Investor relations

Investor relations (IR) is a "strategic management responsibility that is capable of integrating finance, communication, marketing and securities law compliance to enable the most effective two-way communication between a company, the financial community, and other constituencies, which ultimately contributes to a company's securities achieving fair valuation." as defined by National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI). IR is also function to assess the impact of a company actions (e.g. acquisitions, change in dividend policy, introduction of new product) on the company's position in the capital markets (e.g. stock price, competitive position, public perception).

The term describes the department of a company devoted to handling inquiries from shareholders and investors, as well as others who might be interested in a company's stock or financial stability.