Downloading IBES Data from WRDS
Log into the WRDS site and click on the Select a Data Set dropdown menu on the left. Click on I/B/E/S.
When that page loads, click Summary History->Summary Statistics (see image below).
Se the start date to January 1975.
Now, search the entire database.
Leave the EPS and FPI stuff the same. Then, select CUSIP as the identifier.
Now, select Forecast Period End Data, IBES Statistical Period, and Mean Estimate (that is—the earnings
estimate).
Lastly, set the format of the data to SAS, and if you prefer zip the file. (This file is fairly small.)
Now, submit the query. Wait a couple of minutes for the query to finish. Then, download it.