10-K / 10-Q (SEC Filings)
The earnings reports US-listed companies must file with the SEC — the 10-K is annual (audited), the 10-Q quarterly. The source of our financial data.
In plain terms
US-listed companies are required to report results to the SEC (the US Securities and Exchange Commission). The detailed annual report filed once a year is the 10-K; the abbreviated report filed each quarter is the 10-Q.
The 10-K, audited by an accounting firm, is the most trustworthy source and holds the most detail on a company's business, finances, and risks. The 10-Q is the interim report that fills in the gaps each quarter.
What it tells you
The 10-K and 10-Q are official documents a company files "under legal liability," so they are more reliable than press releases or earnings calls. They contain not just revenue and profit but business risks (risk factors), litigation, and accounting policies.
The financial numbers on our screen come from exactly these filings (the XBRL data on SEC EDGAR). That is what "Source: SEC 10-Q/10-K" refers to. So you are seeing the accounting-standard (GAAP) originals, not a company's dressed-up adjusted figures.
Formula
10-K = annual report (audited, most detailed) · 10-Q = quarterly report (each quarter, abbreviated) filed at: SEC EDGAR (free for anyone to read)
What high or low means
Looking at how the 10-K's "Risk Factors" section changed from last year reveals what the company has newly begun to worry about (our risk-change detection draws on this).
Gathering the quarterly 10-Qs lets you build the latest one-year figures, like TTM (trailing twelve months).
The 10-K and 10-Q are vast and written in accounting and legal jargon, so reading them cover to cover is hard. So it is normal to pick out just the essentials (financial statements, risk factors, management discussion) — our screen summarizes and interprets those essentials.
Filings are accurate but "already past" information. There is a lag before filing (weeks after quarter-end), so earnings calls and press releases sometimes convey the very latest situation first.
Even the same item is recorded a bit differently by each company, so company-to-company 1:1 comparison needs caution (this is why we standardize with XBRL tags to compare).
Metrics to read alongside
See it in real stocks
Search US stocks on Stocklore to see 10-K and other financial metrics alongside the sector average.
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.