The ESN spectrum of recommendations (or ratings) for each stock comprises 5 categories: Buy, Accumulate (or Add), Hold, Reduce and Sell (in short: B, A, H, R, S).

Furthermore, in specific cases and for a limited period of time, the analysts are allowed to rate the stocks as Rating Suspended (RS) or Not Rated (NR), as explained below.

Meaning of each rating or recommendation:

Buy: the stock is expected to generate total return of over 20% during the next 12 months time horizon

Accumulate: the stock is expected to generate total return of 10% to 20% during the next 12 months time horizon

Hold: the stock is expected to generate total return of 0% to 10% during the next 12 months time horizon.

Reduce: the stock is expected to generate total return of 0% to -10% during the next 12 months time horizon

Sell: the stock is expected to generate total return under -10% during the next 12 months time horizon

Rating Suspended: the rating is suspended due to a capital operation (take-over bid, SPO, …) where the issuer of the document (a partner of ESN) or a related party of the issuer is or could be involved or to a change of analyst covering the stock

Not Rated: there is no rating for a company being floated (IPO) by the issuer of the document (a partner of ESN) or a related party of the issuer

History of ESN Recommendation System

Since 18 October 2004, the Members of ESN are using an Absolute Recommendation System (before was a Relative Rec. System) to rate any single stock under coverage.

Since 4 August 2008, the ESN Rec. System has been amended as follow.

  Time horizon changed to 12 months (it was 6 months)

  Recommendations Total Return Range changed as below:

ESN Stocks Subdivision:

Blue Chips: stocks whose market capitalisation is above EUR 2 bn.

Mid Caps: stocks whose market capitalisation is between EUR 0.5 bn and EUR 2 bn.

Small & Micro Caps: stocks whose market capitalisation is below EUR 0.5 bn.