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COMPANY INFORMATION


Many of these websites are from colleges and universities. Aside from Internet links, they may contain other types of company-related data such as lists of print resources of interest to company researchers, and others may offer search tutorials. Many of these sites contain at least two of the above formats; some include all three.  Print sources listed on academic websites refer to those sources held by a library or an academic source site for that institution. In many instances, these print resources are available in many academic or large public libraries.

Some of the links to websites are for proprietary databases, which are subscribed to by an institution or library and are only available to on-site patrons. However, awareness of the existence of such resources and locating them locally is worthwhile.  Most of the sites are readily available for free.  However, some sites contain links to fee-based services.

It is also good to remember that since there is such an enormous amount of company information on the Internet, there is an inevitable amount of overlap and duplication.


Business & Company Resource Center

• Johnson & Wales University database restricted to the JWU community
• Provides comprehensive information on thousands of companies, domestic and international
• Profile for each company includes contact information, SIC/NAICS code(s), annual sales revenue, number of employees, year founded, website address and company status (parent or subsidiary)
• Public company profiles may include most or all of the following: news/articles, company history, investment reports, financials, rankings, suits/claims, product lines; profiles of private companies may not contain all of the above information
• Also includes industry overviews, professional organizations and company comparison capability
• This excellent, comprehensive database is indispensable for any sort of company research; its industry research features also provide invaluable information on a company's standing within an industry as well as industry trends and reports


Business & Employee Research: The Riley Guide

• Maintained by Margaret (Riley) Dikel
• This sub-page links to a selection of some of best company research-oriented sites on the Internet
• Includes links to business directories, company profile sites, and other sites (mostly academic) which offer strategies/tutorials for conducting company research
• Excellent annotations accompany each link
• The site selection is superb; excellent in all regards
• Note: The Riley Guide is the best and most comprehensive meta-site for every conceivable type of career-oriented topic


Company & Industry Research Subject Guide

• Maintained by the Cole Library, Rensselaer at Hartford
• A directory of Internet, database and print sources for conducting company research, this guide provides links and citations to the following: basic company information, financial data/investment analysis, annual reports/SEC filings, company history, competitor information, market share/rankings, industry profiles, ratios, R&D, sources for corporate news
• Print sources cited may be found in many academic libraries or large public libraries
• Databases included on this site are restricted to the Rensselaer at Hartford academic community; they should be available at many academic libraries or large public libraries
• Excellent annotations accompany many links
• Links to other Cole Library web guides for locating corporate websites, finance/investment
• One of the best academic sites for company research; comprehensive in scope, well-structured in its organization, and inclusive of the many of the best websites and print sources; a "must" for anyone doing company research


Company Research

•Sponsored by the OhioLINK Small Grant Research Program
• An extensive tutorial for conducting company research, this site provides excellent commentary on how to conduct research for a variety of company-oriented topics/issues
• Provides in-depth guidance and analysis for accessing information on private, public and international companies; also includes information on divisions/subsidiaries
• The section on "International Companies" is especially well-done
• "Search Strategies" offers tips on how best to navigate the site
• In addition to links to sites, also discusses print resources, many of which can be found in many academic libraries and large public libraries
• Also links to extensive industry information/links (general research strategies, overviews, structure, profiles, current developments/news, statistics)
• One of the best company research tutorials currently online, for its comprehensive analysis, well-chosen links and ease-of-navigability


Company Research

• Maintained by Robert Tipton and Ka-Neng Au for the Rutgers University Libraries
• "A Subject Research Guide"
• A directory of web-based and print resources, this guide provides links and citations to the following: "starting points", private companies, public companies, international companies, associations, "special topics", other company research guides
• "International Companies" is especially useful
• Links to 47 U.S. state corporation databases, sources for SEC reports, directories of businesses on the Internet
• Print sources cited may be found in many academic libraries or large public libraries
• "Special Topics" section is especially useful for its inclusion of links to corporate citizenship, current events, corporate philanthropy
• Links to other Rutgers "Subject Research Guides" for biographical information, banking/finance, industry
• Excellent; covers all the basics as well as topics not easily found elsewhere


Company Research

• Maintained by the Langsdale Library, University of Baltimore
• A directory of Internet, print and database resources for company research, this guide provides links and citations to the following: public company/private company, affiliations/top management, company finances (public), company investments/analysis (public), international company research, industry information, job searching information
• Print resources cited may be found in many academic libraries or large public libraries
• Databases included on this site are restricted to the University of Baltimore community; they may be available at many academic libraries or large public libraries
• Excellent annotations accompany many links and citations
• Links to other Langsdale Library "Business Resource Links" guides
• Excellent; one of the best academic sites for company research, for its comprehensiveness, organization and commentary, choice of resources; useful for researchers at all levels


Corporate Governance

• Maintained by James Ritchie for the Corporate Governance NETwork
• Primarily concerned with linking to sites which reflect an interest in corporate governance and socially responsible business/investment practices
• Sites are mostly American, although there are some international links
• Topical categories include governance centers, public interest groups, research centers, shareholder action groups, proxy voting/monitoring, professional associations/organizations, benefits/compensation and related issues
• Does an admirable job of providing extensive links to corporate governance issues


Corporate Information

• Sponsored by the Winthrop Corporation
• Links to company information from the US and worldwide
• May be accessed by public company, private company, region and industry
• "Over 350,000 profiles are indexed by our search engine, including over 20,000 here at our own site"
• Also provides searches by state, country, exchange rates, and "Top 100" countries worldwide ranked by category
• Ability to research a country's industries in 30 categories (for example, "Canada" and "Hotels and Restaurants")
• Includes "Help Screens" for company profiles, research reports, analysis summaries, sales analysis, price analysis, earnings analysis
• Registration required, but it's free
• Excellent; one of the best sources for international corporate information and analysis from a variety of perspectives


