For company and industry research try two premium e-resources from the library, Mergent Intellect and AtoZ Databases, available for free with your library card. Both allow creating lists of companies by industry code, location, sales, number of employees, etc.
MERGENT INTELLECT Use Advanced Search to add specific criteria such as industry code, keyword, location, number of employees, sales, ownership type, etc. Company information includes basic financial data and names of executives. Use the Build Files option to download search results in Excel. The First Search module has a searchable archive of industry reports and other helpful sector-specific data. For more search tips, check out Mergent's help guides.
AtoZ DATABASES This database also has a powerful search engine and offers data on 30 million businesses and 240 million residents in the U.S. Datasets include new businesses, new homeowners, and healthcare professionals. All database sets have a mapping tool that allows users to create customized map-based searches.
CHECK OUT THESE BUSINESS RESEARCH GUIDES FROM LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Doing Company Research: A Resource Guide
Doing Industry Research: A Resource Guide
Business reference librarians from Library of Congress created many other business-related research guides, including Small Business Hub, Women in Business and the Workforce and Renewable Energy Industries.
Financial ratios are used to measure company performance, which is useful when comparing a company or multiple companies to the industry in general.
Downloadable industry reports from First Research, available in the library’s Mergent Intellect database, contain extensive financial ratios information for large, medium-size and small companies in a particular industry. You can find this data in the Financial Information section of every industry report from First Research. Industry Prospector from First Research ranks industries based on key financial ratios.
RMA Annual Statement Studies REF 658.15 Risk 2022-2023 V.1 & 2
Composite data from financial statements of companies of different sizes in manufacturing, wholesaling, retailing, service, agricultural, and contracting. Organized by NAICS codes.
Available in the Reference section at City of Fairfax Regional Library
Almanac of business and industrial financial ratios. REF 658.15 A 2018
Available at five regional libraries, including City of Fairfax.
Bizstats.com provides some free statistics and financial ratios for industries and also financial ratio calculators that let you input your own data for some ratio calculations.
Washington Business Journal
A leading source of business news for the Washington, DC metro area, this publication offers in-depth coverage of development projects and the local tech sector. Most of the articles are behind a paywall. The print edition is published weekly. Among the popular features are rankings of local businesses, organizations, and executives. All these rankings are published annually under one cover as the Book of Lists. Check the library catalog to see which branch has a subscription. The Book of Lists would be shelved in the reference section.
Virginia Business
This monthly magazine, published in Richmond, covers business developments in Virginia. Most of the content is freely available on the website. A free daily newsletter delivers the most important business stories to your inbox.
E-Bird
This free weekly newsletter from Fairfax County Economic Development Agency includes summaries of major local business news.
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Tysons Tracker
Up-to-date information about land use and economic development of the Tysons area from Fairfax County's Department of Planning and Development
Tysons Development Map
Detailed maps and other data about developer's projects in the Tysons area
