Private Company – A private company is one that is owned by an individual, family, or group of partners. The amount of information that private companies must report is limited, and much of that is confidential. Thus, it is often difficult to find much information on a private company.
Public Company – A public company is a company that issues securities or shares of stock for the public. Those who purchase these securities or shares become investors in and owners of the company. This process is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and public companies must file numerous financial and other reports with the SEC. Because these reports are public information, much data and information can be found when researching public companies. For more information, visit the SEC website at http://www.sec.gov/index.htm.
Subsidiary – A company which is owned in whole or in part by another company. When researching a subsidiary, it is often advantageous to also research the owning company or the parent company.
You can find company information in a number of the library's business databases. Best Bets can be found on the library's A-Z Database list.
It's helpful to know your company's ticker symbol (an abbreviation used to identify publicly traded shares of a particular stock on a stock market) before you begin searching.
-a video tutorial by Chad Boeninger, Business Librarian at Ohio University Libraries