S&P Capital IQ’s Compustat Snapshot, researchers get a clear picture of preliminary and final data for annual, quarterly and year-to-date periods, minimizing lag assumptions and look-ahead bias. The database creates a historical investment environment by showing the information that was available at specific time points in history, with data values known by the market from preliminary announcements and final sources. Dates of coverage are 1968 to the present.
Compustat Snapshot is accessed through a Wharton Research Data Services (WRDS) account.
Special Note: WRDS accounts will only be generated for current faculty, currently enrolled students (Ph.D., masters, and undergraduate), and selected current staff of UNC-Chapel Hill.
To fill out an on-line account request form go to https://wrds-www.wharton.upenn.edu/ and click on the “Register” tab in the upper right portion of the screen.
UNC-CH users with additional password
https://wrds-www.wharton.upenn.edu/