Note: the company information on Datastream is for public quoted companies only and does not include the text from Annual Reports.

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1 Datastream: User Guide Datastream is an on-line investments database which includes: international equity data, share prices, industry and market indices, domestic and international bonds, unit trusts, investment trusts, derivatives and more some international company accounts, profit and loss reports, balance sheets, cash flow and accounting ratios for public quoted companies. Note: some of this data is also available via the Nexis UK, AMADEUS and FAME databases international financial and economics statistics: including national accounts; interest rates; exchange rates; commodities prices etc. Note: most of this data is also available from Global Market Information Database (GMID) and ESDS International Note: the company information on Datastream is for public quoted companies only and does not include the text from Annual Reports. 1) Booking Datastream Due to its high cost Datastream is only available on one PC in Adsetts. You will need to book a session before using it. You can book via the IT Booking System in shuspace: Click on the Learning Essentials tab in shuspace Click on Book a PC or a group room in the Get help with learning centre services window Choose a date from the calendar Select City in the Site field, Datastream in the Type field, All in the Area field and choose your desired start time and duration (as below) if your desired session is available click on the Book Resource button, then click on Confirm Booking You will receive an confirming your booking To allow everyone a fair chance to use Datastream you are limited to ONE hour-long session per day. 1

2 2) Logging On: To access Datastream you need to log into your SHU account on the Datastream PC. Once you have done this, click on the Start button (bottom left of the screen), then select All Programs > Local Software > Datastream 5. Please be patient, the software may take a few minutes to load. If Datastream prompts you for a username and password, this is what you need to enter: Username: XSHU101 Password: CUSTOMER 3) Searching: 3.1) Selecting the Data Category Datastream provides access to several different categories of data. The first thing you need to do when searching for information is to select which Data Category you want. These can be found in the top left of the screen (see below): Datastream includes the following data categories: Equities - share price and company data for quoted companies from around the world Equity Indices - indices including FTSE 100 and various industry sectors Unit Trusts - over 285,000 individual unit trusts Investment Trusts - international investment trusts Bonds & Convertibles - international bonds including UK gilts Bond Indices & CDs - bond indices including benchmarks and redemption yields Economics - international economic indicators (e.g. GDP, employment etc) Exchange Rates - international currency exchange rates 2

3 Interest Rates - world interest rates including bank, bonds, swaps, mortgage and spot rates Commodities - commodity prices (e.g. metals, chemicals, paper and pulp) Derivatives - subdivided into warrants, futures and options Constituent Lists - data for the individual companies that make up a sector or index User Created - allows you to create your own lists Having selected the category (eg Equities - for company data), you can now search for a particular series (e.g. the company name). Type the company name into the Enter Series field (top middle of screen) and click on the Find Series button Sometimes you may find several matches (as shown below). The screen display indicates the currency and market on which the stock is traded (which may help you to select). It also provides summary information for each stock as you hover the mouse over the name. Click on the appropriate Symbol code to select your company stock. 3.2) Selecting the Data Having selected your company stock, you can now move to the Analysis section (bottom left of the screen) to choose the data and type of display that you want. Overview of Company Performance is a good starting point, providing a snapshot of current and past performance. To get company financial accounts choose Single Series - Report or Single Series - Data. To view share price (or some other variable) as figures in a spreadsheet choose Single Series - Data, then Time Series Data. To view share price (or some other variable) plotted as a graph choose Single Series - Chart. 3

4 You can expand the various different types of analysis by clicking on the + symbol (eg see below for the many Single Series - Chart options) For some analyses (eg line charts) you will also need to tell Datastream which data item you want to plot (eg share price, total sales, market value etc). You can do this by setting the Datatype (top middle of the screen - see below). Datastream will automatically pick up the Datatype that the previous user was using. To change the Datatype click on the Datatypes button and select from the list by clicking on the appropriate mnemonic (eg to get share price click on P for Price [Adjusted - Default] ) 4) Displaying the Data It is important that you set various other options (top right of screen) before clicking on the Run Now! button to get the data. Datastream picks up whatever settings the previous user last used, so beware! The options you can set are: - frequency (eg daily, monthly, weekly, quarterly or yearly figures) - you can set the start and end date (which can be relative to today's date, or can be actual dates) 4

