How do I find company data?
Company data is an integral part of understanding a market landscape. Publishers of market research reports will analyse many companies operating within a market to understand which companies are the market leaders. Understanding company data is essential for comprehensive market analysis. But where can you access this crucial information?
The first thing to understand about the leading companies is that there are two major types of companies. There are publicly listed companies which are listed on various stock exchanges around the world; and there are private companies.
Publicly Listed Companies Reporting Requirements
Publicly listed companies must publish company data required by the authorities in the jurisdictions in which they are listed. If a company is publicly listed in the United States, that company must submit quarterly and annual reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). These reports, which standard in reporting structure, contain a lot of information about the company, including revenues, operating profits, segment revenues and profits, properties, competitors, management and a discussion of the latest year’s performance.
For all publicly listed companies, you can find 10k reports, annual reports or other investor documentation on their websites, typically under the ‘Investors’ section of their website. In the UK, companies are required to submit annual and interim reports as part of the financial reporting process.
Private Companies Reporting Requirements
Private companies must also submit performance reports annually, although the specific reporting requirements vary from country to country. Typically, accounts must be submitted to the national ‘registry’, or in some cases — chambers of commerce. In the UK for example, companies accounts are available on the Companies House website, where you can download a report about a company and find information such as profit and loss account, balance sheet and other company data, such as a management discussion about the performance of the company. Innocent Drinks accounts can be found on Companies House. The company is known as Fresh Trading Limited.
Companies like The Coca Cola Company, will have 10k reports, annual reports, investor presentations on their website. However, they are also required to submit accounts locally in the various countries in which they have a registered entity. So one can map the revenues of Coca Cola globally, as well as country by country.
In addition, there are websites like Dun and Bradstreet (DNB Directory) and Zoominfo that publish global company data online so one can quickly identify and find information about a company or companies via their database.
Company Data Segment Reporting
More often than not, a company will operate across more than one business segment. Take for example, Amazon. Amazon has an online retail marketplace business and it has a computing business (AWS). These are reported separately in its 10k, so if you are preparing a market research report about computing, you can find AWS computing revenues in the segment reporting section of the 10k.
This segment reporting is also sometimes available for private companies. If you have found the relevant company data register and downloaded the latest set of accounts for a company, you will often find the segment reporting of that company in the Notes To The Accounts section of the document. If present it will show the reportable segments of the company and the revenues; and sometimes it will show a profitability measure (operating profit, EBIT, or EBITDA). Some companies reserve the right not to publish this data.
Using all the tools and documents above, you can quickly build a report showing a company analysis table of company revenues operating in a specific market or country. Remember to translate currencies into one single currency to ensure accurate comparison. The table can then go into a market research report or industry report that can be a valuable document for management to use for decision making.
Market Research Direct is a dynamic store for market research reports and company profiles, boasting an extensive collection that spans all sectors. With thousands of products, it provides a trusted platform for businesses and professionals seeking valuable industry insights for decision making. Whether users are interested in specific market data or comprehensive company profiles, Market Research Direct is a one-stop hub for high-quality market insight.
