NYSE Launches Phase 2 Of Decimal Pricing.

AOL, Compaq are among 52 NYSE companies whose stocks will be priced in decimal format starting September 25.

Decimalization is the conversion of pricing within the securities industry from fractions to decimals. Stocks traded in decimals will be priced in dollars and cents instead of fractions of a dollar. A stock formerly priced as $13 ½ will be priced as $13.50. The minimum increment of trading will be one cent. The NYSE has been working to prepare for decimalization since 1995. The conversion will make prices more easily understood, create opportunity for tighter spreads and encourage global price uniformity.