The contents of reports may also be specified by regulatory agencies or professional standards. For example, the CFA Institute Standards of Practice Handbook (Handbook) dictates standards that must be followed in communicating recommendations. According to the Handbook:

Standard V(B) states that members and candidates should communicate in a recommendation the factors that were instrumental in making the investment recommendation. A critical part of this requirement is to distinguish clearly between opinions and facts. In preparing a research report, the member or candidate must present the basic characteristics of the security(ies) being analyzed, which will allow the reader to evaluate the report and incorporate information the reader deems relevant to his or her investment decision making process.