FactSet provides expansive analytics for financial and non-financial users alike on an easy-to-use platform. But certain content areas lack depth and aspects of the interface may present accessibility challenges.
FactSet, produced by FactSet Research Systems Inc., provides comprehensive global market, industry, company, and portfolio level analytics through a combination of proprietary and third-party data sources in a user-friendly online platform. The product targets finance industry professionals with its equity and fixed income metric summaries, standardized financial statements and ratios, screening tools, M&A tools, and segment-level industry and financial analysis. But non-financial users may also find aspects of the platform valuable for research on strategy, marketing, ESG, or supply chain information. The menu tabs, hyperlinks, and free text search box make FactSet easier to navigate than some more sophisticated products. But some content areas—including equity research, industry research, and credit risk—lack depth, and aspects of the interface may present accessibility compliance challenges.
The FactSet database offers real-time and historical financial data on over 80,000 public and private companies in over 100 countries across the globe (FactSet, 2019). Historical data coverage dates back to the 1980s for developed markets and the 1990s for emerging markets. FactSet supplies historical financial data in a standardized format that allows comparison of data points like profitability and price-earnings ratios across sectors and geographies. In addition, users can locate 25 years of earnings estimates from contributed broker reports for approximately 60,000 companies, financial metrics on approximately 5,000 global indices, time series data on over 10,000 Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), and market data on commodities, currencies, and interest rates with varying historical coverage depending on the source.
The company reports over 200,000 users across financial institutions, consulting firms, legal firms, government institutions, and universities, although over 80% of its clients are buy-side financial institutions (FactSet, 2024, 2023 Annual Report, 2023). Many of the database’s features, including tailored buy-side and sell-side views, cater to investment professionals. Other functions, including capital structure analysis charts that link back to public offering documents, financials that link back to company filings, and stock charts coupled with news feeds, can be used not only by investment professionals but by financial researchers, or in corporate finance classrooms at the undergraduate or graduate level. Users will also appreciate the ability to develop customized financial analysis templates with FactSet excel plug-ins. Researchers studying company earnings will appreciate the powerful combination of market pricing, financial reporting, news and transcripts layered in one tool for multi-dimensional analytics (Hand et al, 2022).
In simulated trading floors at universities, FactSet can be used on a stand-alone basis for data feeds and analysis, as described by Stewart et al (2012), or implemented as part of a wider financial product suite as suggested by Kish et al (2012).
Articles explaining FactSet applications in strategy (Stewart et al, 2012), ESG (Li, 2024), ownership analysis (Hanke, 2018), or supply chain analytics (Culot et al, 2023, Piraveenan, et al, 2020) demonstrate the platform’s value for researchers outside the finance industry, including consultants and operations professionals.
The web-based platform is organized around horizontal tabs that open into detailed vertical menus. The landing tab, called Today’s Top News (see Figure 1), provides an overview of top financial indices and news. (Users can find news related to specific companies by looking under the Company/Security tab or conducting a keyword screen under the News tab.)
The Economics, Calendar, and Industry tabs direct users to macro environment analysis metrics. Users access company/security analysis under the tab by that name, portfolio metrics under the Portfolio Monitor tab, idea generation for bankers under the Watchlist, Screening, and Ownership tabs, and market metrics under the Markets and Charting tabs. The many useful charts and summaries can be downloaded to Excel or printed by clicking on icons to the upper right of a chart or at the top of the overall page. Much of the data can also automatically populate and update in proprietary Excel spreadsheets the user can customize with designated FactSet formulas and the FactSet plug-in. The FactSet plug-in is particularly useful for investment professionals and researchers who revisit specific metrics or charts over time.
The Markets tab provides real-time quotes on global equities, sovereigns, loan indexes, mortgage-backed securities, interest rate swaps, commodities, ETFs, and Foreign Exchange (FX) rates from data providers like Reuters and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. (For academic subscribers, quotes from major exchanges such as NYSE are reported on a 15-minute delay.) While the Company tab offers links to individual company share price charts, the Charting tab allows the user to chart prices across various markets and indicators using sub-menus on the left-hand side navigation bar—for example, crude oil under the Commodities sub-menu, or EUR/USD exchange rate under the F/X sub-menu. The Options tab can complement the Charting tab analysis with a view on the direction of securities prices based on options contract movements.
The Portfolio Monitor tab allows users to track constituent stock price movements. The Company/Security tab allows users to investigate potential counterparties to add to Watchlist or Portfolio Monitor.
Next, within the Company/Security tab, the landing page is the Snapshot listed under the Overview subheading on the lefthand navigation bar (see Figure 2), which displays summary business descriptions, financial metrics, segments, share price data if relevant, comparable companies, and mutual fund holders. For many metrics, users can click through to view source data and calculation methodologies.
Particularly useful data listed in sub-menus on the left-hand navigation bar of the Company/Security tab contain industry, peer group, financial ratio, ESG, supply chain and transaction analytics. Users can access industry-specific metrics such as volume of smartphones and tablets sold for Apple Inc. under the Sector Intelligence sub-menu or examine industry classifications for companies under the RBICS sub-menu. For example, a RBICS by Revenue chart for Procter & Gamble (See Figure 3) shows the company’s overall sector as well as industry sub-groups using proprietary classifications defined by FactSet.
