Financial Statement Basics

20-F / 6-K (Foreign Issuer Filings)

Form 20-F / Form 6-K (Foreign Private Issuer)

At a glance

The filings a foreign company listed in the U.S. submits instead of the 10-K and 10-Q — the 20-F annually and the 6-K as events arise, with no quarterly reporting requirement.

Foreign Private Issuer → 20-F (annual) · 6-K (as needed)

If the accounting standard is IFRS, item names and calculation methods differ from US GAAP.

In plain terms

A company listed on a U.S. exchange but headquartered outside the U.S. files different documents. It submits a 20-F once a year, and a 6-K in between whenever there is something to report.

The biggest difference is quarterly reporting. U.S. companies must file a 10-Q each quarter, but foreign private issuers have no such obligation. Many report only semi-annually, following their home-country rules.

What it tells you

If a stock's quarterly figures are late or missing altogether, this is usually why. It isn't that the data couldn't be obtained — that company simply isn't subject to quarterly reporting.

A 20-F also contains items not found in U.S. company filings. Risks arising from home-country circumstances, such as the local regulatory environment, exchange rates, or capital controls, may be described separately.

Formula

Foreign Private Issuer → 20-F (annual) · 6-K (as needed)
Unlike the 10-K and 10-Q of U.S. companies, there is no quarterly reporting requirement
Accounting standards may be either US GAAP or IFRS

What high or low means

If the accounting standard is IFRS, item names and calculation methods differ from US GAAP. Even a familiar line like operating income can differ in what it includes.

The 20-F filing deadline is four months after the fiscal year ends. That is more time than for the 10-K, so at the same point in time a foreign private issuer's figures may be older.

Caution

A company that files only a 20-F does not disclose quarterly results at all. So «no quarterly results visible» does not mean data is missing — it is that company's reporting cycle.

Unlike the 8-K, the 6-K does not sort «what happened» into numbered items. So it is hard to know the content until you open the title.

When placing a company side by side with a US company, check first whether the accounting standards and reporting cycles match, so things do not get out of line.

Some Canadian companies use another form called the 40-F. That is because the US and Canada have a separate arrangement for recognizing each other's filings.

Metrics to read alongside

10-K / 10-Q (SEC Filings)

If the 10-K and 10-Q are the periodic reports of US companies, the 20-F and 6-K are their counterparts for foreign private issuers. Depending on which forms a company files, the cycle on which data appears differs.

ADR (American Depositary Receipt)

Foreign company shares traded on US markets usually take the form of ADRs. The filings those companies make are the 20-F and 6-K, so the two are the same company seen from a different side.

Risk Factors

The 20-F also has a risk factors section, but its structure and wording differ from the 10-K. So comparing year to year does not line up as neatly as it does for US companies.

See it in real stocks

Search US stocks on Stocklore to see 20-F alongside the sector benchmark.

CEG Constellation Energy Corporation EXR Extra Space Storage, Inc.LION Lionsgate Studios Corp.ONON On Holding AG STE STERIS plc YUM Yum! Brands, Inc.Search stocks →

Exactly how Stocklore computes this metric (formula, thresholds, SEC source) is on the methodology page.

This explanation is for information and reference only and is not a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Investment decisions and their consequences are your own.