5 - currency (Local Currency or any world currency) Once you have these set as required you can click on the Run Now! button to display the data. You can maximise the display area to fill the whole screen by clicking on the small downwards pointing arrow in the bottom right of the display window. The example below shows the Tesco share price (Price [Adjusted - Default] ) for 1 year, plotted as a line chart. 5) Saving to disk In order to save your results in a format that you can use on any PC you need to Export the data from Datastream. There are 2 basic formats of data available from Datastream: 1. spreadsheets (or tables of data) 2. graphs (or images) All tables of data can be exported as Excel spreadsheet files. All graphs can be exported as WMF (Windows Meta File) picture files. The process is the same for both, i.e.: Click on Tools at the top of the screen click on Export in the Save in field specify the disk drive (use F: for your network Homespace) in the Save as Type field choose Excel (for tables of data) or WMF (for graphs) type in a meaningful filename and click on Save 5

6 Graphs that have been saved as WMF files can be Inserted as Picture (From File) into a Word document. 6) Printing You can print any Datastream screen simply be clicking on File and Print. This will debit your printer account in the normal way. 7) Doing Comparisons To compare the performance of one company against another, or against a sector or index (such as the FTSE 100), you need to choose the Multiple Series/Flexible Chart option in the Analysis section (bottom left of screen). 6

7 If you want to display your results as raw figures in a spreadsheet choose the Time Series Data option. If you want to display the figures as a line chart choose one of the Comparison Line Chart options: Actual Values - plots the actual figures for each series Rebased - starts all series at the same point (100 pence) for the time period you have selected, so you can compare their relative performance against each other over that period Rebased to first - gives actual values for the first series in your list but rebases all the other series to the same starting value, so you can see how their relative values have fluctuated over that period To make your comparison: select your company as previously described (in Section 2 - above) make sure the Datatype is set as required (eg Price[Adjusted - Default] for share price) click on the + button to add to your list to make your second selection, go back to Data Category (top left of screen). If you want to compare against an index (such as the FTSE 100) or an industry sector you need to select the Equity Indices category search for your series in the Enter Series box (top middle of screen) - eg FTSE 100, and select by clicking on the relevant DS Mnemonic (eg FTSE100 ) make sure the Datatype is set as required (eg Price Index ) click on the + button to add to your list 7

8 keep following these steps until you have selected all the series you wish to compare when you have selected everything you want to compare click on Run Now! Datastream uses colours to differentiate between the different series on a line chart. If you want to print in black and white you can change to use dotted lines, dashed lines and solid lines instead. To do this: click on Tools (at the top of the screen) click on Properties... for each line (first, second, third etc) choose a Colour (eg black) and a Style (eg dotted, solid, dashed etc) click on OK to effect these changes You can also work with charts using a different interface by clicking on Add series to new chart in the Charting section (middle left of the screen). This is what the alternative charting interface looks like: 8

9 8) Logging out When you have finished using Datastream you need to log out. To do this: click on File and Exit. You will be asked if you are sure you want to exit, say Yes. You will then be asked if you want to save the changes to the Project - click on the No button (see below) otherwise the PC will get clogged up with large files, which may impair its performance. 9) Getting Help The following sources of help are available to Datastream users at Sheffield Hallam University: On-screen help - click on Help (top right of the screen) Library staff - ask for assistance at the Adsetts helpdesk Telephone support (available weekdays 10am - 6pm) September