These classifications differ from the company’s reported segments (Baby Care, Grooming, etc.). The standardized classification of RBICS allows analysts and researchers to compare segments of a company to industry peer groups across the globe in terms of growth or profitability, or to identify potential M&A or divestiture targets among company segments. Next, users can access summary financial metrics for peer groups determined by industry code under the Comps Analysis sub-menu. These financial metrics are presented in a standardized format in the Financials sub-menu with useful pre-built charts for DuPont Analysis, valuation and credit analysis. More detailed credit metrics and capital structure analysis are available under the Credit Analysis sub-menu. Users can also access primary financial documents under the Filings sub-menu or search for keywords in earnings transcripts under the Events & Transcripts menu. Next, the ESG sub-menu contains third party ratings as well as proprietary analytics and related news links for ESG related matters. The Supply Chain sub-menu provides a list of key suppliers and customers with analytics on financial performance, credit risk, and a chart showing which competitor companies have overlap with the same suppliers or customers. Finally, under the Transactions sub-menu, users can view summary charts and detailed metrics on M&A or PE/VC Investments.
Private company data is more limited. For example, a search of Cargill, a large private US company, generated a summary report without stock price data, and the Ratio Analysis sub-menu was limited to Revenue and Net Income data, although the ESG and DCM reporting tabs contained fairly detailed information. Data can be more robust if the private company has issued public debt.
A sample search for the mutual fund symbol HGIYX generates a streamlined fund overview with summary description, NAV chart, fund performance statistics, and ESG metrics. RBICS for funds show revenue exposures by sector. Under Prices, users can view seasonality analysis. There is also a fund summary valuation analysis in the Ratio Analysis section under the Financials subheading on the left-hand navigation bar.
Under Document Search, users can locate regulatory financial filings, prospectuses, bond indentures, and investor call transcripts, among other documents. (Financial filings such as 10Ks, 10Qs, and transcripts can also be found under the Company/Security tab.)
The People tab details education, work history, relationships, insider share ownership, insider transactions, and compensation history for key executives. The tab can be accessed directly, or via linked names in the Company/Security tab.
A third-party accessibility evaluation is not available for this platform. However, the interface has problematic attributes including mouse-only functions, reliance on visual cues, and image content without adequate alternative text descriptions noted in reviews of similar database interfaces (Truong, 2020).
Contracts are negotiable; academic contracts allow unlimited users while non-academic contracts are based on FTEs. The product can be deployed on desktops with locally installed software, and remote access is supported on both computer and mobile. FactSet offers 24/7 product support by phone, chat, and email in addition to live and web-based training. Customized usage statistics are available upon request from the product support team. COUNTER (Counting Online Usage of NeTWorked Electronic Resources) compliant reports are not provided. Historical research reports are available for decades depending on the source vendor, but historical Snapshots under the Company/Security tab are not archived and only offer a point-in-time view. Upon a contract cancellation, users cannot access any archival data. Library subscribers cannot redistribute FactSet information or reports through interlibrary loan. There are no limitations on the amount of data downloads among the authenticated user base. Mac and PC interfaces and most commercial web browsers are supported equally well.
The database supports SSO via SAML2.0 and interactive authentication models. For interactive authentication, users can elect single-factor or two-factor authentication based on IP address trust settings. Single-factor relies upon email and password, while the two-factor authentication requires username and password, plus a time-expiring one-time passcode sent to the email on file. FactSet does not directly integrate with OpenAthens or Shibboleth, but users can configure customized solutions by working with FactSet technical support. FactSet does not support IP-based authentication.
FactSet’s closest competitor is Standard & Poor’s Capital IQ, a similar easy-to-navigate integrated web-based platform. Mergent Online is another close competitor, whose web-based platform has a more focused data set.
As mentioned earlier, FactSet excels relative to peers in ease of navigation and financial analysis. In addition, FactSet has greater depth than some peers, including Mergent, in commodities and foreign exchange markets, segment-level analytics, supply chain analysis, DuPont analysis (see Figure 4), revenue exposure by Sector/Industry, seasonality analysis, ESG reporting (see Figure 5), and CDS pricing analysis tools. FactSet also offers more historical data than Mergent, which only provides 15 years.
While FactSet uses industry standard data sources, the interface is less transparent than Standard & Poor’s Capital IQ, which lists source data vendors on each page. FactSet equity research is also more limited compared to Capital IQ, which has an exclusive contract to distribute CFRA Equity Research. Screening tools and risk analytics are more sophisticated in Capital IQ, which offers proprietary ready-to-use screen templates sorted by category of use, proprietary probability of default ratings, and detailed credit risk heatmaps.
