Research Guides: WRIT 3121: Advanced Writing: Business and Organizations (Nancy Peterson): Company Information

Getting Started with Company Research

The first step in company research is to know whether the company is a public company, a private company, or a subsidiary of a larger company. The type of company you are researching will determine how much information you will be able to find.

NAICS & SIC Search
To identify the NAICS Code being used for a specific company, visit the US Company Lookup Tool by NAICS.com. To identify the proper code for a company, use the keyword search to enter a single keyword like "coffee" and the search will return all codes that contain that word in the title or description.

Company Profiles

Business Source Premier (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window
Full-text, indexing and abstracts for top journals covering management, economics, finance, accounting and international business. In addition, it includes market research reports, industry reports, country reports, company profiles and SWOT analyses.
Mergent Online This link opens in a new window
Current corporate and financial reports on 11,000 U.S. public companies and 17,000 non-U.S. public companies.
Passport This link opens in a new window
Comprehensive market research database incorporating research analysis and detailed statistics of global markets and consumers. Its emphasis is on consumer-related industries across more than 200 countries and regions.
PitchBook This link opens in a new window
Search thousands of private equity and venture capital deals by hundreds of criteria. Use PitchBook to establish benchmarks, find real time data on deals, identify and analyze comparables, and search investor details.

Access Note: To obtain access, register for a personal account using your @d.umn.edu email address and follow these instructions. If you have trouble registering from off campus, try connecting to the University of Minnesota Network via our campus VPN. Accounts expire in August of each year. Downloads set at 10/day and 25/month per user; resets monthly.

International Directory of Company Histories by St James Press (Other)
ISBN: 0028669398
Publication Date: 2022
Comprehensive histories of 8,500 of the world's largest and most influential companies.

Company Financials

BizMiner This link opens in a new window
Industry statistical reports available from the national to local (zip code) level.
Video Tutorials
FactSet This link opens in a new window
Platform used to analyze financial data from global equity and fixed income markets. Coverage includes data on ownership and private equity and venture capital investments.

Access Note: To obtain access, register for a personal account using your @d.umn.edu email address. If you have transferred to Duluth from another UMN campus, you may need to update your email domain.
Registration Instructions
- Request an account using your UMD email address.
- Within 48 hours, you should expect to receive an assigned factset.net ID delivered to your UMD email address.
- Go to https://my.factset.com, enter the factset.net ID provided below and then click on the Register button. FactSet will then email a one-time passcode to your UMD email address which will be needed to set your permanent password.
- Once logged in, you will be walked through the account customization and setup process.
Install Workstation (optional)
- If you wish to use the FactSet Workstation for the first time on your machine, please download from: https://support.factset.com/workstation/.
- Once the MSI has downloaded, double-click the file and click through the Next, Install and Finish buttons.
- After the installation is complete, a FactSet Authentication box will pop up for you to type in your factset.net ID and click Continue.
- A one-time passcode will be emailed to your university email address.
Mergent Online This link opens in a new window
Current corporate and financial reports on 11,000 U.S. public companies and 17,000 non-U.S. public companies.
Morningstar Investment Research Center This link opens in a new window
Comprehensive Morningstar Reports on more than 8,000 stocks and 12,000 mutual funds.
PitchBook This link opens in a new window
Search thousands of private equity and venture capital deals by hundreds of criteria. Use PitchBook to establish benchmarks, find real time data on deals, identify and analyze comparables, and search investor details.

Access Note: To obtain access, register for a personal account using your @d.umn.edu email address and follow these instructions. If you have trouble registering from off campus, try connecting to the University of Minnesota Network via our campus VPN. Accounts expire in August of each year. Downloads set at 10/day and 25/month per user; resets monthly.

Comparing Companies

Mergent Online This link opens in a new window
Compare companies by searching a company name and clicking the competitors tab.
Morningstar Investment Research Center This link opens in a new window
Compare companies by searching a company by name and clicking the competitors tab under Morningstar's Analysis.
Passport This link opens in a new window
Comprehensive market research database incorporating research analysis and detailed statistics of global markets and consumers. Its emphasis is on consumer-related industries across more than 200 countries and regions.

Kathryn A. Martin Library

WRIT 3121: Advanced Writing: Business and Organizations (Nancy Peterson)

Business & Economics Librarian

Getting Started with Company Research

Company Profiles

Company Financials

Registration Instructions

Install Workstation (optional)

Comparing Companies