When you analyze a company, you need to consider its industry. Factors outside the company's control can affect not only the company, but all the companies in the industry. These factors might be economic, political, or environmental.
For example, if there is a resource or product that is not grown or manufactured within the country and must be imported, changes in the cost of oil (and, thus, transportation) will affect all the companies in the industry. Some industries are more sensitive to changes in labor costs than others. A proposed change in minimum wage or labor union restrictions could affect the companies across the industry. Some industries depend on constant technological change. Some industries welcome new players and, thus, competition, while others are dominated by 2 or 3 major companies.
It's important for you to understand the company's industry. If they are considering expanding into a new product line or service outside their current industry, it would be important to understand the industry for that new product or service, as well.
Here is a video about using the IBISWorld database created by Amanda Howell, Reference & Instruction Librarian at UW-Whitewater.
To find an industry report in IBISWorld, you can search on a keyword, on a company name, or on a NAICS code. NAICS stands for North American Industry Classification Code, a system of categorizing industries in the U.S. economy that was developed by the Federal Government. To find an NAICS code, you can search or browse their list of industries in the link below. You can also find industry codes for companies in the Business Source Premier database. Many records for articles in the database list the NAICS codes that apply to the company, like this:
Here is a sample citation in APA format for an IBISWorld report :
Roth, Ryan (2018, May). IBISWorld Industry Report 71329 : Lotteries and Native American casinos
in the U.S. Retrieved from IBISWorld database.