Financial Characteristics of Large British Companies, 1898-1918

The main aims of the project were twofold: (1) to identify for eleven benchmark years - occurring at five-year intervals starting with 1868 and ending in 1918 - Britain's 125 largest companies (as measured by the market capitalization of their ordinary shares); and (2) to construct a consistent dataset of the key financial characteristics of the identified companies. <br><br>The project's aims were designed to serve two objectives: (1) to permit detailed measures of profitability for each identified company, embracing both security price appreciation (or depreciation, as the case may be) and payments of dividends and interest; and (2) the creation of a British stock exchange index compatible with the FT-SE 100 in use since 1984.<br><br>The key financial characteristics of the companies examined by the project were: (1) the monthly closing price of each traded security for each identified company; (2) the number of each traded security outstanding at the end of each month. Multiplied together, characteristics (1) and (2) produce market capitalization by security for each month. Summing all securities issued by a company produces for each month its total market capitalization.<br><br>The other key financial characteristics were: (3) the paid-up amount for each security, including premiums (if any); (4) the nominal value of each security; (5) the payments (if any) made in each month to holders of the securities. Characteristics (3)-(5) record the flows of funds to companies and the flows of funds from them, thereby permitting measures of financial profitability.<br><br>The data relate to 'British' companies with London Stock Exchange quotes for their ordinary shares. To be included, companies had: to have their securities quoted in sterling (or at least a preponderance of them in sterling); to pay dividends and interest in sterling; to have a London office; and, to have a preponderance of British directors.