Company and nonprofit research - BCOM 314 - Business Communication

Company research strategies

Starting points

Before using databases, gather basic details on the company with a general search engine like Google. Example: search results in Bing for the grocery store Sprouts. Try to gather the following:

Company's full, official name: While the common name (e.g., Sprouts) might be enough, some databases require the company's official name (e.g., Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc.) to return correct results.
Company type: public or private: Knowing whether a company is public or private can affect how you research that company. You'll want to know the stock ticker for public companies, and details on a comparable public competitor when researching a private company.
- For public: stock ticker: Adding the words "stock ticker" to your basic search (e.g., Sprouts stock ticker) should bring it up immediately (e.g., SFM). (If you can't find the ticker, it's likely the company is private.) Most business databases let you use the ticker as a search term to increase the relevance of your results.
- For private: public "proxy company": Identifying a similarly sized public company in the same industry to act as a "proxy" for a private company can help you estimate financial details that may be difficult or impossible to find on the private company.
Headquarters location: Just as with the full name and ticker symbol, knowing where a company is headquartered will help you correctly identify the company in search results.

Private vs. Public

Certain data are less available on privately held US companies since they are not required to report their financials to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). You may need to find details on private companies from news articles, industry reports, and public competitors. Identifying a "proxy company" as mentioned above will also help.

Best databases for most company research

Bizminer This link opens in a new window
Use the Company Profile search to find a company by location. Best used for local/regional companies or a specific location of a larger firm. To identify competition, consider using the Industry Market search, too. How to access: Click on "Academic Library Detected..." to enter the site.
Click on "Academic Library Detected..." to enter the site.
Business Insights: Global This link opens in a new window
Search a company by name or ticker symbol, or click on the Browse All Companies link just below the main search bar. Find financial data, rankings, investment reports, news, and more on public and select private companies.
Gale platform Listen feature instructions
Business Source Ultimate This link opens in a new window
Open More in the top navigation menu and click on Company Profiles. (Not recommended to use the Company Information search in the main menu.) You can also use the main search to find company news and analysis from articles in journals, newspapers, and trade publications.
EBSCO platform text to speech feature and screen reader instructions
Euromonitor's Passport GMID This link opens in a new window
Open the Companies tab and search for a company by name to view company profiles. Global profiles offer competitive analysis, market trends, and company analysis akin to a SWOT while "local" (regional) profiles provide a snapshot of performance and sales data. Works best for companies in consumer goods and services.
Market Atlas This link opens in a new window
New! Find details on public companies globally, including ownership, executives, financial data, SEC filings, sustainability (ESG and CSR) reports, ESG ratings (current and historical), and more. Read more about content and coverage.
Mergent Intellect This link opens in a new window
New! Find company data on US public and private companies.
Nexis Uni This link opens in a new window
Search for company information in two ways: Open the "waffle" menu in the top left and select Nexis Dossier (preferred), or click on the Companies tab in the top ribbon. When using Dossier, search by company name or stock ticker to find a company profile with news, reports, financials, and more.
Note: May require users to log in with their NetID even on campus.

There is a known bug affecting Nexis Uni profile creation. Off-campus users interested in creating a Nexis Uni profile should use this link.

Nexis Uni instructions for screen reader and keyboard only users
PitchBook This link opens in a new window
Search public or private companies by name or ticker symbol. In addition to financial information, ownership, and news, Pitchbook includes M&A, venture capital, and private equity transactions. Note: You must first set up a personal account with an email address ending in "@arizona.edu" to use this database. For problems logging into an existing account, access the database above, click on "Create an account" link, enter your arizona.edu email address, then click on the link in the email you receive and reset your password.
You must first set up a personal account with an email address ending in "@arizona.edu" to use this database.
URL for off-campus access: https://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=https://arizona.pitchbook.com
URL for on-campus/at Tech Launch: https://arizona.pitchbook.com/

For problems logging in or resetting your password:
1. While on-campus (or onsite at Tech Launch) go to: https://arizona.pitchbook.com/
2. Enter your Pitchbook credentials and you'll be presented with a password reset screen.
3. Reset your password, and then log in using your newest password (do this while you are on campus or onsite at Tech Launch, using https://arizona.pitchbook.com/ )
4. Once you've made it this far, you should be able to access Pitchbook while off-campus too using the off-campus link: https://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=https://arizona.pitchbook.com

Note: The Pitchbook app (via Apple/Google Play store) is only accessible via campus wifi/IP.
Restrictions on use:
- Users may not publish PitchBooks data to any public forum such as a publicly available website.
- Users may not use PitchBook data for any non-academic purpose.
- University may institute disciplinary actions against any Users who intentionally misuse PitchBooks data.
Statista This link opens in a new window
Using the main search bar, search by company name (not ticker symbol) to find insights. Another good choice is the Companies and Products Reports search on the Reports tab.

Find financials, transactions, shares, and funding information

Most of the databases above also provide financials on public companies, but these resources specialize in certain financial data and transactions. Some cover nonprofit organizations and private companies, too.

Find more information on creating, finding, or analyzing financial statements on the Accounting research guide.

Bizminer This link opens in a new window
Use Company Profile to search by company name and location. Best used when researching local/regional companies or specific locations of larger firms. How to access: Click on "Academic Library Detected..." to enter the site.
Click on "Academic Library Detected..." to enter the site.

EDGAR (SEC.gov)
All public companies, U.S. and foreign, are required to file registration statements, periodic reports, and other forms through EDGAR. Anyone can access and download this information for free. For annual financial statements, select a company's 10-K. If you aren't sure which form you need, use the link for SEC Forms List (PDF versions) and look at the form descriptions.