Bloomberg and Refinitiv are other often cited peers (Costello, 2024, Gee, 2017, Phillips, 2020). These more complex platforms have challenging user interfaces for the novice user but offer deeper analytics at a higher price point. For example, Bloomberg includes a proprietary messenger service for chat, proprietary aggregated fixed income pricing curves, curves for pricing analysis, more detailed proprietary BICO research reports, proprietary credit ratings on companies, and richer market pricing and data. Refinitiv also offers deeper market analysis compared to FactSet, with over 80 million instruments covered globally, as well as proprietary elements including detailed ESG analytics and ratings. Both Bloomberg and Refinitiv have features and interfaces geared toward expert users, like portfolio managers and traders.
Ultimately, FactSet offers a streamlined, easy-to-use platform for novice and experienced users that can link well to Excel and PowerPoint applications. But in some areas, FactSet is a complement to, not a substitute for, competitor platforms.
FactSet excels in breadth of data, proprietary analytics and tools, a fair level of transparency, ease of data access and visualization, and integration with Excel and PowerPoint. Novice users will find the tool more intuitive than more sophisticated competitor products. For example, in the Company tab, which contains the overview of key financial metrics, user-friendly charts can be downloaded and used for reports. FactSet also continues to improve its data sets and interface; recent developments include expanded data feeds in emerging areas such as ESG (FactSet, 2020) and the integration of artificial intelligence in search and discovery (FactSet, 2023).
Pre-built financial ratio analysis and “idea screening” templates for investment bankers in areas including M&A and IPOs are standout functions, though the S&P Capital IQ product is easier for novice users to navigate.
While FactSet covers an impressive number of companies, competitors S&P Capital IQ and Bloomberg each have more international and private company data, with millions of entities profiled.
FactSet data feeds are ideal for time series analysis, on par with Bloomberg and S&P Capital IQ. Financial data can go back decades, depending on the counterparty. For example, a sample search for Revenue under Financials in the Income Statement section for Ford Motor Company generated data back to 1999, while a sample search for Ford share price data under the Charting tab generated data back to 1972.
The proprietary RBICS industry classification system, which allows comparison across companies globally with a granular standardized taxonomy at the sub-segment level, is another differentiating feature. This analysis could be useful for investment bankers generating M&A or divestiture ideas, consultants offering strategic advice to certain segments based on sub-industry performance or outlook, university students analyzing companies in a capstone strategy course, or researchers analyzing supply chain.
Weak points include less transparency on source data and more limited scope and depth of research and analytics in areas such as fixed income and credit risk compared to competitors Bloomberg, Refinitiv, and S&P Capital IQ. For example, when using the free text box to search by country, and then examining country level economic data for Brazil, users can click on an indicator to see which government body produced that data. In other areas, such as the Company/Security tab Snapshot, many data sources are simply listed as FactSet, with a footnote that says, “FactSet aggregates and redistributes estimates data and does not conduct any independent research.” In another example, under the Company/Security tab, users will find useful capital structure charts, public rating information, and CDS summary data, but without the depth offered by Bloomberg or Refinitiv in terms of historical pricing and proprietary default metrics.
Finally, although FactSet promotes its high-quality customer support in marketing materials, as a university subscriber, I found it difficult to reach experienced staff for substantive queries.
FactSet is an industry standard tool for finance professionals and the interface is tailored to this target market, though it also offers value to non-financial practitioners in consulting, marketing, and operations. Its academic applications range from research at the undergraduate, graduate, and faculty levels to integration into business courses and simulated trading floors.
2023 Annual Report. Norwalk, CT: FactSet Research Systems Inc., 2023.
Costello, Michele R. “Standard & Poor’s Capital IQ NetAdvantage revisited.” The Charleston Advisor 25, no. 4 (2024): 57-62.
Culot, Giovanna, Matteo Podrecca, Guido Nassimbeni, Guido Orzes, and Marco Sartor. "Using supply chain databases in academic research: A methodological critique." Journal of Supply Chain Management 59, no. 1 (2023): 3-25.
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FactSet. “FactSet enters into agreement to acquire Truevalue Labs” FactSet. 2020. https://investor.factset.com/news-releases/news-release-details/factset-enters-agreement-acquire-truvalue-labs
FactSet. “Why Choose FactSet?” FactSet. 2024. https://www.factset.com/why-factset
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Hand, John RM, Henry Laurion, Alastair Lawrence, and Nicholas Martin. "Explaining firms’ earnings announcement stock returns using FactSet and I/B/E/S data feeds." Review of Accounting Studies 27, no. 4 (2022): 1389-1420.
Hanke, Bernd, Garrett Quigley, David Stolin, and Maxim Zagonov. "Institutional trading and near-term stock returns." Finance 39, no. 3 (2018): 7-43.
Kish, Richard J., and Karen M. Hogan. "Building a financial trading lab: step 1 and beyond." Journal of Financial Education 38, no 1 / 2 (2012): 13-33.
Li, Qianqian, Edward M. Watts, and Christina Zhu. "Retail investors and ESG news." Jacobs Levy Equity Management Center for Quantitative Financial Research Paper (2024).
Piraveenan, Mahendra, Hongze Jing, Petr Matous, and Yasuyuki Todo. "Topology of international supply chain networks: A case study using factset revere datasets." IEEE Access 8 (2020): 154540-154559.
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