What are SEC Filings?
SEC filings are financial statementsThree Financial StatementsThe three financial statements are the income statement, the balance sheet, and the statement of cash flows. These three core statements are intricately, periodic reports, and other formal documents that public companies, broker-dealers, and insiders are required to submit to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The SEC was created in the 1930s with an aim to curb stockStockWhat is a stock? An individual who owns stock in a company is called a shareholder and is eligible to claim part of the company’s residual assets and earnings (should the company ever be dissolved). The terms "stock", "shares", and "equity" are used interchangeably. manipulation and fraud that was taking place among companies. The regulatory body collects financial and operational information of publicly traded domestic and foreign companies.
The SEC verifies the information contained in the submitted SEC forms to ensure that it meets the set standards. Most of the SEC filings are made available to the public through the SEC online database – EDGAR (the Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval system).
Importance of SEC filings
By making it mandatory for publicly traded companies to make SEC filings, the US government enables investors to review a company’s history and forecast future performance. Investors and finance professionals rely on these filings to get reliable information about companies that they are evaluating for investment purposesInvestment MethodsThis guide and overview of investment methods outlines they main ways investors try to make money and manage risk in capital markets. An investment is any asset or instrument purchased with the intention of selling it for a price higher than the purchase price at some future point in time (capital gains), or with the hope that the asset will directly bring in income (such as rental income or dividends).. This helps investors to make informed investment decisions when planning to sell, buy, or hold a company’s securities.
SEC Filings Available to Investors
The most common SEC formsTypes of SEC FilingsThe US SEC makes it mandatory for publicly traded companies to submit different types of SEC filings, forms include 10-K, 10-Q, S-1, S-4, see examples. If you are a serious investor or finance professional, knowing and being able to interpret the various types of SEC filings will help you in making informed investment decisions. that companies must file include:
- 10-K10-KForm 10-K is a detailed annual report that is required to be submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The filing provides a comprehensive summary of a company’s performance for the year. It is more detailed than the annual report that is sent to shareholders
- 10-Q
- 8-K
Form 10-K is the annual report issued by a firm at the end of its fiscal year. It includes a detailed summary of the company’s results for the year, risk factors, management discussions,What is MD&A?The Management Discussions and Analysis (MD&A) is a section of the annual report or SEC filing 10-K that provides an overview of how the company performed in the prior period, its current financial condition, and management's future projections. analysis of financial condition, and the details of all the annual financial statements.
The 10-Q form presents a summary of the company’s operations by quarter, mainly the first three-quarters of the year. It includes the main financial statements, analysis of financial condition, and risk factors. However, the financial statements submitted with Form 10-Q are not required to be audited, and are, therefore, considered less reliable.
Companies use Form 8-K to report unscheduled events or corporate changes that could be of importance to shareholders, the SEC, lenders, and investors. The report comprises material events such as the resignation of a director, an acquisition, bankruptcy, disposal of assets, or other important events.
Where to Find SEC Filings
SEC filings are available online at the official SEC website, www.sec.gov. Also, most of the publicly traded companies that submit SEC filings to the regulatory body also publish the reports on their websites, under the “investor relations” tab. However, some of the SEC filings are kept confidential and, therefore, are not publicly available. Obtaining the available SEC forms and interpreting them correctly can help investors make timely investment decisions.
Additional resources
Thank you for reading CFI’s guide to SEC filings. To enhance your financial knowledge, see the following free CFI resources.
- 3 financial statementsHow the 3 Financial Statements are LinkedHow are the 3 financial statements linked together? We explain how to link the 3 financial statements together for financial modeling and valuation in Excel. Connections of net income & retained earnings, PP&E, depreciation and amortization, capital expenditures, working capital, financing activities, and cash balance
- Accounting guidesAccountingOur Accounting guides and resources are self-study guides to learn accounting and finance at your own pace. Browse hundreds of guides and resources.
- Audited financial statementsAudited Financial StatementsPublic companies are obligated by law to ensure that their financial statements are audited by a registered CPA. The purpose of the independent audit is to provide assurance that the management has presented financial statements that are free from material error. Audited financial statements help decision makers
- 10-K10-KForm 10-K is a detailed annual report that is required to be submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The filing provides a comprehensive summary of a company’s performance for the year. It is more detailed than the annual report that is sent to shareholders
