This is interesting.
First, usually Wall Street firms do not issue very many SELL ratings for companies. It is well known that HOLD is secretly equivalent to SELL. Why, analysts believe management will cut off their access to them if they issue a SELL.
Second, you don't see a lot of Wall Street analyst's stepping out from the pack. Like "Marlin Perkins Wild Kingdom", most analysts stay with the pack for fear of getting picked off by a predator.
In actuality, it is good to have both buy and sell ratings, because it informs you quite a bit. With any stock, there are plus and minus factors for purchasing that stock. The weight put on each of those factors is the analyst's choice, but you have got to read the comments carefully, between the lines.
There is never a free lunch in the markets. If someone pitching a stock only tells you the pluses, you are being done a disservice. Unfortunately, this balanced approach doesn't "sell copy".
