when did the cape ratio first gain public attention 
the cape ratio initially came into the spotlight in december 1996 after robert shiller and john campbell presented research to the federal reserve that suggested stock prices were rising faster than earnings they followed this up in the winter of 1998 with their article valuation ratios and the long run stock market outlook 2the bottom linethe cyclically adjusted price to earnings cape ratio uses real earnings per share eps over a 10 year period to smooth out fluctuations in corporate profits that occur over different periods of a business cycle the valuation measure analyzes a publicly held company s long term financial performance while considering the impact of different economic cycles on the company s earnings 