There is a lot more data on large, publicly-held, American companies than there is on small, privately owned, or international companies. Tips will be provided throughout the guide on how to deal with companies that fall in the “Less Information” column.

Public companies are owned by stockholders. Stocks can be bought and sold (traded) on an exchange such as Dow Jones or NASDAC.

• Information about public companies is easy to find as such companies are legally required to make their financial records available to investors.

Private companies may be owned by an individual, family, or a group of partners. Small companies are almost always private but private companies are not always small. Forbes Magazine produces an annual list of the largest, privately-held companies in America.

• Information about private companies can be difficult—and sometimes impossible—to locate.

The quickest way to determine if a company is public or private is to check a comprehensive directory such as Reference USA or LexisNexis Company Profiles. (Both require a name and “92” number for off-campus use.)

Each listing includes a field that states whether the company is public or private. Both databases will have information on small, locally-owned businesses, such as the Mad Batter in Cullowhee, as well as on huge companies like Microsoft.

Two excellent print sources are:

• LexisNexis Corporate Affiliations
  REF HG 4057 .A217
• North Carolina Business Directory
  REF DESK HF 5056 .N8 N68