I/B/E/S provides historical earnings estimates from analysts for both U.S. and international companies. It also includes buy-hold-sell recommendations. There is also an I/B/E/S Guidance dataset that includes management's predictions about their own company's earnings.

Contact us to discuss your research in more detail.

Example Download

Step 1. Navigate to the I/B/E/S Web Query Form

1. Connect to I/B/E/S – see WRDS access help
2. Under Subscriptions select IBES.
3. Under I/B/E/S Academic select Summary History > Summary Statistics.

Step 2. Fill Out the Web Query Form

1. Step 1: Enter the date range.
2. Step 2: Enter company codes, upload a .txt file, or search the entire database (see detailed instructions).
   1. If you want the analyst estimates for the following quarter, in the Forecast Period Indicator (FPI) box, unselect Fiscal Year 1 (1) and select Quarter 1 (6).
3. Step 3: Select the variables to include in the download. We suggest selecting the following to start:
   • Official Ticker
   • I/B/E/S Ticker
   • CUSIP (8-Digit)
   • Company Name
   • Forecast Period End Date (the date at the end of the period the estimates are being provided for)
   • IBES Statistical Period (the date the analysts were surveyed for this data, typically once a month)
   • Number of Estimates
   • Median Estimate
   • Mean Estimate
   • Actual Value, from the Detail Actuals File
   • Announce Date of the Actual, from the Detail Actuals File (the date the actual values were announced)
4. Step 4: Choose a query output (e.g. Excel spreadsheet (*.xlsx)).
5. Press Submit Query. When the download is completed click on the link to open the file.

Step 3. Understand the Output

Because analysts are often surveyed once a month, there can be multiples estimates for the same period. Most researchers we work with use the estimates made at the date closest to when the actual values were announced.