= Corporate resea

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Search databases of corporations online

You can get useful background information by doing a few simple internet searches.

• Hoovers.com "From Co-op America: "The most useful information on this site will cost $200 annual fee or $30 per month. In addition to the site's "List of Lists" -- a free list of a wide variety of sources of corporate information, you can find for each business:

o Overview o History o News o Officers' names, ages, and salaries o Number of Employees o Location & Subsidiaries (incomplete) o Products/Operations (incomplete) o Competitors o Financials o Research Reports

• Yahoo Finance Page Lots of financial info for companies, including news, market info, ...
• SEC Website According to aflcio.org/corporatewatch/research: "The Securities and Exchange Commission's website. Search EDGAR documents (e.g., 10-Ks, proxy statements) and non-EDGAR documents (e.g., no action letters, current rulemaking). These filings tell a lot. Experience will tell you what you want." -- look at this to find out more* * What to look for there: - CEO salary searchable database (find out what CEOs of major companies made last year) http://www.aflcio.org/corporatewatch/paywatch/ceou/index.cfm -> see also SEC executive compensation disclosure rules - The Forbes "rich people tracker" lets you find out who is associated with what public companies. You have to register but it's free.

Contacting HQ

Email/call/write to corporate HQ to ask for information. They usually have a department just to answer questions from the public/researchers. However, be aware that the information you are getting is from the perspective of the company and will reflect its interests.

Search through financial data and forms

• 10k

o "a detailed description of the company's operations" o "a summary of the firm's competitive and regulatory climate" o "a description of the company's facilities" o "basic data on the company's workforce, which often includes information on the extent to which the workers are unionized and which unions represent them" o "an overview of the main legal proceedings in which the company is involved" o "an account of environmental issues relating to the company's operations" o "a list of the company's subsidiaries"

(Quoted from corp-research.org/howto.htm)

• 10-Q and 8-K

o updates the 10k quarterly

• Proxy Statement (Form DEF 14A)

o tells you where annual meeting will take place o stock ownership data o exec. compensation o director comp. o director bios o procedures for shareholder resolutions

• Prospectus and S-1 Registration Statement
• Forms 3 and 4

o "These filings are the means by which company insiders (officers and directors) report sales or purchases of the firm's stock. The SEC requires these reports so that investors are aware of personal transactions that may reflect the insiders' assessment of the company's prospects." -- corp-research.org/howto.htm

• Canadian Companies: see SEDAR

Consult relevant consumer protection organizations/ watchdog organizations/boycott websites/etc

General consumer protection organizations. See part IV for lists of organizations by concern/industry.

• Responsible Shopper Information about corporate practices of many large companies. Also a list of tips for greener consuming.
• Corporation Watch
• Beyond McDonalds? A section of a McDonalds? watchdog organization website for other major companies that have been criticized for similar things as McDonalds?.
• Corporate Accountability International
• Public Citizen, a nonprofit organization for "health, safety, and democracy" Describes current boycotts, consumer safety issues, news, etc.
• The Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility
• Corporate Crime Reporter

Research Legal History

Researching legal histories of companies can give you an idea of what kinds of challenges have been brought against the company's practices.

• Search court records
• Federal Trade Commission
• Consumer Products Safety Commission
• Westlaw
• lexis-nexis

More resources

• Research Resources Extensive guide to sources of many kinds from the AFL-CIO. For example, links to corporate news, legal databases, insider trading info,
• Datacenter Website supporting quantitative research for social justice
• How to research corporations This is a really useful general guide on how to do corporate research. It goes into extensive detail about the resources available, such as quarterly financial reports. http://www.corp-research.org/howto.htm