A public company, publicly traded company, publicly held company or public limited company (in the United Kingdom) is a limited liability company that offers its securities (stock/shares, bonds/loans, etc.) for sale to the general public, typically through a stock exchange, or through market makers operating in over the counter markets. Public companies, including public limited companies, can be either unlisted or listed on a stock exchange depending on their size and local legislation.
Public companies are not to be confused with Government-owned corporations – also known as publicly owned companies – which are also sometimes called public companies.
Read more about Public Company: Securities of A Public Company, General Trend, Privatization, Trading and Valuation
Famous quotes containing the words public and/or company:
“When in public poetry should take off its clothes and wave to the nearest person in sight; it should be seen in the company of thieves and lovers rather than that of journalists and publishers.”
—Brian Patten (b. 1946)
“Mrs. Mirvan says we are not to walk in [St. James’s] Park again next Sunday ... because there is better company in Kensington Gardens; but really, if you had seen how every body was dressed, you would not think that possible.”
—Frances Burney (1752–1840)