Call it the gag rule, but according to Bulldog Research's Mike Thompson, for all of the tough-talking masters of the universe working the markets, most analysts don't like to insult the companies they cover.
Nobody wants to hear that their baby is ugly.
The Wall Street version of ugly is a sell rating, meaning toss the stock. To avoid it, the financial community created its very own Morse Code. Here's what we do know. Obviously the companies don't want to hear it. And insulted company executives might cut the line the next time an analyst needs information.