Skip to Main Content

FIN4433 Portfolio Analysis (Sackos) Fall 2023

Company Research

Use this Getting Started guide to gather initial information and to find out if the company is:

  • publicly-traded,
  • private, or
  • nonprofit organization
  • a subsidiary or branch location of a larger company
  • local, US or international.

Public Companies
There is a great deal of information available on companies which trade on the stock market - SEC filings, annual reports, analysts' reports, news stories, books and case studies.

Private Companies
Information on private companies is usually limited to brief information in directories, news stories, and sometimes books. All 50 states make some level of corporate and business filings available online.

International Companies
The amount of information on international companies varies. If the company trades on the U.S. exchanges it must file annual reports (20-F) with the SEC. Other information can be found in directories, databases, newspapers and magazines.

Nonprofit Organizations
Finances and other general information can be found in Form 990 which nonprofits must file with the IRS annually. Many are posted on the web at Guidestar.org. Some information can also be found in newspaper and journal articles.

Corporate Financials

Sources below provide corporate financials that can be downloaded into spreadsheets:

For questions or feedback contact the McQuade Library
Call us: 978-837-5177 | Text us:  978-228-2275 | Email us: mcquade@merrimack.edu