FAQs
- What is the Center for Research in Security Prices?
Often known by its acronym CRSP, it is a research center at the Graduate School of Business (founded in 1898) of the University of Chicago. CRSP is a non-profit center which also functions as a vendor of historical data. All revenues after expenses support the Graduate School of Business, providing grants for faculty and student research.
- What Makes CRSP Data Unique?
Its accuracy, depth and breadth of history, and its permanent identifiers.
All CRSP data are checked for accuracy and internal consistency, and secondary sources are used to check suspect values. Considerable resources are expended in checking and improving the quality of the data. Errors and omissions in source data are not common. Historical corrections account for the differences in the data from update to update.
CRSP's unique and permanent security and company identifiers, PERMNO® and PERMCO®, offer uninterrupted time-series analysis by tracking securities across time, regardless of identifier changes to CUSIP, ticker, company name, SIC Code, and exchange. This feature permits accurate time-series and events studies.
- Who are typical users of CRSP equity data?
Typical users include members of the academic and investment communities.
- Academic users: Top US and international academic institutions
- Commercial users: quantitative analysts, equity derivatives traders, researchers and marketers, portfolio managers and research analysts, merger and acquisition groups and management consultants, attorneys, hedge fund and mutual fund managers, exchanges
- Government agencies
- How do I get more information about CRSP products and subscribing to them?
Please contact subscriptions for product information and pricing details. Subscriptions can be reached at 1-312-263-6400 selection #1, or via e-mail at subscriptions@crsp.ChicagoGSB.edu.
- Does CRSP offer free trials?
CRSP does not offer free trials except to academic institutions who are subscribers to the WRDS platform, but does provide a Sample Software and Data CD to prospective subscribers. The sample CD contains the CRSP software that is used to access the data and a sample of all available data products for prospective users to view. In addition, sample C and Fortran-95 programs are provided for those with programming interests in order for them to have an opportunity to test-drive CRSP products. Both CRSP Subscriptions and Client Services groups are happy to assist you in your use of the sample CD. To obtain a sample CD, you may contact Subscriptions at 312.263.6400, Selection #1. Once you have received your Sample CD you can contact the Client Services group for assistance at Selection #2.
- What are the requirements if I want to subscribe to the CRSP/Compustat Merged database?
Subscribers of the CCM database must also have a current subscription with Standard & Poor's for Compustat data. The Compustat subscription determines which Compustat data product a user may access through CRSP. In addition to a current Compustat subscription, subscribers must also have a current subscription to a CRSP US Stock database.
- Now that I have subscribed how quickly can I receive the data?
The CRSP Subscriptions team works with new clients to process your new subscription as expeditiously as possible. The licensing of CRSP data requires a signed contract between CRSP and the subscriber as well as a receipt of payment for the full year of the subscription prior to shipping the data.
- Not many data vendors provide custom datasets. Does CRSP?
Yes. We offer fast turnaround on excellent custom research work. For custom datasets you may contact the Customs group at 1-312-263-6400 Selection #4 or email Custom@crsp.ChicagoGSB.edu.
- How many historical databases does CRSP provide?
CRSP provides six databases:
- CRSP US Stock Database
- CRSP US Indices Database
- CRSP US Treasuries Database
- CRSP US Survivor-Bias-Free Mutual Funds Database
- CRSP/COMPUSTAT Merged Database
- CRSP/Ziman Real Estate Data Series
- How often are the databases updated?
All but the Mutual Funds database are updated on a monthly basis. The Mutual Funds database is updated quarterly. Stock & Indices and Treasuries databases are all shipped on the 12th business day of the month for monthly subscribers. The CRSP/COMPUSTAT Merged database is shipped on the 10th business day, and the CRSP/Ziman REIT data ships on the last business day of each month. Quarterly subscribers all receive data shipped on the last business day of the month following the last completed quarter.
- What information and data variables are included in the CRSP US Stock database?
