CIQ

Abstract

Capital IQ is the research division of Standard and Poor’s. It provides detailed research and analysis of the stock market to a variety of investing stakeholders. Founded in 1999, Capital IQ started as a provider of software and analytics related to the markets. It was sold to McGraw Hill in 2004 for more than $200 million. Since Capital IQ was acquired by Standard & Poor’s in 2004, the company has grown into a global profile, with operations in more than 20 countries overseen from its headquarters in New York City. It has made a number of significant acquisitions for growth and expansion. These include the acquisition of Heale Financial in 2006 for $13 million and ClariFI, Inc. for $87 million in 2007. Capital IQ’s web portal offers various software and data feeds to advisory firms, banks, corporations, investment managers, private equity funds, universities and more, providing overall market awareness and investment analysis audiences can use to inform their investment strategies. Every year, Capital IQ collects and analyzes more than 135 billion data points in order to serve as the leading provider of financial services research. The data Capital IQ collects and reports to its users includes company profiles, executive summaries, financial information and independent analyst reports. Capital IQ investigates financial news, market insights, company performance data and sector-specific data. The firm provides subscribers with intelligence on more than 62,000 public companies and 4.4 million private firms. According to the company's website, it covers financials for 88,000 publicly-listed companies or 99% of global market capitalization. Additionally, Capital IQ researches and analyzes more complex investment structures, including mutual funds and hedge funds, providing investors with up-to-date performance comparisons, insights and fund strategies. Capital IQ's widespread approach to market analysis provides information that can be valuable to investors of all types, ranging from large institutional traders to smaller, individual investors and financial hobbyists.