Equity Research

Equity Research

A - The Capitalization of the Company
It really helps to form a mental picture or diagram of a newly researched company and the first step is to determine just how big the company is. The market capitalization says a lot about how volatile the stock is likely to be, how broad the ownership might be and the potential size of the company's end markets. For example, large cap and mega cap companies tend to have more stable revenue streams and less volatility. Mid cap and small cap companies, meanwhile, may only serve single areas of the market, and may have more fluctuations in their stock price and earnings.
No judgments should be made at this step; we are just accumulating information that will set the stage for everything to come. When you start to examine revenue and profit figures, the market cap will give you some perspective.
You should also confirm one other vital fact on this first check: what stock exchange the shares trade on? Are they based in the United States (such as New York Stock Exchange, Nasdaq, or over the counter)? Or, are they American depositary receipts (ADRs) with another listing on a foreign exchange? ADRs will typically have the letters "ADR" written somewhere in the reported title of the share listing. This information along with market cap should help answer basic questions like whether you can own the shares in your current investment accounts.
Market Capitalisation:
While there isn't one set framework for defining the different market caps, here are the widely published standards for each capitalization:
Mega cap - This group includes companies that have a market cap of $200 billion and greater. They are the largest publicly traded companies such as Exxon. Not many companies will fit in this category, and those that do are typically the leaders of their industries.
Big/large cap - These companies have a market cap between $10 billion to $200 billion. Many well-known companies fall into this category, including companies like...

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