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Private-company statements describe profit, financial position and cash movements, but access usually comes through an authorized company relationship. Learn what to request, how to preserve confidentiality and how to compare prepared statements across matching periods.
Private company financial statements show business profit, financial position and cash movements, but access usually comes through an authorized relationship with the company. Obtain the prepared statement package, establish how it may be used, and compare the same entity, accounting basis and reporting duration. A useful review explains what changed without treating missing information as zero or assuming the statements carry an audit opinion.
A procurement team reviewing a supplier, a finance team evaluating a business partner or a company reviewing its own results may have a legitimate reason to request statements. The practical starting point is the company's designated finance contact, who can confirm what information is available and who may receive it.
Do not assume every US company has financial statements on EDGAR. The SEC explains that it does not hold information about all companies: some offering circumstances require financial disclosures, while others may involve only a notice filing. A search result showing an entity or notice is not evidence that a full annual statement package is available.
For a company that does publish periodic SEC reports, follow the separate public company financial statements workflow. For a privately supplied package, record its sender, version and permitted purpose alongside the reporting period. A company directory entry or a business estimate is not a substitute for the prepared statements you requested.
Ask for the income statement, balance sheet, cash flow statement, statement of changes in equity and accompanying notes, as available under the stated reporting framework. Request any accountant's report with them. If a component is missing, label it unavailable and ask for clarification; do not reconstruct an apparently complete package from unsupported assumptions.
| Information to request | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Legal entity and consolidation scope | Establishes which business the numbers describe |
| Period start and end dates | Separates annual, monthly and cumulative activity |
| Currency and reporting units | Prevents dollars from being mixed with thousands |
| Reporting basis and policy notes | Identifies differences in recognition and measurement |
| Final or draft status and version | Prevents comparisons between inconsistent close versions |
| Accountant's report, if present | Establishes what service and assurance accompany the statements |
Read the report rather than inferring assurance from the accountant's name. The AICPA's explanation of compilations, reviews and audits distinguishes no assurance in a compilation, limited assurance in a review, and high but not absolute assurance in an audit. Keep that distinction with the analysis when sharing conclusions.
The controller or finance lead should own the reporting basis and finalized figures. The business reviewer owns the comparison question: for example, whether revenue growth is accompanied by operating profit and cash generation. Preparing financial statements covers the upstream accounting workflow; analysis should begin with the completed reports.
Consider an illustrative US manufacturer, Westbridge Components. Its authorized finance contact supplies finalized statements for two fiscal years ending December 31, using the same entity scope and accounting basis. The following selected lines are in USD and are not a complete disclosure package.
| Statement line | FY2024 (USD) | FY2025 (USD) |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | 5,000,000 | 5,500,000 |
| Cost of goods sold | 3,200,000 | 3,685,000 |
| Gross profit | 1,800,000 | 1,815,000 |
| Operating expenses | 1,200,000 | 1,320,000 |
| Operating income | 600,000 | 495,000 |
| Net income | 400,000 | 300,000 |
| Operating cash flow | 440,000 | 220,000 |
| Investing cash flow | -200,000 | -300,000 |
| Financing cash flow | -100,000 | 120,000 |
| Beginning cash | 360,000 | 500,000 |
| Ending cash | 500,000 | 540,000 |
| Total assets | 3,000,000 | 3,400,000 |
| Total liabilities | 1,800,000 | 2,000,000 |
| Total equity | 1,200,000 | 1,400,000 |
Use the same definitions in both years:
Revenue growth = (Current revenue − Prior revenue) / Prior revenue
Operating margin = Operating income / Revenue
Change in cash = Operating cash flow + Investing cash flow + Financing cash flow
Revenue grew by $500,000, or 10.0%: ($5,500,000 minus $5,000,000) divided by $5,000,000. Gross margin fell from 36.0% to 33.0%, while operating margin fell from 12.0% to 9.0%. Percentages are shown to one decimal place, calculated from the unrounded dollar inputs.
Operating cash flow fell by 50.0%, from $440,000 to $220,000. That deserves attention alongside sales growth. Ending cash nevertheless increased by $40,000 because $220,000 minus $300,000 plus $120,000 equals $40,000. The positive financing line means cash stability alone does not establish that operations funded the investment spending.
These comparisons identify questions for management. Ask what changed in product costs, pricing, collections and inventory commitments. Do not declare a cause from a ratio alone. The definitions in financial KPIs help keep repeated reviews consistent; interim financial statements explains how to handle a partial-year package.
The current balance sheet ties: $3,400,000 of assets equals $2,000,000 of liabilities plus $1,400,000 of equity. Cash also ties: $500,000 beginning cash plus the $40,000 net increase equals $540,000 ending cash. The prior-year cash check is $360,000 plus $440,000 minus $200,000 minus $100,000, which equals $500,000.
Suppose the supplied cash flow schedule contains this complete current-year operating reconciliation:
| Reconciliation line | Effect on operating cash flow (USD) |
|---|---|
| Net income | 300,000 |
| Depreciation added back | 120,000 |
| Increase in receivables | -150,000 |
| Increase in inventory | -100,000 |
| Increase in operating payables | 50,000 |
| Operating cash flow | 220,000 |
The rows sum to $220,000. Receivables and inventory absorbed cash, while depreciation was noncash and increased payables supplied cash. This supports a working-capital discussion with finance and operations. It does not establish whether the receivables are collectible or whether the inventory can be sold; those questions need supporting records.
Bring a prepared workbook or Google Sheet that you are authorized to upload; Covirage maps the columns, and its tools compute period changes, margins and checks between supplied totals. The external AI model explains the result with every figure traced to its rows. Create a free Covirage account and bring a sample of your own data after confirming its permitted use.
See Covirage for finance teams for related reporting work.
Often they are not. Some companies have public disclosures because of particular reporting or offering circumstances, but there is no complete public statement source for every private business. Ask the company's authorized finance contact for the specific statements needed for your business review.
No. A compilation, a review and an audit provide different levels of assurance. Read the report to identify the service actually performed. A spreadsheet analysis of the supplied figures does not change that service or provide an additional accountant's opinion.
Only after identifying and resolving the relevant differences. Revenue timing, expense recognition and balance sheet treatment may differ. Keep the stated reporting basis with each period and ask the preparer for an appropriate reconciliation rather than assuming identical labels mean identical accounting.
Confirm authorization through the company's designated contact and your own organization's approved process. Receiving a statement for one purpose does not automatically establish permission to upload or redistribute it. Resolve the permitted purpose, recipients and handling conditions before bringing the file into an analysis tool.