Understanding Financial Ratios
Key Financial Ratios
Company and industry ratios are available at MSN Money website. Click on the "Markets" link and enter the ticker symbol or name of your company. Select the "Financials" or "Analysis" link and view:
Sources of Financial Data
10K Reports - Annual report filed with the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC).
10Q Reports - Quarterly reports filed with the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC).
Annual Reports to Shareholders - The Public Register provides free annual reports of public companies trading on the NYSE, NASDAQ, AMEX, and OTC exchanges. Orders are processed and mailed within one business day.
Company Financials - Several of the GALILEO databases provide annual and quarterly financial reports:
- Business Source Complete
- Hoover's Company Capsules and Profiles
- LexisNexis Academic
Proxy Statements - Companies often post their proxy statements on their web page. Proxy statements must be filed with the SEC, so these may also be located by searching the EDGAR database.
SEC Filings - These forms are searchable in the EDGAR database.
You can search information collected by the SEC several ways:
- Company or fund name, ticker symbol, CIK (Central Index Key), file number, state, country, or SIC (Standard Industrial Classification)
- Most recent filings
- Full text (past four years)
- Boolean and advanced searching, including addresses
- Key mutual fund disclosures
- Mutual fund voting records
- Mutual fund name, ticker, or SEC key (since Feb. 2006)
- Variable insurance products (since Feb. 2006)