How to Find
Company Information

Is the company private or public?

Aside from finding a company for investment purposes by codes, (NAICS, SIC,) it is necessary to find financial information on a publicly traded company, or Initial Public Offering (IPO), and the method is a simple one.

A privately held company for investment purposes will require a direct contact with the administrators, which may not always be successful means of investment. There is a reason known only to that company as to why choose to be private, and not issue shares of stock for public consumption.

The term “incorporated” separates a single ownership of a company and its liabilities from an incorporated company that allows lowering of personal income taxes, makes a company easier to buy and sell, and allows raising capital by the selling of stock, whether private or public.

Investopedia explains Incorporation...
Incorporation creates a protective bubble around a company's owners, shareholders and directors. Incorporated businesses can take the risks that make growth possible without exposing the shareholders, owners and directors to personal financial liability outside of their original investments in the company.

This may be the main advantage of a publicly held company, the ease of doing business with the issuance of stock, available to public.

Who has trustworthy information on companies?

In the United States there exists a governing body responsible for the protection of stock investors, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). It provides a means of reporting financial information available to the public. EDGAR, is the SEC search database for specific financial reports. It is here that the “10k”, annual report of a company, “8k” current report, and “10q” quarterly report can be found. Review of these documents and to be proficient will ensure proper investment decisions. There are other sources, to be discussed later, but don't contain the authority of SEC.

Where can company information be found quickly?

This is a matter of personal choice and access to databases. Many, perhaps most libraries now have subscriptions to text material, or subscription based websites for stock company searches. (An example in North Carolina is “NCLive,” where such sources as “Reference USA,” “Morningstar,” “CQ Press,” and “EBSCOhost” can be easily accessed. Other states may sponsor such information databases.)

“Value Line” is another stock company subscription based reporting database, though not all stocks may be covered. In test format it remains as a definitive source for investors to use via most all library reference collection. "I don't know any other system that's as good." – Warren Buffett.
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) is also a regular daily publication, as is Investor's Business Daily (IBD), both are world renowned for their stock company content.

Quicker?

Financial information can be found with the major search engines, as well as some other stock oriented websites, and could be considered general resources in scope. This is by no means a complete list, only some suggestions for finding company information, in order to make the decision making process flow easily. Yahoo Finance has information on top company stories, as well as Market Summary, and Currency Information. Google Finance has similar features, though perhaps a different layout. Big Charts has the unique ability to structure a chart to suit particular spreads and changes over a designated period.

Bibliography (via use)
1 (NAICS, SIC, http://www.naics.com/search.htm)
(from NAICS Association) The SIC covers the entire field of economic activities by defining industries in accordance with the composition and structure of the economy...
NAICS industries are identified by a 6-digit code, in contrast to the 4-digit SIC code. The longer code accommodates the larger number of sectors and allows more flexibility in designating subsectors.

2 Investopedia, (http://investopedia.com/)
Investor education information including a dictionary, news articles, tutorials and more.

3 SEC Filings & Forms, (http://www.sec.gov/), (http://www.sec.gov/investor/pubs/edgarguide.htm)
“EDGAR, the Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval system, performs automated collection, validation, indexing, acceptance, and forwarding of submissions by companies and others who are required by law to file forms with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).”

4.NCLive, (http://www.nclive.org)
“NC LIVE provides North Carolina residents and students with access to high quality information - searchable collections of magazine, newspaper, and journal articles, electronic books, historical materials, maps, and much more - covering a wide range of topics.”

5. Reference USA, (http://www.referenceusa.com/)
“the No. 1 source of information on businesses and people for researchers, students and job seekers.”

6. Morningstar, (http://www.morningstar.com/homepage/default.aspx)
“Get a level-headed perspective on the market with Morningstar video reports, articles, data, and tools.”

7. CQ Press, (http://www.cqpress.com/gethome.asp)
“CQ Press is your first source for information on politics, policy, and people. We are the leading publisher of books, directories, subscriptions, and Web products on American politics, federal and state government, American institutions, campaigns and elections, current events, and world affairs.”

8. EBSCOhost, (http://www.ebscohost.com/)
“EBSCOhost databases are the most-used, premium online information resources for tens of thousands of institutions worldwide, representing millions of end-users. .”

9. Value Line, (http://www.valueline.com/)
“Our mission is to provide investors with the most accurate and independently created research information available, in any format they choose, and teach them how to use it effectively to help meet their financial objectives.”

10. Wall Street Journal, (http://online.wsj.com/public/us)
As a website it provides up to the minute reporting of world news, and includes Market data.

11. Investor's Business Daily, (http://www.investors.com/)
“Opinions expressed in the Daily Stock Analysis Feature are based upon the interpretation of available data. The data being presented was obtained or derived from sources believed to be accurate, but Investor's Business Daily cannot and does not guarantee the accuracy of these sources which may be incomplete and/or condensed.”

12. Yahoo Finance, (http://finance.yahoo.com/)
Quick and easy data for most all investor needs.

13. Google Finance, (http://finance.google.com/finance)
Also quick and easy, and with the usual concise Google flare.

14. BigCharts, (http://bigcharts.marketwatch.com/)
“BigCharts is the world's most comprehensive and easy-to-use investment research Web site, providing access to professional-level research tools such as interactive charts, quotes, industry analysis and intraday stock screeners, as well as market news and commentary.”