Guides and References

Business - Ratios

There are several sources listing financial ratios in the Sprague Library, some focus on ratios for individual companies while others list ratios for entire industries or business segments. Read on or start the "Finding Ratios" tutorials to the right to learn what is available.

Company Ratios:

• Mergent Online:
  Lists 15 years of financials for over 10,000 companies. Twenty one different ratios are included along with many other data points. Data can be downloaded and then imported into spreadsheets for analysis or creation of industry-wide reports. Click on the tutorial link above to see how to use Mergent.
• Value Line:
  One-page financial summaries for about 1,000 companies. P/E ratio; Revenues/share; Cash flow/share; Earnings/share;
  Dividends/share; Capital spending/share; Book value/share
  Location: Sprague Library Reference Desk.
• Osiris: (tutorial under construction)
  Contains financial information on 53,000 listed and major unlisted & delisted companies worldwide.
  42,000 of these companies are outside the U.S. The information includes: standardised and "as reported" financials (including restated reports), SEC filings, detailed earnings estimates including recommendations, ownership, stock data, news and ratings. Click for details.

Industry Ratios:

• Industry Norms & Key Business Ratios:
  A reference book that lists many ratios for over 800 areas of business and industry.
  Location: Sprague Library Reference Desk.
• RMA Annual Statement Studies:
  This book contains financial data for hundreds of industries. Organized by NAICS.
  Descriptions of the ratios reported are in the front of the book.
  Location: Sprague Library Reference Desk.
• Almanac of Business and Industrial Financial Ratios:
  Statistics on nearly 200 industries organized by NAICS. A glossary in the front explains the data.
  Location: Sprague Library Reference Desk.