The database includes:
- Common stock issues, certificates, and ADRSs listed on NYSE, AMEX, NASDAQ, and ARCA exchanges
- Security level historical descriptive information and end-of-day market data; price, volume, return, distribution and name
- For data variables click here: More detail
- Market indices are included for use with the stock data
- CRSP Market Indices (Value- and Equal-Weighted Indices with or without dividends
- S&P 500 Composite Index and returns
- NASDAQ Composite Index and returns
- Does CRSP have corporate actions?
Yes. Our highly accurate and complete corporate action data for US equities is considered the gold standard. We offer descriptions of all distributions, dividend amounts, factors to adjust price and shares, declarations, ex-distribution, record and payment dates and security and company linking information.
- How far back do the CRSP data go?
Subscribers depend on CRSP as it provides the most extensive and accurate historical data on US equities.
- NYSE daily data begin December 1925
- AMEX daily data begin July 1962
- NASDAQ daily data begin December 1972
- ARCA daily data begin March 2006
- How many companies are in the CRSP stock universe?
CRSP end-of-day historical data covers roughly 26,500 stocks – active and inactive -- listed on the NYSE, AMEX, NASDAQ, and ARCA exchanges. OTC bulletin board stocks are not included.
- Does CRSP follow securities that trade on an over-the-counter listing service such as Pink Sheets or OTCBB?
No. At this time, CRSP follows securities with primary listings on NYSE, AMEX, NASDAQ, and ARCA exchanges.
- What is the source of CRSP equity data?
Professors James H. Lorie and Lawrence Fisher developed the design and manually collected the data for the original Master in 1960. It contained month-end prices and returns on NYSE common stocks from 1926. Over time, CRSP added end-of-day data from AMEX and NASDAQ exchanges. Currently we receive NASDAQ data directly from the exchange, and end-of-day NYSE and AMEX data from Interactive Data Corp. CRSP also utilizes several additional sources for its in-depth historical research.
- What are the US Indices and Portfolio Assignments?
Indices and Portfolio Assignments are provided as a separate product or can be included with a CRSP stock database. Returns, levels, and counts are provided for various indices and decile portfolios created from the CRSP universe. They are calculated on daily, monthly, quarterly, and annual frequencies.
- What indices does CRSP offer?
There are four types of indices:
- CRSP US Stock File Indices
- CRSP Market Cap-Based Portfolios
- CRSP Indices for the S&P 500 Universe
- CRSP US Treasury and Inflation Series
Detailed information is available here.
- How does CRSP identify the stocks in the database?
CRSP developed a unique permanent security-level identification number, which we call PERMNO. Together with PERMCO, our unique and permanent company identification number, CRSP can identify all NYSE, ARCA, AMEX, and NASDAQ companies and their share classes. We also provide complete name history, all historical CUSIPs, Tickers, SICs, share classes codes, exchange codes, and security delisting information.
- Do CRSP identifiers ever change?
No. Unlike CUSIP or ticker, our PERMNO and PERMCO identifiers are permanent. That means that once the identifier is assigned, it is never reassigned. This allows for extremely accurate historical analysis because CRSP identifiers track any and all changes over time in the issues of a company, in its name, CUSIP, ticker, exchange or other company identifiers.
CUSIP numbers are not permanent and can change over time. Since CUSIP allows a security to be associated with more than one CUSIP number over its lifespan, this frequently makes for very poor match rates between different databases. This is especially problematic when researching the entire database of US equities, which includes many inactive stocks, thus creating serious inaccuracies and incomplete histories when backtesting data. CRSP’s name history for a security, accessible by the unique identifier PERMNO, tracks changes in its CUSIP number. In CRSP, a PERMNO can be associated with more than one eight-digit CUSIP number over time, but an eight-digit CUSIP number can only be associated with one PERMNO.
- Does CRSP have international data?
CRSP does not have international data, but is currently reviewing data from several sources for the likelihood of commencing a project to build an international product over the next few years.
- Does CRSP produce stock performance graphs?
CRSP no longer provides this. To obtain a stock performance graph, please contact Zacks Investment Research at (800)767-3771 x 9214.
