CDA Investment Technologies
Encyclopedia
CDA Investment Technologies was a Maryland based financial research firm founded by Robert A. Levy
. It was a pioneer in early financial databases, but was best known for its mutual fund rankings, whose quarterly release would attract national attention in the 1980s and 1990s. After being bought by the Thomson Corporation
in 1987, it was an independent subsidiary until 1998, when it was blended in with Technimetrics
to become Thomson Financial Investor Relations.
, who had just received his Ph.D. in Business from American University
. CDA was one of the first financial research companies to effectively harness computing databases.
Its two main products were Spectrum and Cadence Universe. Spectrum reported the holdings and transactions of investment banks, mutual and hedge funds, industry insiders and other institutional investors. Cadence Universe, for which it would become most well known, used portfolio analysis to measure the performance of those same money managers.
By 1985, national newspapers such as The Wall Street Journal
and The New York Times
were reporting on its rankings of mutual funds and money managers. CDA grew to have offices in New York
, Chicago
, San Francisco, Tokyo
and London
in addition to its home office in Rockville, Maryland
.
, although he stayed on as CEO. CDA's time at Elsevier was limited, though, and the company was sold to Thomson Corporation
in May 1987 for a profit.
CDA remained a mostly independent subsidiary and Levy was again kept on as CEO. Their quarterly releases of rankings continued to earn widespread coverage, and their research was well respected and influential.
After Levy retired in 1991, CDA continued to profit and expand. In 1991 CDA bought Wiesenberger Financial Services. In 1993 it acquired H.F. Pearson & Co, another financial research firm. In 1993 CDA also made an influential deal with Nasdaq
to publish a book called Corporate Reports that was distributed only to CFOs of companies that were listed on the Nasdaq exchange. It provided valuable information about each company, its trends, and how it stacked up against it competitors. In 1995 CDA bought Institutional Shareholder Services, a proxy research firm.
In 1998 Thomson Corporation bought Technimetrics
from Knight-Ridder and decided to blend it and CDA together, essentially ending CDA's run as an independent company. Both became part of what is now known as Thomson Financial Investor Relations.
Robert A. Levy
Robert A. Levy is the chairman of the libertarian Cato Institute and the organizer and financier behind District of Columbia v. Heller, the Supreme Court Case that established the Second Amendment as affirming an individual right to gun ownership. He is a Cato senior fellow and an author and pundit...
. It was a pioneer in early financial databases, but was best known for its mutual fund rankings, whose quarterly release would attract national attention in the 1980s and 1990s. After being bought by the Thomson Corporation
Thomson Corporation
The Thomson Corporation was one of the world's largest information companies.Thomson was active in financial services, healthcare sectors, law, science & technology research, and tax & accounting sectors...
in 1987, it was an independent subsidiary until 1998, when it was blended in with Technimetrics
Technimetrics
Technimetrics, Inc. was a company involved in the creation of global shareholder databases for institutional investors and brokers, and company-knowledge databases designed to facilitate business-to-business sales & marketing, and additionally also provided investor relations and similar services...
to become Thomson Financial Investor Relations.
Founding and independence
CDA Investment Technologies was founded in 1966 by Robert A. LevyRobert A. Levy
Robert A. Levy is the chairman of the libertarian Cato Institute and the organizer and financier behind District of Columbia v. Heller, the Supreme Court Case that established the Second Amendment as affirming an individual right to gun ownership. He is a Cato senior fellow and an author and pundit...
, who had just received his Ph.D. in Business from American University
American University
American University is a private, Methodist, liberal arts, and research university in Washington, D.C. The university was chartered by an Act of Congress on December 5, 1892 as "The American University", which was approved by President Benjamin Harrison on February 24, 1893...
. CDA was one of the first financial research companies to effectively harness computing databases.
Its two main products were Spectrum and Cadence Universe. Spectrum reported the holdings and transactions of investment banks, mutual and hedge funds, industry insiders and other institutional investors. Cadence Universe, for which it would become most well known, used portfolio analysis to measure the performance of those same money managers.
By 1985, national newspapers such as The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
and The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
were reporting on its rankings of mutual funds and money managers. CDA grew to have offices in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, San Francisco, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in addition to its home office in Rockville, Maryland
Rockville, Maryland
Rockville is the county seat of Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It is a major incorporated city in the central part of Montgomery County and forms part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. The 2010 U.S...
.
As a Subsidiary
In 1986, Levy sold CDA to the Dutch publishing firm ElsevierElsevier
Elsevier is a publishing company which publishes medical and scientific literature. It is a part of the Reed Elsevier group. Based in Amsterdam, the company has operations in the United Kingdom, USA and elsewhere....
, although he stayed on as CEO. CDA's time at Elsevier was limited, though, and the company was sold to Thomson Corporation
Thomson Corporation
The Thomson Corporation was one of the world's largest information companies.Thomson was active in financial services, healthcare sectors, law, science & technology research, and tax & accounting sectors...
in May 1987 for a profit.
CDA remained a mostly independent subsidiary and Levy was again kept on as CEO. Their quarterly releases of rankings continued to earn widespread coverage, and their research was well respected and influential.
After Levy retired in 1991, CDA continued to profit and expand. In 1991 CDA bought Wiesenberger Financial Services. In 1993 it acquired H.F. Pearson & Co, another financial research firm. In 1993 CDA also made an influential deal with Nasdaq
NASDAQ
The NASDAQ Stock Market, also known as the NASDAQ, is an American stock exchange. "NASDAQ" originally stood for "National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations". It is the second-largest stock exchange by market capitalization in the world, after the New York Stock Exchange. As of...
to publish a book called Corporate Reports that was distributed only to CFOs of companies that were listed on the Nasdaq exchange. It provided valuable information about each company, its trends, and how it stacked up against it competitors. In 1995 CDA bought Institutional Shareholder Services, a proxy research firm.
CDA Name Fades
CDA's influence and brand, however, began to fade in the later half of the 1990s. Even though The Wall Street Journal described CDA as one of the two best financial software sites online in 1996, CDA's quarterly releases of mutual fund rankings no longer prompted articles and discussion in national papers.In 1998 Thomson Corporation bought Technimetrics
Technimetrics
Technimetrics, Inc. was a company involved in the creation of global shareholder databases for institutional investors and brokers, and company-knowledge databases designed to facilitate business-to-business sales & marketing, and additionally also provided investor relations and similar services...
from Knight-Ridder and decided to blend it and CDA together, essentially ending CDA's run as an independent company. Both became part of what is now known as Thomson Financial Investor Relations.