10 APPENDIX: Explanation of Key Terms EPS Earning per share is calculated as being Profit after Tax / Number of shares in issue. Broadly, it expresses a company s reported profits in terms of the amount earned in a period attributable to one ordinary share. When evaluating companies you should look at the historical EPS to see if the company has been increasing its profits. The higher the EPS the better. EPS cannot be compared directly to other companies as each company has a different number of shares in issue. To get around this problem the price earnings ratio should be used. PE Price earnings ratio is calculated as the share price divided by the company s EPS. It is a measure of the price paid for a share relative to the income or profit earned by the firm per share. A higher PE ratio means that investors are paying more for each unit of income. The higher the PE the greater perceived prospects for growth the company has. Typically high growth stocks such as Telecom s have high PE ratios whereas stable food manufacturers have low PE ratios. The PE ratio on its own is rather meaningless and therefore should be compared to a key competitor, the sector in which the company trades, or the overall market. This will give the analyst information on how the market sees the company relative to its peers. However, please be aware that high PE ratios can also be due to negative reasons and not because of potential high growth prospects. A fall in the earnings with no resulting fall in the share price will result in a high PE. When analysing a company you should ensure that any such possibility is investigated. 10

11 PE Rel & PE Cash This measure is not required for your coursework Dividend Rate This is the dividend that is paid to shareholders over the course of the last 12 months expressed in pence. Although this is useful you should look at the dividends paid out over the last few years to see if it has been rising. This could show that the company directors have confidence in the future prospects of the company or that profits have been raising. Please note that companies are often under pressure from shareholders to pay out as much as possible in dividends even when such an amount is unsustainable. You should ensure the company has sufficient profits to cover the dividend payment as shown in the dividend cover ratio. Sometimes a company will pay a special dividend to shareholders, such as when they sell off a subsidiary. You should ensure any large rise is investigated for such an event, as it is only a one off. Dividend rates should not be compared directly to other companies as the number of shares differs considerably. Comparison should be made through the dividend yield ratio. Dividend Yield Dividend yield is calculated as (Dividend per share / Share price) x 100 It shows how much a company pays out in dividends each year relative to its share price. As this is a ratio it should be compared to the company s key competitors and the sector. Those companies, which are growing quickly, will often pay little or no dividends as cash can be utilised to invest in areas, which will help them grow. Companies that are well established and have steady cash flows (Cash cows) will normally pay a higher dividend. A higher dividend is often required by investors for such companies to compensate them for a lack of possible growth in the share price. Dividend Cover Dividend cover is calculated as EPS / Dividend per share This shows how many times over the profits could have paid the dividend. For example, if the dividend cover is 3, this means that the firm's profit attributable to shareholders was three times the amount of dividend paid out. A higher dividend cover mean cash is being retained in the business to invest or because bad times are around the corner. Total Sales This is the company s revenue and is calculated as the number of products sold x the selling price. As a basic rule the higher the revenue the better, however reading should be done around this subject, as there are often exceptions to this rule such as over trading. Pre Tax Profit This is simply profit before tax. Analysis could be done on past years to see if it has been increasing. 11

12 Market to Book Value This again is a ratio, which compares the market capitalisation (number of shares x share price) of the company to the book value (balance sheet value) of the company. The balance sheet value is often taken as the company s net assets but is either a historical or accounting valuation. A company that has a low ratio is sometimes seen as cheap, as investors are paying a smaller premium over the company s asset base to benefit from any future profits. However, the type of company has to be taken into account, for example a service based company which has very few tangible assets might have a high ratio. However, much of the company s value may lie in intellectual property of its staff that would not be reflected in the balance sheet (such as marketing company s). Property companies usually trade at a discount to their book value to reflect the rather illiquid nature of their assets. If incorporating this into your coursework you should compare this ratio to either a key competitor or the sector. Any comparison vs. the market would be meaningless given the major differences between types of business. ROI This is the return, which is being generated on the total investment made by the company. The higher the ratio the better the company is performing. Shares in Issue This is the number of shares that the company has issued. Volume This is the number of shares traded that day. This is not required for the coursework. % Free Float This is the number of company shares held in public hands. For students wishing to gain higher marks on the analysis part of the coursework you could do some wider reading on this subject and briefly include it in your coursework. Volatility This should not be used in your coursework. Beta This measures the riskiness of the share compared to the market as a whole. A brief comment could be made on the company s beta and its implications such as if the beta were above 1, in a rising market this share would be expected to outperform the market. 12