- How do you access CRSP data?
Depending on the product, CRSP data may be accessed in at least one of several ways:
- CRSPSift is our new suite of access utilities available on Windows XP. Just released at the end of January 2007, this first version of the software replicates and expands upon the functionality found in CRSPAccess. More importantly, it creates a strong foundation for new and expanded features in future releases. CRSPSift may be used to access CRSP Stock and Indices databases and the CRSP/Compustat Merged database.
- CRSPAccess software includes command-line utilities for all CRSP supported platforms. The CRSPAccess software is used for the Stock & Indices databases and the CRSP/Compustat Merged database. C and FORTRAN-95 programmers utilize the CRSPAccess libraries to write access code.
- Other CRSP products, including treasuries, mutual funds, the indices stand-alone product and the CRSP/Ziman REIT series are available in a variety of formats such as ASCII, Excel and SAS files. Please see individual product descriptions (link here) for specific file format availability for each product.
- Do you offer training for CRSPAccess?
YES! Your CRSP subscription entitles you to the equivalent of a full day of training. Users often find that it is beneficial to break it up over several sessions. CRSP does not have on-site training available at this time, but can work with you to determine how best to meet your needs. Teleconferences, Web training, or a visit to the CRSP offices in Chicago are all options. Training beyond new-user training is also available. For information, please contact the Client Services Group at support@crsp.ChicagoGSB.edu or call Support at 312.263.6400 selection 2.
- What is CRSPSIFT?
- CRSPSIFT, CRSP’s Security Information Filtering Tool, is CRSP’s suite of data access utilities. Efficient and intuitive, the Windows interface provides a central location for four modules:
- TsQuery – Time Series Access for CRSP US Stock, Stock & Indices, and CRSP/Compustat Merged Databases
- StkQuery – Event and time series access for CRSP security data, including corporate action history and market data access
- IndQuery – Access to CRSP Indices data, including index levels, counts, returns, and weights
- CCMQuery – CRSP/Compustat link history, access to Compustat’s industrial and bank files, segment, and PDE data. (Compustat subscribers only)
- Does anyone else provide utilities to access CRSP data?
Yes, we work with several partners who provide different types of access to CRSP data and will be adding more over time.
- In collaboration with CRSP, the SAS Institute has created a SASECRSP engine that may be used to open CRSP Stock & Indices data as well as CRSP/Compustat data as SAS data sets.
- The University of Pennsylvania Wharton School provides a web-based data delivery service, WRDS, available to academic subscribers.
- ITG provides access to CRSP data via ITG's Optimizer
- How are CRSP data products delivered?
Primary delivery for CRSP data is on DVD. A few data products are delivered on a single CD. Options for frequency of delivery are monthly and annually for commercial subscribers, or quarterly and annually for academic subscribers. For commercial monthly subscribers, FTP delivery is available for the CRSP 1962 US Stock Database and the CRSP/Compustat Merged Database on Windows. FTP delivery is available for the CRSP 1962 and 1925 Stock and/or Stock and Indices databases on Windows and Linux platforms.
- On what platform(s) do you offer CRSP data products?
CRSP presently provides data and software on three platforms, Windows XP, Redhat Linux, and Solaris, version 2.10.
- Can I install CRSP data on a network?
CRSP data and software are best installed on stand-alone systems or on a file server network installation. For a network installation, each workstation must point to a writeable work folder for the user’s files and be mapped to the data and software.
CRSP currently is unable to support a client-server installation. That said, it may be able to be successfully done, but the vast number of possible configurations make it unrealistic to provide support.
- How may I contact CRSP?
Please refer to the following numbers:
- For subscription information, please contact subscriptions@crsp.ChicagGSB.edu or phone 312.263.6400, selection 1.
- For support and training information, please contact support@crsp.ChicagoGSB.edu or phone 312.263.6400, selection 2.
- For billing questions, please contact billing@crsp.ChicagoGSB.edu or phone 312.263.6400, selection 3.