Research Guides: EE / CPE 322: Design VI: Company Research

Researching a Company

When looking for information for a specific company, ask yourself these questions:

Is the company publicly traded or privately held?
- Does a company file documents with the SEC? Is their stock traded in a public stock exchange? Then it is public.
- Is a company owned by its founders or other individuals or groups? Is the stock unavailable for public purchase? Then it is private.
Is it a subsidiary of a larger company? If so, is that company public or private?
Is the company based in the US?

The Library has a number of useful databases and you can also find good information on some reliable web resources.

How to Determine If a Company is Public or Private
A guide from the University of Vermont.
BusinessDictionary.com
From WebFinance, Inc.
Campbell R. Harvey's Hypertextual Finance Glossary
A large and thorough financial glossary from a Duke professor.

Company Research: Databases & Web

Databases that include company profiles, and cover public, private, and/or international for-profit companies.

If you are off-campus, on clicking a link you will be asked to log in using your myStevens username and password.

Business Market Research Collection This link opens in a new window
The Business Market Research Collection, a ProQuest database, is a curated collection of publications ideal for company, industry, economic, and geopolitical research. Contents include industry and company profiles (including Hoover’s Company Records), market and country reports, and economic briefings.
Mergent Online This link opens in a new window
Mergent Online provides global business and economic data, including company financials, industry analysis, and economic reports by country.
Business Source Premier This link opens in a new window
Business Source Premier is a business database from EBSCOhost that collects news and research (full-text articles or citations) on companies, industries, people, and products from a range of trade journals, newspapers, market research reports, and academic journals.
ABI/INFORM This link opens in a new window
ABI/INFORM, a ProQuest database, is a comprehensive business database that includes current business news, developments and trends, business cases and case studies, actual and forecasted economic data, and peer-reviewed scholarly articles.
Nexis Uni This link opens in a new window
Nexis Uni, a multidisciplinary database from the legal and business research company LexisNexis, provides the full text of newspapers and magazines published worldwide, as well as news transcripts, international, federal, and state legal and regulatory information, biographical information, and corporate reports.
Gale Business: Insights This link opens in a new window
Gale Business: Insights is a business database that provides reports on private and public companies, industries, and countries, pulling from scholarly, trade, and news sources. Find SWOT analyses, market share reports, comparisons and case studies, as well as a glossary of business terms.
Data Axle • Reference Solutions This link opens in a new window
Data Axle provides comprehensive listings of business and consumer data throughout USA and Canada. Data Axle also provides a search engine for jobs and internships around the USA. Use Data Axle for business, marketing and career research. Access to this database is provided by the New Jersey State Library.

Freely available websites that have basic company info but also ads. Good for quick reference.

Don't forget to check the company's website for corporate info. Look for sections labeled "Corporate" or "Stockholders" for financial and governance data.

Bloomberg Business: Company Profiles
PUBLIC AND PRIVATE, SOME INTERNATIONAL. Company headquarters, leadership and board members, stock prices, and news. Also - good place to check if a company is public or private. The Company Profiles section is found under the Insights tab.
Yahoo! Finance
PUBLIC ONLY, SOME INTERNATIONAL. Company info and statistics, ownership, financial data, filings, and news. Lots of ads.

Government filings: search the SEC directly for company info. PUBLIC AND AMERICAN ONLY.

EDGAR Database from the SEC
More than 20 million filings, full-text as of the last four years, and historical records of the filings from 1994 until the present.
(Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval)

Company Statistics

Statista (basic account free but limited)
Statista culls its data from a number of market research companies, government filings, demographic research, trade groups, and others both domestic and international, and analyzes that data. Some is available without registration but download requires at least a basic account, while a fair amount is behind a paywall.
Statistic Brain
Partner to Statista but no registration or fee required. Statistic Brain's statistical analysis makes its sources obvious (as every interpretation of data should) and draws from mostly domestic information, covering consumer-related companies.

Company Finance

Beginners' Guide to Financial Statements (SEC)
How to read a company's filings with the SEC.
EDGAR Database from the SEC
Publicly traded companies must submit certain reports to the SEC. The 10-K is a company's annual report, including financial statements as well as a general update about how the company is doing. These and other SEC filings are often included in other databases, but they are available online for free.
SEC Live
SEC Live is a website that makes it easier to find and work with current and historical company reports from the SEC. You can search by company name or ticker symbol. It's free to use but registration is required.

Nexis Uni This link opens in a new window
Nexis Uni, a multidisciplinary database from the legal and business research company LexisNexis, provides the full text of newspapers and magazines published worldwide, as well as news transcripts, international, federal, and state legal and regulatory information, biographical information, and corporate reports.
Mergent Online This link opens in a new window
Mergent Online provides global business and economic data, including company financials, industry analysis, and economic reports by country.

Nonprofit Company Research

Nonprofit companies, other than private foundations, must file Form 990 with the IRS. The following resources will provide company info for this type of organization.

Guidestar
Data from the IRS (where applicable) and company reports. Includes financial data, leadership, programs, and more. Registration required for more detailed reports.
National Center for Charitable Statistics
Nonprofit data - includes filings, data and statistics, contributions broken down by geography, and more.
Charity Navigator
Charity information and ratings based on financial reports, accountability, and transparency.
Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance
Charity information for purposes of evaluation: governance, effectiveness, finances, and fund raising.

NAICS and SIC codes

Finding a specific company's code:
To find a company's SIC and NAICS codes, use the Lexis Nexis Academic database, and search for the company's name in the "Get Company Info" search box at far right. When you find your desired company, look in the "Industry Classification" box, and you will find the SIC and NAICS codes that are associated with the company.

North American Industrial Classification (NAICS)
2-6 digit code. NAICS was developed by the U.S., Canada and Mexico in 1997 and is "used by Federal statistical agencies in classifying business establishments for the purpose of collecting, analyzing, and publishing statistical data related to the U.S. business economy." Manual and search are on U.S. Census website.
Standard Industrial Classification (SIC)
4-digit code, still used in some government agencies. The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) maintains the 1987 SIC manual so you can do a keyword search to find the relevant code.

EE / CPE 322: Design VI

Researching a Company

Company Research: Databases & Web

Company Statistics

Company Finance

Nonprofit Company Research

NAICS and SIC codes

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