Business Research
Doing Business Research with Databases
Databases are an excellent source for business research. Business databases will contain information about companies such as their leadership, industry profile, annual and quarterly reports, and even analysis by experts in the form of SWOT analyses and other reports. Other databases may contain detailed information about investments, stock valuation, stock ratings, and other investment information. There are even databases that contain statistics and survey data that can help to understand brand image among consumers, year-over-year revenue, consumer purchasing habits, and more. Finally, looking at news sources and business journalism will keep you up to date on what companies are appearing in the news and why.
To use databases, just click the links to databases below or from the Business subject section of the A-Z Database page. If you are on campus, you will sign in automatically. If you are off campus, you will be required to sign in with your Iona OneLogin. Once signed in, each database may have slightly different navigation. Company research databases will usually allow you to search for publicly traded companies by name or by their ticker symbol. Other databases, like Statista, will allow you to navigate by search bar or using industry and topic groupings.
Each of the databases below has a blurb explaining what they are and what data they contain. Use these blurbs to decide where to go for what you are looking for.
Company Research
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Gale Business: Insights This link opens in a new windowCompany and industry profiles including SWOT reports, market share and financial reports, industry rankings, products and brands, marketing data, and more. Contains articles and abstracts from journals and news sources.
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Mergent Market Atlas This link opens in a new window
Market Atlas provides tools for both interactive online research and easy predefined report access. These tools and reports are reflected across multiple product modules including Company, Sustainability, Industry, Country and Economic analysis. Market Atlas covers over 50,000 US and foreign public companies, current and historical (past 15 years) firm descriptions, statistics, financial information and ratios, annual reports, mergers, acquisitions, disposals, joint ventures, long-term debt, capital stock, and insider trading.
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ValueLine Investment Survey This link opens in a new window
Reports on 1700+ U.S. stocks including projections and company and industry commentary. New data issued weekly. Iona subscription is limited to 3 users at a time; to the 'Investment Survey' section only.
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WRDS (S&P Global Academic Research Essentials) This link opens in a new window
This platform provides comprehensive financial data on publicly traded companies across the U.S. and Canada. The data spans from 1987 to present, and is sourced from income statements, balance sheets, cash flow, and market data.
In order to log in to the resource, navigate to the login area at the bottom of the screen, and enter your Iona email address in the email address line. The link will change to say "Log in with single sign on." Click the link, and you will be logged into the resource.
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eCommerce Database (ECDB) This link opens in a new window
ECDB is a data analytics hub for the eCommerce sector. Data is visualized in various rankings, profiles, graphs and insights and can be downloaded at any time. Retailers and companies are summarized in detailed profiles, and rankings and KPIs are also featured.
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Key Business Ratios This link opens in a new windowMining information from the Dun & Bradstreet (now a subsidiary of Mergent, Inc.) database of financial information on 60 million+ companies from 209 countries around the world, Key Business Ratios (KBR) can be used to assess a firm's strengths and weaknesses relative to competing firms or an entire industry.
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Business Source Elite This link opens in a new window
This database provides full-text coverage of business, management and economics journals and periodicals. These publications cover topics such as accounting, banking, finance, international business, marketing, and sales. (Insights enabled)
Data Gathering
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Statista This link opens in a new windowFind statistics, consumer survey results, and industry studies. Categorized into 21 market sectors, the platform provides direct access to quantitative data on media, business, finance, politics, and a wide variety of other areas of interest or markets.
Data sources include market research reports as well as trade publications, scientific journals, and government databases. -
Mergent Market Atlas This link opens in a new window
Market Atlas provides tools for both interactive online research and easy predefined report access. These tools and reports are reflected across multiple product modules including Company, Sustainability, Industry, Country and Economic analysis. Market Atlas covers over 50,000 US and foreign public companies, current and historical (past 15 years) firm descriptions, statistics, financial information and ratios, annual reports, mergers, acquisitions, disposals, joint ventures, long-term debt, capital stock, and insider trading.
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ValueLine Investment Survey This link opens in a new window
Reports on 1700+ U.S. stocks including projections and company and industry commentary. New data issued weekly. Iona subscription is limited to 3 users at a time; to the 'Investment Survey' section only.
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WRDS (S&P Global Academic Research Essentials) This link opens in a new window
This platform provides comprehensive financial data on publicly traded companies across the U.S. and Canada. The data spans from 1987 to present, and is sourced from income statements, balance sheets, cash flow, and market data.
In order to log in to the resource, navigate to the login area at the bottom of the screen, and enter your Iona email address in the email address line. The link will change to say "Log in with single sign on." Click the link, and you will be logged into the resource.
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CountryWatch This link opens in a new windowReports on political, business, demographic, cultural, and environmental information and statistics on countries around the world. Also includes daily news coverage by country, comparable country data sets and regional maps.
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eCommerce Database (ECDB) This link opens in a new window
ECDB is a data analytics hub for the eCommerce sector. Data is visualized in various rankings, profiles, graphs and insights and can be downloaded at any time. Retailers and companies are summarized in detailed profiles, and rankings and KPIs are also featured.
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Key Business Ratios This link opens in a new windowMining information from the Dun & Bradstreet (now a subsidiary of Mergent, Inc.) database of financial information on 60 million+ companies from 209 countries around the world, Key Business Ratios (KBR) can be used to assess a firm's strengths and weaknesses relative to competing firms or an entire industry.
News and Business Journalism
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Flipster Digital Magazines This link opens in a new window
Digital newsstand that offers a browse-able access to popular magazines such as Bloomberg Businessweek, Forbes, Fortune, and The New Yorker.
Magazines can be downloaded to Android™ phones and tablets, Apple® phones and tablets, and Kindle Fire tablets for offline reading. -
Wall Street Journal This link opens in a new windowThe WSJ is considered the US's preeminent publication for business news and information on financial markets worldwide. Content available from 1984 - Current.
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The New York Times Academic Pass This link opens in a new windowThe Academic Pass provides access to NYTimes.com, NYTimes.com smartphone and tablet apps, and NYTimes In Education.
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ABI/INFORM Complete This link opens in a new windowBusiness related articles from journals as well as trade publications, dissertations, conference proceedings, market reports and wire feeds.
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ABI/INFORM Dateline This link opens in a new windowArticles and content from magazines, newspapers, and wire services covering local and regional business news about companies, local markets, employment opportunities, data on benefits and compensation, corporate strategies, etc.
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ABI/INFORM Global This link opens in a new windowArticles from domestic and international periodicals covering economics, current business conditions, management, marketing, advertising, etc. Provides information on 60,000+ companies with business and executive profiles.
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ABI/INFORM Trade & Industry This link opens in a new windowJournals and other sources ranging from current news to professional and academic journal articles covering the trends and history influencing important accounting, tax, banking, and financial issues of the day.
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U.S. Major Dailies This link opens in a new windowU.S. Major Dailies provides access to U.S. national and regional newspapers, including Chicago Tribune, Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times and The New York Times.
- Last Updated: Nov 25, 2025 11:57 AM
- URL: https://guides.iona.edu/businessresearch
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