analyst

noun

an·a·lyst | \ ˈa-nə-ləst

Definition of analyst

1 : a person who analyzes or who is skilled in analysis

2 : psychoanalyst

Examples of analyst in a Sentence

My analyst felt that I was making good progress.

Recent Examples on the Web

Education analysts and policy makers look at tables like these in concluding that program type is becoming more important than degree level when determining economic outcomes. — Chuck Thompson, Popular Mechanics, "The State of American Trade Schools," 13 Mar. 2019 Earnings, removing one-time items, were $1.41 per share, which is 8 cents better than analysts had expected, according to a survey by Zacks Investment Research. — Anne D'innocenzio, The Seattle Times, "Walmart flexes in the fourth quarter, beats all expectations," 20 Feb. 2019 What Intel’s processor shortages mean for you Swan told analysts that part of Intel’s inability to meet expectations has come as the company has struggled to transition to the 10nm manufacturing node. — Mark Hachman, PCWorld, "Intel addresses processor shortages, CEO hunt after reporting disappointing fourth-quarter results," 24 Jan. 2019 General Motors is expected to reach it next, with analysts predicting that GM will hit the limit either this quarter or early next year. — Timothy B. Lee, Ars Technica, "Tesla sets Monday deadline for 2018 delivery—and $7,500 tax credit," 12 Oct. 2018 Some analysts even questioned the reliability of the government report. — Anne D'innocenzio, The Seattle Times, "Walmart flexes in the fourth quarter, beats all expectations," 20 Feb. 2019 Senior executives told investors and analysts on Wednesday that domestic consumers are still spending, putting at bay the economic downturn and any fallout from trade tensions with the U.S. ... — Yoko Kubota, WSJ, "Alibaba CEO Says China Consumers Still Spending Despite Slowdown," 30 Jan. 2019 Since then, analysts have paid a lot of attention to likability. — Celeste Katz, Glamour, "How did ‘likability’ become a thing for women in politics?," 18 Jan. 2019 While analysts believe the shortage helped rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc., Intel’s focus on high-margin markets boosted profits in the third quarter. — Jay Greene, WSJ, "Intel CEO Pick, Chip Supplies Shadow Earnings: What to Watch," 24 Jan. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'analyst.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

25 Mar 2019

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More Definitions for analyst

analyst

noun

Financial Definition of analyst

What It Is

An analyst gathers and interprets data about securities, companies, corporate strategies, economies or financial markets. Analysts are sometimes called financial analysts, securities analysts, equity analysts or investment analysts (although there is a distinction among these titles).

How It Works

Much of an analyst's job involves gathering data from publications, researchers and other sources; creating financial models; and writing reports or making presentations. Analysts are heavily involved with mergers and acquisitions, consulting, corporate strategy, bankruptcy, and myriad other financially important processes. Thus, their projects can be wide-ranging, and can include creating a company's budget for the coming years; deciding what sort of buy-or-sell advice to give clients; evaluating the prospects for a particular security; or deciding how much to pay to acquire a certain company. Securities analysts in particular usually write research reports for clients and offer buy and sell recommendations.

Analysts work for public and private companies, nonprofit organizations, investment banks, brokerage firms, insurance companies, government entities and nearly any other organization that is concerned about making sound financial decisions. They must be able to work well with clients, peers and their bosses; explain their ideas quickly and precisely; have presentation skills; and be extremely confident with spreadsheets and numbers. Some travel a lot. Analysts typically work considerably long work weeks, particularly early in their careers.

Analysts often have undergraduate or graduate business degrees, but many investment firms train entry-level analysts, which means an undergraduate degree in business is not always necessary if a candidate shows aptitude. Some analysts also enter the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) program to further their credentials. Many analysts go on to become senior analysts, investment bankers, consultants, advisors and chief financial officers.

Why It Matters

An analyst helps people make decisions. Analysts gather and interpret data to do this, and quite often they have to project future events. To do this well, an analyst has to stay on top of industry and company trends, market trends, economic trends, new regulations, changes in accounting rules, and a host of other information.

For this reason, analysts carry a great degree of responsibility. The results of their analyses frequently determine the course of major decisions, and a mistake in a spreadsheet or an overlooked piece of information could mean inadvertently making the wrong decisions, which could have far-reaching effects on client portfolios, stock prices, corporate strategies or even a company's solvency.

Source: Investing Answers

analyst

noun