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

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

Shares were up 15.8% when the market closed on Friday, marking the stock’s largest one-day percentage increase since SpaceX’s first full day as a public company on June 15, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026

“We are building AI compute capacity at scale faster than anyone else,” Musk said Tuesday on SpaceX’s first-ever quarterly call as a public company.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

A few illustrations will suffice: A man in public company wishing to give utterance to some particular opinion or sentiment, invariably finds the pipe or the pinch the best prompter.

From Nicotiana Or The Smoker's and Snuff-Taker's Companion by Henry James Meller