ABSTRACT:

The study discusses about the behavior of investors towards the various investment
alternatives with special reference to Coimbatore city. The sampling method used was
the convenient sampling method with sample size as 100. The tool used for data
collection is questionnaire. The tools used for the purpose of analysis are simple
percentage analysis & ranking method.

It is concluded from the study that the investors are monitoring their investments on a
weekly basis. The prime most important objective of the sample investors is return
factor. The investors are making their investments on a medium term basis. The sample
investors are considering liquidity as the important factor before making their
investments. The front runner for the investors to make their investment is friends.

The respondents had chosen negotiable securities as their first preference The second
place is occupied by non negotiable securities followed by real assets. The fourth, fifth &
sixth places are occupied by Mutual funds, tax sheltered schemes & life insurance
respectively.

In case of ranking for the objectives the respondents had chosen hedging against
inflation as their first preference. The second place is occupied by safety of principal
followed by liquidity .The fourth, fifth & sixth places are occupied by return, retirement
benefits and risk respectively.

Keywords: Investor behavior, investment alternatives, Coimbatore city,

sampling method, questionnaire method

INTRODUCTION:

India is a developing country stuffed with various credits. It is interesting to note that
the savings rate is relatively higher when compared with that of other countries. Personal
Savings in India increased to 20037.20 INR Billion in 2012 from 18329.01 INR Billion in
2011. (Personal Savings in India is reported by the Central Statistical Organisation,
India.).

Investment behavior refers to the attitudes, perception and willingness of the individuals
and institutions in placing their savings in various types of financial assets, more
commonly known as securities.

An investor is a person who sacrifices the present in order to reap the benefits for the
future. The benefits may be in the form of capital appreciation, income in the form of
dividends, bonus, retirement benefits & many other benefits. Generally an investor's
objectives would be one among the following

1. To minimize the risk

2. To maximize the returns

3. To hedge against inflation

4. Liquidity

TYPES OF INVESTMENTS:
Equity shares Deposits
Preference shares
Debentures
Bonds
IVP & KVP
Government securities
Money market securities
Treasury Bills
Commercial Papers
Certificate of Deposits

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY:

1. To study the investors behavior towards the various investment alternatives with
special reference to Coimbatore city

2. To study the investors objectives

3. To study the factors influencing the investors to invest in various investment

alternatives

4. To identify the time horizon with which they make their investment

5. To identify the front runners for investment in various sources

SCOPE OF THE STUDY:

The study provides an insight to understand the behavior of investors towards the
various investment alternatives in Coimbatore city.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY:

1. The sample size taken for analysis is only 100

2. The sampling is restricted to Coimbatore city alone.

LITERATURE REVIEW:

A study of investor behavior on investment avenues in Mumbai Fenil was undertaken by

Brahmabhatt, P.S Raghu Kumari, and Dr. Shamira Malekar. In this study they
analyzed the investor behavior and their preferences. The objectives for their study were
to understand about various investment avenues available in the market, to understand
the pattern of investors while making the investments, & to find out the factors that
investors consider before investing. Through their study it was revealed that people like
to invest in stock market. The percentage of income they make as investment depend on
their annual income.

A study on people's preference in investment behavior was made by N.Geetha & Dr

M.Ramesh. The objectives were to analyse the factor that influence investment
behavior of the people & to study the attitude of the respondents towards different
investment choices. In this study they concluded that the respondents were medium
aware of the available investment choices, but they were not aware of the stock market,
equity & debentures. The study has been concluded that the income level of the
respondents affects the portfolio of the respondents.

A study on Investment behavior of working women of Punjab was conducted by

Dr. Sarita bahl. The purpose of the analysis was to study the investor behavior &
investor preference. The objectives of the study were to study the investment behavior
among the working women in Punjab & to know the level of agreement of working
women of Punjab on various aspects of investment planning. The study reveals that 33
% of the women have a well developed plan for investment. It also infer that 48 % of
the working women think that one should start to invest whenever they find a new job or
occupation. 18 % of the working women have invested in shares & stocks.

A study on saving pattern and investment preferences of individual household in India

was conducted by Meenakshi Chaturvedi And Shruti Khare. The objectives of the
study were to study the saving pattern of the individual household in India, to analyze
the Investment preferences of individual household in India, to study relation of saving
pattern and investment preferences to social, economic, educational and occupational
background of the individual household & to give suggestions for evolving better investor
awareness and educational programs. It is concluded from the study that Majority of the
respondent (79.6%) stated that they had a high degree of awareness about bank
deposits as investment avenues. It is found from the study that level and extent of
awareness varies with the level of income

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The study is descriptive in nature. The methodology of the present study is outlined
hereunder.

A. POPULATION

Population for selecting sampling units of the study includes the investors of the
Coimbatore district.

B. SAMPLING TECHNIQUE

Coimbatore district is the geographical region selected for conducting the research work.
The sampling technique used by the researcher is "convenient sampling method". The
sample size is 100.

C. SOURCE AND TOOL OF DATA COLLECTION

The source of data collection is primary in nature. For collecting data from the sample
respondents, the questionnaire was used.
ANALYSIS & INTERPRETATION:

The tools used for analyzing are as follows

1. Percentage analysis

2. Ranking method

1. PERCENTAGE ANALYSIS:

Percentage method refers to a specified kind which is used in making comparison

between two or more series of data. Percentages are based on descriptive relationship. It
compares the relative items. Since the percentage reduces everything to a common base
and thereby allow meaning comparison.

Percentage = Number of respondents

----------------------- x 100
Total no of respondents

2. RANKING METHOD:

The ranking method was conducted to find out preference of investors regarding the
various investment alternatives and to find their prime objective for making investment.

FINDINGS:

1. The majority of the respondents belong to 41-50 age groups & the majority of the
population are male.

2. The majority of the respondents belong to PG category & their income level lies
between Rs 1,00,001 to Rs 2,00,000

3. The majority of the respondents are married

4. The majority of the respondents save Rs 21,000 to Rs 30,000 per year

5. The majority of the respondents use borrowed fund

6. The majority of the respondents have an experience of 2-5 years

7. The majority of the respondents save 46% of their income

8. The front runners for most of the respondents are friends

9. The majority of the respondents are medium term investors

10. The majority of the respondents consider liquidity as the important factor before
investing.

11. The majority of the respondents consider return as the important investment
objective

12. The majority of the respondents monitor their investments weekly

13. The majority of the respondents take the advice of the brokers

14. The respondents had chosen negotiable securities as their first preference The
second place is occupied by non negotiable securities followed by real assets .The fourth,
fifth & sixth places are occupied by Mutual funds, tax sheltered schemes & life insurance
respectively.

15. The respondents had chosen hedging against inflation as their first preference. The
second place is occupied by safety of principal followed by liquidity .The fourth fifth &
sixth places are occupied by return, retirement benefits and risk respectively

RECOMMENDATION:

1. From the findings it is inferred that the investors are monitoring their investments on
a weekly basis. It is recommended that the investors can monitor their investments
within small intervals.

2. The majority of the investors consider return as the major investment objectives.
Rather they can concentrate on other investment objectives like safety of principal,
retirement benefits & to hedge against inflation

3. It is inferred from the study that the majority of the investors are medium term
investors. They can even watch the market movements for a longer period of time to
reap more benefits.

4. Rather than considering liquidity as the most important factor before investing, they
can concentrate other factors also.

5. The majority of the respondents use borrowed funds. Instead they can use their own
fund to get more benefits.

CONCLUSION:

It is concluded from the study that the investors are monitoring their investments on a
weekly basis. The prime most important objective of the sample investors is return
factor.

The investors are making their investments on a medium term basis. The sample
investors are considering liquidity as the important factor before making their
investments. The front runner for the investors to make their investment is friends. The
investors are investing their amount for medium time period only.

The respondents had chosen negotiable securities as their first preference The second
place is occupied by non negotiable securities followed by real assets The fourth fifth &
sixth places are occupied by Mutual funds, tax sheltered schemes & life insurance
respectively.

The respondents had chosen hedging against inflation as their first preference. The
second place is occupied by safety of principal followed by liquidity .The fourth fifth &
sixth places are occupied by return, retirement benefits and risk respectively

BIBLIOGRAPHY:
1. Punithavathy Pandian, Security Analysis and Portfolio Management, Vikas Publishing
House, New Delhi, 2011

2. Brahmabhatt, P.S Raghu Kumari & Dr. Shamira Malekar, "A Study Of Investor
Behavior On Investment Avenues in Mumbai Fenil", TRANS Asian Journal of Marketing &
Management Research Vol.1 Issue 1, September 2012, ISSN (online)

3. N. Geetha & Dr. M. Ramesh,"A Study on People's Preferences in Investment Behaviour

", IJEMR November 2011-Vol 1 Issue 6 - Online - ISSN 2249 2585 - Print - ISSN
2249 8672

4. Dr. Sarita Bahl, "Investment Behaviour Of Working Women Of Punjab", APJEM Arth
Prabhand: A Journal of Economics and Management, Vol.1 Issue 6, September 2012,
ISSN 2278 - 0629

5. Meenakshi Chaturvedi & Shruti Khare , "Study Of Saving Pattern And Investment
Preferences Of Individual Household In India", International Journal of Research in
Commerce & Management, volume no. 3 (2012), issue no. 5 (MAY) ISSN 0976-2183

6. Central Statistical Organisation, India