10-K / 10-Q (SEC Filings)
The results reports U.S. listed companies must file with the SEC — the 10-K is annual (audited), the 10-Q is quarterly. The source of our financial data.
10-K = annual report (audited, most detailed) · 10-Q = quarterly report (each quarter, condensed)
Looking at how the "Risk Factors" section of the 10-K has changed from last year reveals what the company has newly begun to worry about (our analysis uses this to detect changes in risk).
In plain terms
In school terms, the 10-Q is the interim report card you get during the term, and the 10-K is the comprehensive report card after the school year ends. Only the comprehensive one gets checked once more by an outside teacher.
US-listed companies are required to report their results to the SEC (the US Securities and Exchange Commission). The detailed annual report filed once a year is the 10-K, and the shorter report filed each quarter is the 10-Q.
The 10-K is the most reliable document, audited by an accounting firm, and it covers the company's business, finances, and risks in the greatest detail. The 10-Q is the interim report that fills in the gaps each quarter.
There are three 10-Qs a year. Q4 is not filed separately — the 10-K covers it along with the full year, and only the 10-K is audited by an outside firm.
What it tells you
The 10-K and 10-Q are official documents the company files "under legal liability," so they carry higher credibility than press releases or earnings calls. Beyond revenue and profit, they include business risks (risk factors), litigation, and accounting policies.
The financial figures on our screens come straight from these filings (XBRL data on SEC EDGAR). That is what "Source: SEC 10-Q/10-K" refers to. So you are looking at the accounting-standard (GAAP) original rather than adjusted figures packaged by the company.
Formula
10-K = annual report (audited, most detailed) · 10-Q = quarterly report (each quarter, condensed) Filed with: SEC EDGAR (free for anyone to view)
What high or low means
Looking at how the "Risk Factors" section of the 10-K has changed from last year reveals what the company has newly begun to worry about (our analysis uses this to detect changes in risk).
By gathering the quarterly 10-Qs, you can build the latest one-year figures such as TTM (trailing twelve months).
The 10-K and 10-Q are vast and written in accounting and legal language, so reading them end to end is hard. That is why people usually pick out only the key parts (financial statements, risk factors, management's discussion) — our screens summarize and interpret those key parts for you in English.
Filings are accurate, but they describe what has "already happened." There is a lag before submission (several weeks after the quarter ends), so earnings calls and press releases sometimes deliver the latest situation first.
Even for the same item, companies differ slightly in where they record it, so a 1:1 comparison between companies can be off (that is why we standardize with XBRL tags before comparing).
Metrics to read alongside
Guides that cover this term
See it in real stocks
Search US stocks on Stocklore to see 10-K alongside the sector benchmark.
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.