What type of value does the INPUT function convert?

The INPUT function in SAS is specifically designed to convert character data into numeric data. When you have a variable that is stored as a character string but represents numeric information (like "123" or "456.78"), the INPUT function allows you to transform that character representation into a numerical format that can be used for calculations and analysis.

For instance, if you have a character variable containing the value "100" and you want to perform math operations on it, you would use the INPUT function with the appropriate numeric informat to convert it to a numeric value. This function is essential for preparing datasets where numeric computations are required but the data has been imported or stored as text.

In contrast, the other options reflect different types of data conversion tasks that the INPUT function does not handle. It does not convert numeric values into character strings, nor does it transform numeric formats into date values or process date strings into numeric formats. Each of these tasks may be performed by other functions or procedures within SAS, depending on the specific needs of the data processing.