ADR stands for an American Depositary Receipt. ADS stands for an American Depositary Share. An ADR is a receipt for the shares of a foreign-based corporation held by a local custodian bank on behalf of the ADR Depositary Bank, entitling the shareholder to all dividends and capital gains. An ADR is the certificate that represents a number of ADSs. In the U.S., sanofi-aventis stock is traded under a Sponsored Level II ADR Program. In a level II ADR program, the American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) are traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), thereby offering a higher visibility in the U.S. market, more active trading and greater liquidity. Level II ADR programs must comply with the full registration and reporting requirements of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for foreign private issuers. This entails, among other things, the filing of a form 20-F registration statement to register the listing of ADRs, including financial statements and a reconciliation of those sta
A2: ADR stands for American Depositary Receipt. It is a physical certificate evidencing ownership of American Depositary Shares (“ADSs”). ADS is a U.S. dollar denominated form of equity ownership in a non-U.S. company. It represents the foreign shares of the company held on deposit by a custodian bank in the company’s home country and carries the corporate and economic rights of the foreign shares, subject to the terms specified on the ADR certificate.