CorpWatch

• CorpWatch counters corporate-led globalization through education and activism. We work to foster democratic control over corporations by building grassroots globalization — a diverse movement for human rights, labor rights and environmental justice."
• Formerly known as "Corporate Watch"
• An online public interest group offering news and resource links to the economic, environmental and social impact of corporations on a national and international basis
• "Hands-On Corporate Research Guide" outlines procedures for acquiring general company information and how to determine a company's activities concerning the environment, labor, and other issues
• Includes links to activist groups, corporate oversight and specific industry/product issues
• One of the best sites for current news and analysis of corporate activity worldwide


Directory of Corporate Archives in the United States and Canada

• Maintained by Gregory S. Hunter for the Society of American Archivists, Business Archives Section
• Provides access to contact information for over 300 corporate archives in the US and Canada; also links to professional organizations
• Each entry includes contact information, access conditions, holdings note and physical description of the archive's resources
• Archives listed alphabetically; indexed by archivist's name and location
• Excellent resource for anyone conducting in-depth research on select companies


Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval (EDGAR)

• Maintained by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
• The official site for filings (annual reports) for public companies, as required by federal law
• Includes tutorial for ways to conduct the most productive searches for filings
• Also includes links to information for regulatory actions, additional investor information, description of SEC forms
• Includes electronic filings since 1994
• One of the best sources for official corporate financial requirements


Guide to Company Information Via the Net

• Developed and maintained by James Bondra
• "Intended to help the user research information for both public and private companies using just the Internet"
• The introduction presents an extensive checklist for initiating company research
• Offers a "walk through" for researching various aspects of company data, including directory information, financial information, etc) with excellent annotated links
• Especially useful for stock quotes/charts and financial information
• One of the best basic guides for company research; especially useful for investment and financial information


Hoover's Online

• Hoover's "Company Capsules" provides basic data for over 11,000 companies, public and private, domestic and international
• "Company Capsules" provide a brief description of the company, contact information, competitor information, employment/sales statistics
• "Company Capsules" may be searched by company name, executives' names, stock quotes
• "Company Profiles" — available by subscription only — offer more in-depth information, including historical background, financial/investment data and additional information; updated annually
• "Hoover's Online" is supplemented by annual editions of Hoover's family of print directories
• Very useful for company information for many of the best-known companies; while not comprehensive, it does an admirable job for what it covers


How to Learn About an Industry or Specific Company

• Sponsored by the Industry Research Desk — A Polson Enterprises Web Site
• One of the most comprehensive industry research sites on the Web, this site also provides information on company research as well
• Organized in checklist format, this site provides guidance on the most efficient ways to begin a research project involving industry/corporate information
• Links to websites are largely professional associations/organizations, government sites and free databases
• Lists extensive print sources, many of which can be found in academic and public libraries)
• Excellent all-around; a "must" for any in-depth research


Locating Company Information on the Internet

• Posted on the Law Library Resource Xchange — LLRX; Originally an article by Martina Anders, published in SLA Legal Division Quarterly, vol. 5, n. 3, Winter, 1998/99
• This excellent article provides informative commentary on basic sources for corporate research; links to each topic considered are accompanied by annotations
• Topics include EDGAR (and its spin-offs), company information sites, annual reports, news articles, directories, search engines
• Primarily concerned with American companies, with some international ones also
• Most sites are free, with fee-based ones identified
• Despite the fact that this site has been nerly available for 8 years, much of the information remains timely, with extensive, high-quality links and incisive commentary


Locating U.S. Corporation Records Online

•Sponsored by the Internet Prospector
• Provides access to U.S. state corporation records by linking to "SecSt.com," and "National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS)" websites, which provide direct links to secretaries-of-state offices
• Also links to state government information
• One of the best sources for one-stop access to corporation records


Researching Companies Online

• Created and maintained by Debbie Flanagan
• This tutorial — one of the first of its kind on the Web — links to 13 types of company research sources and data for the following: high-level company information, telephone numbers/addresses, home pages, financial information, company news, public opinion, industry research, business/financial meta-sites, professional organizations, conferences/seminars, sales prospects, non-profits, international business resources
• Concentrates exclusively on free sites
• Clicking on website links changes the screen to a frames interface (for many but not all sites) which provides specific instructions for navigating the sites, allowing for the most productive navigation within the site
• This excellent tutorial is one of the best for researchers of all skill levels


10K Wizard

• Sponsored by 10K Wizard Technology, LLC
• Provides an internal search engine for accessing the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) filings
• Can be searched by company name, ticker, CIK, SIC or by keyword
• Browsable by industry or form group (10K, quarterly reports, annual reports, etc.)
• One of the most popular investment/securities websites; known for its ease-of-navigation


Thomas Register

• Directory of over 170,000 companies (contact information) based in North America
• Searchable by company, brand name, product category (over 72,000), keyword
• Registration required, but it's free
• The Thomas Directories are one of the best sources for linking products/services to companies, nationally and internationally


See also JWU Library's Finance & Investments and Industry Research webguides.


Websites discussed on this page are for informational purposes only. Johnson & Wales University Library is not responsible for the accuracy, content, or stability of any websites linked to this page.

Compiled by Rick Keogh 7/00; updated 10/01, 10/02, 3/03; links last checked 11/07

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