Reference:PRIVATE COMPANIES

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PRIVATE COMPANIES

There are three things you should know about any firm before you start trying to research it:

  • Its full name
  • Its headquarters address
  • Its form of ownership

While these may seem simple, these three "facts" about a company can determine where and how you will pursue your research. Many companies are known by short versions of their full name, or by "nicknames". Whether you are looking through a printed index or an electronic database, knowing a company's full name is important, since most if not all will list the company under its full name. Is GM listed under those initials or under General Motors? Is someone looking for information about Ford looking for Ford Motor Company or the Ford Foundation? Students have spent hours lookinf for information about McDonald-Douglas when what they wanted was McDonnell-Douglas. The headquarters address is important because that is where you will send any direct inquires. Most companies are very aware of the public relations function, and are prepared to send a wide variety of information on request. A researcher can contact the company headquarters and ask for such things as:

  • Recent press releases
  • Product catalogs
  • Brochures describing services
  • Biographical information about officers


The third item, form of ownership, can be the most important. All U.S. companies fall into one of these catagories:


  • Public Company - A corporation whose stock is publicly traded on a stock exchange.
  • Private Company - There are three kinds of private companies:
  • Private Corporation - A corporation whose stock is "closely held" by a group of investers/owners.
  • Partnership - Two or more persons who combine to form a business for profit without incorporation.
  • Sole Proprietorship - A single individual responsible for all the debts of a company and entitled to all the profits.

The reason this is so important is that, more than any other attribute, form of ownership determines the amount and kinds of information that are available for a company. For a public company, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) in Washington D. C. requires that certain annual reports and other kinds of factual information be made available to the public, primarily for the protection of investors who might buy the stock or other securities of the corporation. For the other three forms of ownership, the SEC has no jurisdiction. All companies prepare annual reports, summarizing assets and profit/loss for the year, but only public companies have to share them with anyone who asks.

This doesn't mean you can't find information about private companies, it just means you have to look in some different places.


Here are some sources to use for private company research:

America's Corporate Families (Billion Dollar Directory). Parsippany, N.J.: Dun's Marketing Services.
HG 4057 A147 Ref
Lists about 11,000 "parent" companies and over 66,000 subsidiaries.

Million Dollar Directory. New York: Dun's Marketing Services.
HC 102 D8 Ref
Basic information on approximately 160,000 companies with assets of $500,000 or more.

Ward's Business Directory of U.S. Private and Public Companies. Detroit: Gale Research.
HG 4501 V26 Ref
An excellent directory covering U.S. companies. Specialized volumes rank companies by sales within SIC codes, within the new NAICS codes, and within states.
(San Diego County Library (SDCL) has information from this book in their database Business and Company Resource Center).

Mergent Online (formerly Moody's Financial Information Services) provides detailed current and historical financial data for over 11,000 U.S. public companies and 17,000 non-U.S. public companies. Information provided includes corporate histories, financial statements, business descriptions, screening options and more.

Companies and Their Brands (5th Floor Stacks) (San Diego County Library (SDCL) has information from this book in their database Business and Company Resource Center).

Reference USA (a United States business directory with addresses and phone numbers, searchable by several access points including geographical area and SIC code).

Parent, brand, and subsidiary information on a company.

Directory of Corporate Affiliations. Skokie, IL: National Register Publishing Co.
Ref Desk HG 4057 A219
This is a sort of "Who Owns Who?" that lists over 40,000 divisions, subsidiaries and affiliates for about 5000 parent companies. Indexed by SIC code and geographic location.

Hoover's Handbook of American Business. Austin, TX: Reference Press, Inc.
HG 4057 A2862 Ref
Each one page entry gives business description, financial reports and recent history for almost 500 U.S. companies.

Hoover's Handbook of Emerging Companies. Austin, TX: The Reference Press.
HG4057 .A33 Ref

Hoover's Handbook of Private Companies. Austin, TX: Reference Press, Inc.
HF5035 H668 Ref
Profiles 500 non-publicly traded business enterprises in the U.S. Gives overview, history, basic financial statistics; identifies key competitors and more.

Hoover's Handbook of World Business. Austin, TX: Reference Press.
HG 4009 H66 Ref

International Directory of Company Histories. Chicago: St. James Press.
HD 2721 D36 Ref Desk.. Earlier volumes in reference stacks.
This multi-volume work gives detailed histories for some of the world's largest and best known firms.
(San Diego County Library (SDCL) has information from this book in their database Business and Company Resource Center).

Thomas' Register Online.
Like the print source, Thomas' online indentifies "who makes what?" for the U.S. manufacturing sector. However, the information presented online is not as complete as in the print version.
http://www.thomasregister.com

Business Filings Database: http://www.llrx.com/columns/roundup19.htm

Lexis-Nexis also has information on private companies.

ProQuest has Hoovers Company Records, which contains information on over 40,000 companies using the Hoovers database. Company Capsules deliver information on a company's location, summary financials, top competitors, top officers, and more. Company Profiles are available for over 4,000 records, and provide a company overview and history, as well as information on key people, products, subsidiaries and competitors.

Standard & Poor's NetAdvantage (S&P online database)


MP

6/06

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