Each student will be required to conduct extensive research on a publicly traded company

and submit a written analysis of that company. Please submit your company selection and
final report on CANVAS discussion board, where students can access all reports.
Companies selections will be done on first-come, first-serve basis – only
one student per class could analyze any one company. The goal of the research report is to
help you hone your research and analytical skills. Once you have gathered a significant
body of data, you will be able to apply the strategic frameworks you have learned and form
an opinion about the company’s performance and its sustainability based on the evidence
you found. After you have researched the company and formed opinions on its future
success, you should provide recommendations as to its viability as a potential employer and
investment, i.e. would you recommend this company as a potential employer
or a potential investment to a close friend? An acceptable report will incorporate several (8-
13) business articles (for example WSJ, Bloomberg Businessweek, Forbes, Fortune, local
publications if the company is local, etc.
4
Please note that earnings announcements and websites (i.e. finance.yahoo.com, etc) do
not count as an article, as you want to triangulate the information and numbers coming
from the company (which websites use) with independent media insights), research
on company’s competitors, as well as the company’s annual (10-K),
quarterly (10-Q), and proxy statements (Def 14a)
(http://www.sec.gov/edgar/searchedgar/companysearch.html).
(If the annual report of the company is more than 6 months outdated, you need to obtain the
latest quarterly report as well).
Grading on this component will be approximately distributed as 50% for the depth and
comprehensiveness of the research you conducted, and 50% for the quality of your
analyses and recommendations. Make sure to include data and information from the most
recent annual and quarterly reports of the company, as well as some recent
business articles. Your analysis and recommendations should not exceed 10 pages;
however, there is no limit on the appendices you use to support your analyses and
recommendations (i.e. you can use unlimited number of tables, figures, charts, etc. to
substantiate your analyses, but please do not attach full reports or articles). Please
base your recommendations on factual information, and include all data, tables, and figures
that you used when analyzing the company. Examples of information that could facilitate
your analysis of the company and provide factual support for your recommendations:
i) Firm performance - i.e. earnings, sales, ROA, P/E, stock price (feel free to add to
those) - remember to investigate firm performance both across time (try to
discern a trend) and relative to its competitors (see how well the firm does
relative to its rivals)
ii) Market share
iii) Vision & mission
iv) Key resources and capabilities, VRINE Analysis
v) Key macroenvironmental trends, PESTEL Analysis
vi) Strategic Group Analysis
vii) Information about competitive move
viii) Business Strategy
ix) Corporate segments, Corporate Strategy
ix) Most important corporate divisions (industries in which the company operates)
x) Which corporate divisions generate most revenues/profits for the firm?
xi) International operations, International Strategy
xii) Which are the most important international markets for the firm?
xiii) Which countries generate most revenues/profits for the firm?
xiv) Board of directors, Independence from the CEO, Expertise
xv) CEO compensation and ownership
xvi) Large owners
xvii) Corporate governance score