public company

American  

noun

British.

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

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public company British  

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

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public company Cultural  

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.”

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

public company

CXMT, the Chinese memory-chip producer, on Friday reported its first financials as a public company that showed that how much it is benefiting from the surge in artificial-intelligence services lifting prices.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 28, 2026

As I reported at the time of the Intel investment, the government’s taking an equity stake in a public company isn’t unprecedented.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026

Elon Musk’s first earnings call for SpaceX as a public company was notable for its grand ambitions.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026

Staying on as an investor in a public company means being subject to the whims of the stock market.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

He looked as though he did not take his salary from the public company, whose servant he was, for a sinecure.

From The Idiot by Eva M. Martin