IbisWorld This link opens in a new window
Select Products from the top navigation to find Company Benchmarking reports that provide competitive analysis and market share figures.
Nexis Uni This link opens in a new window
M&A transactions: In the main search box, click on "All Content Types" and select Companies, then select Mergers and Acquisitions. Click away from the box to close it, unless you want to choose specific M&A sources. Next, type in the company or other keywords in the search box. Note: This search may also include charitable giving and grant awards. Selecting specific sources from the Content Types filter can help exclude those transactions.
Note: May require users to log in with their NetID even on campus.

There is a known bug affecting Nexis Uni profile creation. Off-campus users interested in creating a Nexis Uni profile should use this link.

Nexis Uni instructions for screen reader and keyboard only users

Nonprofit Explorer
Search tax returns from tax-exempt organizations and find financial details such as executive compensation, revenue, and expenses. Browse IRS data released since 2013 and access over 9.6 million tax filing documents going back as far as 2001.
Where to Find Nonprofit Financial Information
From The Bridgespan Group, this article provides a nice overview of how and where to verify an organization's tax exempt status and research their financials.

PitchBook This link opens in a new window
Find data, research and technology covering the private capital markets, including venture capital, private equity and M&A transactions. Note: You must first set up a personal account with an email address ending in "@arizona.edu" to use this database. For problems logging into an existing account, access the database above, click on "Create an account" link, enter your arizona.edu email address, then click on the link in the email you receive and reset your password. For additional help, see "More" below.
You must first set up a personal account with an email address ending in "@arizona.edu" to use this database.
URL for off-campus access: https://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=https://arizona.pitchbook.com
URL for on-campus/at Tech Launch: https://arizona.pitchbook.com/

For problems logging in or resetting your password:
1. While on-campus (or onsite at Tech Launch) go to: https://arizona.pitchbook.com/
2. Enter your Pitchbook credentials and you'll be presented with a password reset screen.
3. Reset your password, and then log in using your newest password (do this while you are on campus or onsite at Tech Launch, using https://arizona.pitchbook.com/ )
4. Once you've made it this far, you should be able to access Pitchbook while off-campus too using the off-campus link: https://ezproxy.library.arizona.edu/login?url=https://arizona.pitchbook.com

Note: The Pitchbook app (via Apple/Google Play store) is only accessible via campus wifi/IP.
Restrictions on use:
- Users may not publish PitchBooks data to any public forum such as a publicly available website.
- Users may not use PitchBook data for any non-academic purpose.
- University may institute disciplinary actions against any Users who intentionally misuse PitchBooks data.
Pivot This link opens in a new window
Find funding opportunities from public agencies and private foundations.
Pivot Accessibility Statement
Value Line Research Center This link opens in a new window
Once you get to a report on a publicly traded company, you'll find detailed financial information about sales, stocks, earnings, rankings, valuations, debt, projections, and more. You can also find information on industries, mutual funds, options, and convertibles.
Winmo This link opens in a new window
Find ad spends by media type in addition to information on advertising agencies, advertisers, key contacts, and more with this sales prospecting tool formerly known as the Advertising Red Books.

Research nonprofit organizations

Nonprofit Explorer
Use ProPublica's database to search tax returns from tax-exempt organizations and see financial details such as executive compensation, revenue, and expenses. You can browse IRS data released since 2013 and access over 9.6 million tax filing documents going back as far as 2001.

GuideStar This link opens in a new window
Find up-to-date information on thousands of IRS-registered nonprofits. GuideStar provides information on the organization's mission, legitimacy, impact, reputation, finances, programs, transparency, governance, and more. Find different organizations' financial statements, executives' salaries, and other key financial information. Note: You will need to create a free basic account using your arizona.edu email.
You will need to create a free basic account using your arizona.edu email stem.

The Bridgespan Group
Thought leadership for non-profit sector. Check out the Insights section for articles, reports, non-profit management toolkits, interviews, and a podcast series on equity and justice topics.
Cause IQ
Robust directory for non-profits. Link goes to page specific to Tucson metro area, but directories are available for the whole U.S. You can also search by category/sector.
Charity Navigator
Uses a numbers-based rating system to assess over 8,000 of America's best-known and some lesser known, but worthy, charities.
The Chronicle of Philanthropy - Big Charitable Gifts
Search this free database of charitable gifts (from individuals) of $1 million or more. Sort by cause or donation size to learn about contributions nonprofits or donors have announced publicly. You may need to create a free account to access.
Giving USA
This data visualization tool provides high-level data on charitable giving in the United States by source (company, individual, etc.) and recipient (type of industry, affiliation). You can filter by year as well as compare contributions to previous years. Other Giving USA resources are restricted to subscribers.
IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search
Search this database with either the EIN or name of the non-profit you are researching to confirm their tax exempt status and eligibility letter. You can also review all filings under the bulk data downloads link. Check the index .csv for each year first to confirm the non-profit is within the bulk filings.
National Center for Charitable Statistics
Provides tools for researching charities and nonprofits.
Nonprofit Insights by Stanford Business
Stanford's Graduate School of Business has research and reports about what's new and trending in the nonprofit world.
Nonprofit Quarterly
Resources from the Institute for Nonprofit News.
The NonProfit Times
Offers resources for nonprofit management.

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BCOM 314 - Business Communication

Companies

Company research strategies

Starting points

Private vs. Public

Best databases for most company research

Find financials, transactions, shares, and funding information

Research nonprofit organizations

Information for

Libraries & Locations

Search form

BCOM 314 - Business Communication

Companies

Company research strategies

Starting points

Private vs. Public

Best databases for most company research

Find financials, transactions, shares, and funding information

Research nonprofit organizations

Information for

Libraries & Locations

Connect