"Buy", "Sell", or "Hold": Analyzing the Analysts' Recommendations

This is a technical note on the role of analysts and certain terms they use in analyzing companies. This note also outlines the introduction of several NYSE and NASDAQ rules that require analysts, in some circumstances, to disclose certain conflicts of interest when recommending the purchase or sale of a specific security.

The objective of this technical note is to highlight the conflict of interests that existed, prior to the changes, at the investment banks with relationships between sell side equity research analysts and investment banking.