what is a research analyst 
a research analyst is a professional who prepares investigative reports on securities or assets for in house or client use other titles for this function include securities analyst investment analyst equity analyst rating analyst or simply analyst the work conducted by a research analyst is in an effort to inquire into examine find or revise facts principles and theories for internal use by a financial institution or an external financial client the report an analyst prepares entails the examination of public securities records of companies or industries and often concludes with a buy sell or hold recommendation if a research analyst is involved with an investment bank or a securities firm controlled by a member organization of the financial industry regulatory authority finra they may be required to register with a self regulatory organization sro and or take certain exams 1the basics of being a research analystresearch analysts are usually divided into two groups buy side and sell side analysts a buy side brokerage research analyst is typically employed by an asset management company and recommends securities for investment to the money managers of the fund that employs them the research of a sell side investment firm analyst tends to be sold to the buy side sell side research is also given to clients for free for consideration in an attempt to win business for example such research can be used to promote companies a buy side analyst usually works for institutional investors such as hedge funds pension funds or mutual funds buy side research analysts are often considered more professional academic and reputable compared to the sell side sell side research jobs are often likened to marketing and sometimes pay higher salaries 2buy side analysts will determine how promising an investment seems and how well it coincides with the fund s investment strategy sell side analysts are those who issue recommendations of strong buy outperform neutral or sell research analysts can work at a variety of companies such as at asset management companies investment banks insurance companies hedge funds pension funds brokerages or any business that needs to crunch data to spot trends or decide on a valuation make an investment decision or forecast the outlook of a company or asset according to glassdoor the average base salary for a research analyst is 90 838 ranging anywhere between 68 000 and 125 000 3research analyst qualificationscompanies that employ research analysts sometimes require a master s degree in finance or a chartered financial analyst cfa designation on top of several regulatory hurdles research analysts might be required to take the series 86 87 exams if they are involved with a member organization 1other required securities licenses often include the series 7 general securities representative license and the series 63 uniform securities agent license 4 finra licenses are typically associated with the selling of specific securities as a firm s registered representative investment analysts may also seek to obtain the chartered financial analyst cfa certification 5financial analyst vs research analystfinancial firms in the united states do not really present a unified definition of either of these job titles some financial analysts are really just researchers who collect and organize market data while others put together specific proposals for securities investments with large institutional clients similarly some research analysts are glorified marketing specialists while others apply socioeconomic or political insights and are probably better classified as management consultants it s possible to narrow the differences between research analysts and financial analysts generally speaking financial analysts focus on analyzing investments and market performance they rely on a fundamental understanding of business valuation and economic principles to create reports and make recommendations they are the behind the scenes experts research analysts occupy a less prescriptive role than financial analysts instead of looking through the lens of broad economic principles they focus more on mathematical models to produce objective answers about historical data financial analysts collect and analyze data but always within the context of a prior deductive understanding of how markets should function their thinking is systemic and particularly at more senior levels subjective research analysts tend to be operations focused give a research analyst a series of inputs and they can calculate the most efficient way to maximize output if the research analyst works in the securities business it s likely that recommendations may be made based on some predetermined criteria 