Company information

When looking for information about a company, consider both information from the company itself (e.g., the company website, ASX data) as well as information about the company written by others (e.g., newspaper articles, and analyst reports). 

Finding information about a company includes the following steps: 

• Look at the company's website. Read the “About us” section for history and facts. Look for sections directed to investors or the media. Be careful when using information from the company website. Watch for bias or an overly-optimistic interpretation of factual data. 
• Is the company public or private? Public companies listed on Australian or International Exchanges are required by law to report on their activities and release key data. Private / Unlisted companies are not required to release information about their activities - it may be difficult to find private company information. 
• If the company is public, find relevant annual reports to shareholders. Search for analyst reports as these sometimes contain a SWOT analysis. 
• Search the company in the Recommended databases listed in this guide. 
• Search for newspaper, journal and trade publication articles about the company. These may be your only source of information for private companies. You can find these in the Recommended databases in this guide. 
• Identify competitors. 

TIP: Make sure you are searching for the company's 'official' name, as there may be subsidiaries, parent companies and several brand names associated with the company.

There is more information and analysis available for public companies than for private companies or subsidiaries. Generally, the larger the company, the easier it is to find information about it.

Industry information

Finding information about an industry includes the following steps: 

• Search the industry in the Recommended databases in this guide. In these you will be able to find industry analysis and case studies.
• Search for newspaper, journal and trade publication articles about the industry. You can find these in the Recommended databases in this guide.  
• Look at some of the suggested web resources such as, ABS statistics & reports, government industry websites, consultancy firms etc. 

It is important to recognise that the more specialised an industry, the harder it will be to get information on it. 

Coverage is worldwide, unless noted otherwise.  Please note that Company reports are not scholarly but are credible sources of information.

• Industry Reports (Australia and China) 
• Company Reports (Australia) 
• SWOT analysis 

• Industry Reports 
• Company Profiles 
• Consumer Profiles 
• Analytics, including forecast models

• Industry Reports 
• Company Reports 
• SWOT & PESTLE analyses 
• Industry and Company Case Studies 
• Country Profiles 
• News dashboard 

• Industry profiles 
• Company reports 
• SWOT analyses 
• Market research reports 
• Case studies 
• Trade publications 
• Academic journals 
• News source

• Journal articles 
• Trade Journals 
• Company reports 
• Country reports 
• Industry reports 
• News 
• Working papers

• Journal articles 
• Case studies 
• Consumer information 
• Trend forecasts 
• Company reports 
• News 

• Industry Snapshots 
• Company Snapshots 
• Market Data Charts 
• News source

• Company profiles 
• Industry reports 
• Market reports 
• Market research

• Annual reports 
• Company reports 
• Financials

• Annual reports 
• Company prospectuses 
• Bidder and target statements 

News sources

Annual reports

Australian Public Company- Listed on Stock Exchange (ASX)

Non-Australian company annual reports 

• See International government websites (below) for publicly traded company filings. 
• See International websites (below) for additional resources.

A company's web site is often a good source of information about their latest news, developments, new products etc, but be aware of bias. Public and not for profit companies may also offer access to annual reports on their websites.