Public Limited Company

A public limited company (PLC) is the legal designation of a limited liability company which has offered shares to the general public and has limited liability.

The main advantages of a being public limited company are:

• Better access to capital – i.e. raising share capital from existing and new investors
• Liquidity – shareholders can buy and sell their shares (if they are quoted on a stock exchange
• Value of shares – the value of the firm is shown by the market capitalisation (based on the share price)
• The opportunity to more easily make acquisitions – e.g. by offering shares to the shareholders of the target firm
• To give a company a more prestigious profile