Public = a firm which issues securities through an initial public offering (IPO) and is traded on at least one stock exchange or in over-the-counter markets (OTC). See How to Research Public Companies (off www.sec.gov website).
Private = a firm held under private ownership. Private companies may issue stock and have shareholders but their shares do not trade on public exchanges and are not issued through an IPO.
Additional explanation via Investopedia.com: Private vs. Public: What's the Difference?
Privately held companies are business entities that are held by private owners. This type of entity limits the owner's liability to their ownership stake and restricts shareholders from publicly trading shares.
The principal difference between public and privately held companies is that public companies have shares that can be publicly traded on a stock market. A privately held company might become a publicly held company by conducting an initial public offering (IPO), which is the offering of shares of the company to the public.
Note: It is much harder to find information on private companies & on their subsidiaries
See Directory of Corporate Affiliations (source information located on this page).
National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS)
"Every U.S. Corporation -- whether publicly traded, privately held or non-profit -- must register at the state level to receive a charter to do business. The agency that handles this process is usually the Secretary of State's office, which will also provide public access to at least some of the information that corporations must provide in their filings." (Quoted from "Dirt Diggers Digest Guide to Strategic Corporate Research" by Philip Mattera.)
More information about filing with the Secretary of State is found in Researching Company Information (located in the next tab of this LibGuide).
Public companies are required by law to file certain reports to the government including...
See Investopedia.com & follow instructions below to find explanation of Financial Statements:
