Accounting Concepts and Practices

How to Find Revenues for Public and Private Companies

Gain clear guidance on locating and understanding the fundamental revenue data for any type of company.

Revenue represents the total income a business generates from its primary activities, such as selling goods or providing services, before any expenses are deducted. This figure is often referred to as the “top line” because of its prominent position at the beginning of a company’s income statement. Understanding revenue helps assess a company’s financial health, as it indicates the effectiveness of its sales and operations. Revenue fuels growth and provides resources for a business to sustain itself.

Locating Public Company Revenues

Publicly traded companies are required to disclose their financial performance transparently, making their revenue figures accessible to the public. These companies submit reports to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), a primary source of financial information. The most common of these reports are Form 10-K, an annual audited financial statement, and Form 10-Q, a quarterly report.

To find these filings, individuals can use the SEC’s Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval (EDGAR) database. Users can search EDGAR by company name or ticker symbol to locate a company’s submissions. Once a filing like a 10-K or 10-Q is found, the income statement, also known as the Statement of Operations or Profit & Loss Statement, will list revenue near the top.

Companies provide direct links to their SEC filings and financial summaries on their investor relations sections of their websites. This can be a convenient way to access documents directly from the source. Additionally, various financial news websites and data platforms aggregate and display revenue figures from these filings. Platforms such as Yahoo Finance, MarketWatch, Bloomberg.com, and Investing.com offer quick access to summarized financial data for public companies.

When reviewing an income statement, revenue may be labeled in several ways. Common terms include “Revenue,” “Sales,” “Net Sales,” or “Total Revenues.” Identifying this line item provides the total money a company earned from its business activities during the reported period. This figure serves as a direct indicator of a company’s sales volume before accounting for operational costs.

Locating Private Company Revenues

Finding revenue information for privately owned companies is challenging because they are not legally obligated to disclose their financial statements publicly. Direct access to precise private company revenue data is rare and reserved for those with a direct financial relationship, such as investors, lenders, or potential acquisition partners. Without such a relationship, external users must rely on indirect or estimated sources.

Industry-specific research reports can sometimes provide revenue estimates for private companies operating within that sector. These reports analyze market trends and industry averages, offering insight into a company’s potential scale based on its market share or operational characteristics. While not company-specific, these reports can offer valuable context. If a private company has undergone a recent valuation or acquisition, public announcements might mention revenue figures, though this is an inconsistent source.

Credit reporting agencies may possess some financial data on private companies, primarily for assessing creditworthiness, but this information is not accessible to the public. For individuals seeking revenue information for their own private business, the most accurate source is their internal income statement. This financial document, prepared by the business itself, directly reflects its revenue over a specific period. For external users, obtaining exact revenue figures for private companies without direct disclosure remains difficult.

To estimate private company revenue, some methods involve using proxies such as revenue per employee, or analyzing customer numbers mentioned in company announcements or press releases. Comparing a private company to similar publicly traded companies in the same industry can also offer a rough estimate. Financial publishers and specialized databases like PitchBook or Crunchbase sometimes provide estimated revenue ranges for larger private entities, though these are approximations.

Understanding Revenue Information

Revenue figures represent the total economic inflow from a company’s core operations over a defined period. Distinguish between “gross revenue” and “net revenue.” Gross revenue is the total money generated from sales before any deductions. Net revenue, conversely, is the amount remaining after accounting for reductions such as sales returns, allowances, and discounts.

Companies categorize their revenue into different streams, reflecting sources of income. These can include product sales, service revenue, or subscription revenue, and financial statements may break down these categories to show where the money originates. This segmentation helps in understanding the composition of a company’s overall income.

Revenue is always reported for specific intervals, known as reporting periods. These periods are quarterly (three months) and annually (a full year), though some internal reports may be monthly. An annual reporting period, referred to as a fiscal year, does not always align with the calendar year, as businesses can choose a 12-month period that best suits their operations. Financial statements will clearly indicate the period covered.

Under accrual accounting principles, revenue is recognized when it is earned, meaning when goods or services have been delivered or rendered, regardless of when cash is received. This concept ensures revenues are matched to the period in which the economic activity occurred. While revenue is a useful metric, it is only one component of a complete financial picture and should be viewed with other financial data to understand a company’s performance.

Previous

How to Calculate Average Total Assets

Back to Accounting Concepts and Practices
Next

Is Accounts Receivable a Long-Term Asset?