The first decimal-priced trade in NYSE history took place at 9:30:09 a.m. Aug. 28. 2000, when 12,000 shares of Fedex Corp. were traded at a price of $41.05. In the decimal-pricing pilot, stocks are priced in dollars and cents instead of fractions. The minimum pricing increment is one cent.
The stocks that started traded in decimals today in Phase 1 of the pilot are: Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (APC), Gateway Inc. (GTW), FedEx Corp. (FDX), Hughes Supply Inc. (HUG), Forest City Enterprises Inc. Class A (FCE A), MSC.Software Corp. (MNS), Forest City Enterprises Inc. Class B (FCE B).
In Phase 2 of the pilot, an additional 52 companies (representing 57 issues) will be priced in decimals: Adecco SA (ADO), Lands' End Inc. (LE), Administaff, Inc. (ASF), Lone Star Technologies Inc. (LSS), America Online Inc. (AOL), Martin Marietta Materials Inc. (MLM), American Retirement Corp. (ACR), McMoran Exploration Co. (MMR), Apex Mortgage Capital Inc. (AXM), Morrison Management Specialists Inc. (MHI), Cigna Corp. (CI), Morgan Stanley Dean Witter S&P 500 "ELKS" 03 (BGS), Colgate-Palmolive Co. (CL), Community Bank System, Inc. (CBU), Colonial Investment Grade Municipal Trust (CXH), M&T Bank Corp. (MTB), Compaq Computer Corp. (CPQ), The Newhall Land and Farming Co. (NHL), Daimler Chrysler AG (DCX), NS Group Inc. (NSS), Daimler Benz AG 5.75% Conv. 02 (DAJ), Pulitzer Inc. (PTZ), Groupe Danone (DA), Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (RCL), Donnelly Corp. (DON), Sears Roebuck Co. (S), Duff & Phelps Utilities Tax-Free Income Inc. (DTF), Sears Roebuck Accept. Corp. NTS 7.00% (SRF), Enel Societa Per Azioni (EN), Sears Roebuck Accept Corp. NTS 6.95% (SRH), Factset Research Systems Inc. (FDS), Shangdong Huaneng Power Development (SH), Franklin Resources Inc. (BEN), State Street Corp. (STT), General Motors Corp. (New) Class H (GMH), Stone Container $1.75 Cum. Conv. (STO PRE), Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (GT), Stone Energy Corp. (SGY), Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT), Tejon Ranch Co. (TRC), Harcourt General Inc. (H), Tribune Exc SB DB (Phones) 29 (TXA), Harcourt General Inc. CM CV-A (H PRA), Time Warner Inc. (Holding Company) (TWX), Harman International Ind. Inc. (HAR), Time Warner Inc. Cap 18 7/8% TR Pref. D (TWX PRT), The High Yield Plus Fund Inc. (HYP), Toyota Motor Corp. (TM), HSBC Holdings PLC (HBC), TransAmerica Income Shares, Inc. (TAI), Iomega Corp. (IOM), UBS AG (UBS), Kemper Strategic Municipal Income Trust (KSM), The Valspar Corp. (VAL), The Korea Fund (KF), Van Kampen Investment Grade Municipal Trust (VIG) , Watsco Inc. (WSO) .
Approximately 60 days after the end of Phase 2, the NYSE and the industry in consultation with the SEC will evaluate the pilot results, focusing on the impact on liquidity, trading patterns and systems capacity. Following that, a decision will be made on when to extend decimal pricing to all NYSE-listed stocks. April 9, 2001 has been set for decimalization of all equities and options markets.
The NYSE's board approved conversion to decimal pricing in June 1997 with the goal of making prices more easily understood by investors, reducing spreads and bringing the United States into conformity with international practices.
