-in-time (PIT) data infrastructure design and maintenance for fundamentals and estimates datasets, ensuring backtest-safe, lookahead-free data for factor research
• Conduct quantitative factor research — factor construction, validation, and performance analysis — supporting the firm's published equity strategy research
• Support the quant/strategy team on equity stock selection models, including backtesting and evaluation of fundamental factor inputs
• Construct and maintain factor scores (value, growth, momentum) to identify most-favored and least-favored stocks within the coverage universe
• Own data quality control processes: build and maintain QC scripts/checks for large-scale securities data (fundamentals, estimates, pricing)
• Evaluate and select third-party data vendors (e.g., FactSet) for research use cases, assessing coverage, methodology, and fit
• Support production of client-facing research reports and notes, working closely with strategists
• Serve as a direct point of contact for institutional client data/research queries, both from internal teams publishing client-facing content and from external clients directly
• Lead and mentor a small team (1-2 members), overseeing delivery quality and workload prioritization
• Act as a bridge between the firm's strategy research team and engineering/technology teams, translating research requirements into data/infrastructure specifications
• Support the monthly production cycle, ensuring accuracy and timeliness of recurring deliverables. Serve as a point of contact for client interactions related to production and research queries

Key competencies

• 5 to 7 years of experience in quantitative equity research, data analytics, or a related field within financial services
• Strong SQL skills; working proficiency in Python (pandas)
• Deep understanding of point-in-time data methodology, survivorship bias, and lookahead bias avoidance
• Familiarity with factor investing concepts (value, momentum, quality, etc.) and factor construction methodology
• Experience with large-scale securities/fundamentals datasets and cloud data warehouses, particularly Snowflake
• Strong SQL skills, with working proficiency in Python (pandas, polars); experience in transitioning workflows for data analysis and validation preferred
• MBA (Finance), CFA charter or progress toward CFA strongly preferred
• Excellent client communication skills — ability to explain data/methodology to both technical and non-technical stakeholders

Acuity Analytics (the trading name of Acuity Knowledge Partners) is a global, tech-first organisation helping financial institutions and corporates make better decisions through research, data, analytics and AI-enabled solutions. We combine deep financial services expertise with strong engineering, digital and AI capabilities to solve complex, real-world problems.

With a team of 7,200+ analysts, data specialists and technologists across 28 locations, we work with more than 800 organisations worldwide to drive efficiency, unlock insight and deliver measurable impact. Our success is built on the strength of our people—by investing in talent, encouraging collaboration and creating room to grow, we enable our teams to do their best work for clients.

Acuity became an independent business in 2019 following its acquisition from Moody’s Corporation by Equistone Partners Europe. In 2023, funds advised by global private equity firm Permira acquired a majority stake, with Equistone remaining a minority investor—supporting our continued growth and innovation.

For more information, visit www.acuityanalytics.com

Acuity Analytics has earned several prestigious industry recognitions, including Great Place to Work® certifications in India and Costa Rica, AVTAR Best Companies for Women in India, the AVTAR Most Inclusive Companies Index, and Silver accreditation in the Workplace Equality Index. These accolades reflect our commitment to building an inclusive, supportive and high-performance workplace for our people. Learn more here.

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