How to Track Corporate Earnings Filings and SEC Submissions

Why Tracking Filings Matters

Public companies file dozens of documents with the SEC annually. Beyond the well-known 10-K and 10-Q reports, there are 8-K filings for material events, proxy statements, insider trading disclosures, and more. Staying on top of these filings gives investors timely access to information that moves stock prices.

Many investors wait for news coverage of earnings results. But by the time CNBC reports on a filing, professional investors have already acted. Learning to track filings directly puts you closer to the primary source.

Understanding SEC Filing Types

Primary Financial Filings

**Form 10-K**: The annual report containing audited financial statements, comprehensive business description, and risk factors. Filed within 60-90 days of fiscal year end (depending on company size).

**Form 10-Q**: Quarterly update with reviewed (not audited) financial statements. Filed within 40-45 days of quarter end. Covers the first three quarters; the fourth quarter is included in the 10-K.

**Form 8-K**: Current report for material events—earnings announcements, executive changes, acquisitions, guidance updates, and more. Filed within four business days of the event.

Ownership and Insider Filings

**Form 4**: Insider transactions. When executives or directors buy or sell stock, Form 4 must be filed within two business days. Tracking these reveals when insiders are adding or reducing positions.

**Form 13F**: Institutional holdings. Hedge funds and institutions managing over $100 million must disclose holdings quarterly. These filings show what professional investors own.

**Schedule 13D/13G**: Significant ownership disclosures. Required when an investor acquires more than 5% of a company. Often signals activist interest.

Corporate Governance Filings

**DEF 14A (Proxy Statement)**: Annual proxy filing containing executive compensation, board nominations, and shareholder proposals. Essential for governance analysis.

Using SEC EDGAR Effectively

EDGAR (Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval) is the SEC's free filing database. Every public company filing since 1996 is available at sec.gov/edgar.

Basic Search

Enter a company name or ticker to find all filings. The default view shows recent filings chronologically. Use the filing type filter to narrow to specific forms (10-K, 10-Q, 8-K, etc.).

Full-Text Search

EDGAR's full-text search lets you find specific terms across all filings. Search for phrases like "material weakness" or "going concern" to identify companies with accounting issues.

Company Filing Pages

Each company has a dedicated EDGAR page showing all historical filings. Bookmark the pages for companies you follow closely for quick access.

RSS Feeds

EDGAR offers RSS feeds for company filings. Add these to your RSS reader for real-time notification when new documents appear.

Setting Up a Filing Monitoring System

Method 1: SEC Email Alerts

The SEC offers free email alerts for company filings. Visit sec.gov/edgar/searchedgar/companysearch.html, find your company, and subscribe to notifications.

Limitation: Slight delays and basic formatting. But free and reliable.

Method 2: Financial Data Providers

Services like Bloomberg Terminal, FactSet, and Refinitiv offer integrated SEC filing access with better formatting and faster delivery. Essential for professionals but expensive for individual investors.

Method 3: Third-Party Tracking Tools

Several free and low-cost tools monitor SEC filings:

• **Last10K.com**: Clean presentation of annual and quarterly reports
• **Bamsec.com**: Full-text search and watchlist functionality
• **WhaleWisdom.com**: 13F filing aggregation for institutional ownership tracking

Method 4: API Access

For technical users, the SEC offers free EDGAR API access. Build custom monitoring with direct data access. Requires programming knowledge but offers maximum flexibility.

Building an Earnings Calendar

Tracking when companies report results helps you prepare analysis in advance.

Key Calendar Sources

• **Nasdaq Earnings Calendar**: Free, comprehensive listing of upcoming earnings dates
• **Yahoo Finance Earnings Calendar**: Easy filtering by date and sector
• **Seeking Alpha**: Earnings calendar with analyst estimate tracking
• **Company Investor Relations**: Most accurate source for specific companies

Creating Your Watchlist Calendar

For your portfolio and watchlist companies:

1. Note fiscal year end (determines 10-K timing)
2. Record historical earnings announcement dates (patterns often repeat)
3. Set reminders 1-2 weeks before expected announcements
4. Block time for filing review on announcement days

What to Monitor Beyond Scheduled Filings

8-K Filings

These "current reports" announce material events between quarterly filings. Set alerts for 8-K filings from companies you follow. Common 8-K triggers:

• Earnings announcements and guidance updates
• Executive departures or appointments
• Acquisition or divestiture announcements
• Debt issuances or refinancing
• Material contract wins or losses
• Litigation developments

Insider Transactions

Form 4 filings reveal insider buying and selling. While selling is often routine (executives diversifying), insider buying is typically a positive signal—executives are using their own money based on inside knowledge of company prospects.

Institutional Ownership Changes

Quarterly 13F filings show institutional positions. Watch for:

• New positions from respected investors
• Increased stakes suggesting conviction
• Exits by long-term holders
• Concentrated ownership changes

Analyzing Filings Efficiently

Reading every filing in full is impractical. Develop a triage approach:

For Quarterly Filings (10-Q)

1. Check key financial metrics against expectations
2. Read MD&A for management commentary on results
3. Scan risk factors for new additions
4. Review cash flow statement for quality of earnings

For Annual Filings (10-K)

1. Compare to prior year 10-K for changes
2. Read auditor opinion for any qualifications
3. Examine footnotes for accounting policy changes
4. Review executive compensation for incentive alignment

For 8-K Filings

1. Read immediately—these contain time-sensitive information
2. Assess materiality of disclosed events
3. Consider market reaction implications

Visualizing Filing Data with Sankify

Raw filing data is dense. Sankify transforms SEC financial data into visual Sankey diagrams, making pattern recognition faster. Instead of manually calculating margins and flows from tabular data, you see the business structure immediately.

For investors monitoring multiple companies, visualization accelerates the analysis process. A glance at a Sankey diagram reveals more than minutes of spreadsheet work.

Building Your Research Workflow

Consistent monitoring beats occasional deep dives. Establish a sustainable routine:

• **Daily**: Review 8-K filings from watchlist companies
• **Weekly**: Check for Form 4 insider transactions
• **Quarterly**: Analyze 10-Q filings as they're released
• **Annually**: Deep dive into 10-K reports and proxy statements

The SEC filing system makes corporate disclosure freely available. The investors who use it systematically maintain an information advantage over those who rely solely on media coverage and third-party analysis.