The draft also parallels rules adopted by the SEC by urging that analysts be shielded from the influence of their employers‚ investment banking and corporate finance departments.
But AIMR is pushing additional proposals:
• Brokerage firms should explain why they are discontinuing coverage of a company in a final research report, rather than stopping coverage quietly to avoid a negative rating on a stock.
• Firms should prohibit research analysts from participating in marketing activities, including "roadshows" for corporate clients issuing new shares of stock.
• Sell-side firms should adopt a rating system that describes risk and time horizon in addition to a "buy-hold-sell" rating.
AIMR, a non-profit group that represents 58,000 analysts, fund managers and other financial professionals, says it hopes companies adopt the rules voluntarily. "Our hope and belief is that current concerns about investor confidence will exert market pressure on firms to embrace AIMR‚s standards and recommended practices voluntarily," says AIMR President and CEO Thomas A. Bowman.
Justice Department Lets Advent Buy Techfi
An antitrust investigation into Advent Software‚s deal to buy Techfi for $23 million has been terminated, freeing the companies to go ahead with the acquisition, company officials say.
The deal was originally announced June 10, but it was held up a week later when the U.S. Department of Justice‚s antitrust division said it was investigating the deal to weigh its impact on the portfolio management software marketplace.
Many observers view the acquisition as an attempt by Advent to capture the market, given the fact that its closest competitor, Charles Schwab & Co., recently converted its Centerpiece software into a proprietary product available only to Schwab advisor clients or prospects.