Canadian Publicly Traded Firms
15.1 Identify top three competitors.
15.2 To what degree are these other employers true competitors? Do they actually supply the same product or service?
15.3 What are the percentages of the industry that your target firm and each of its major competitors control?
15.4 Is one of these firms emerging as a leader?
For the same reason we need to understand the industry in which your firm operates, we need to identify their direct competitors. This identification of a peer group is important for comparison, as well as seeing where your target firm fits in terms of its competitors.
Firms often identify competitors or peer groups in their The Annual Information Form available from SEDAR as well in their annual report and on their web page. Once you find your target firm on Yahoo Finance, you can select the “competitors” tab which both identifies major competitors and provides some basic financial information on each. Industry publications will be invaluable in identifying industry leaders, percentage of market share and where your target firm is in relation to its competitors.
When evaluating competitors, it is important to identify if they are true competitors. Do they actually produce the same product mix and have similar clients or customers?
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The Datamonitor Report from Business Source Complete (you will need to select Business Source Complete from the list)provides information on competitors. Look under “company profiles” for the Datamonitor report. Mergent Market Atlas has excellent information on competitors.