public company

noun

, British.

1. a company that has more than 50 shareholders and whose shares are offered for public subscription.

public company

noun

1. a limited company whose shares may be purchased by the public and traded freely on the open market and whose share capital is not less than a statutory minimum; public limited company Compare private company

public company

1. A company that sells shares in itself to the public to raise capital . When a previously privately owned company offers shares, it is said to “go public.”

Example Sentences

They don’t produce income like bonds, and their prices can’t be pegged to liquid markets like those of public company securities.

From Los Angeles Times

About 80% of public company stock in the United States is owned by institutional investors, most of which have one objective: to maximize profits, largely in the short term and without regard to the costs for society.

From Los Angeles Times

It issues all the disclosures required of a public company in the U.S., but anyone reading them would be well advised to open a window first.

From Los Angeles Times

It just reported a quarterly profit, barely for the first time as a public company, something it achieved by drastically shaving its “customer acquisition cost.”

From Slate

It amounts to a corporate ransoming by Musk against a public company, to the benefit of Musk and the private holders of his other businesses.

From Slate