what is form 10 k 
form 10 k is a comprehensive report filed annually by a publicly traded company about its financial performance and is required by the u s securities and exchange commission sec some of the information a company is required to document in the 10 k includes its history organizational structure financial statements earnings per share subsidiaries executive compensation and any other relevant data investopedia yurle villegasunderstanding form 10 kbecause of the depth and nature of the information they contain 10 ks are fairly long and tend to be complicated but investors need to understand that this is one of the most comprehensive and most important documents a public company can publish on a yearly basis the more information they can gather from the 10 k the more they can understand the company canadian companies will file sec form 40 f to provide this information the government requires companies to publish 10 k forms so investors have fundamental information about companies so they can make informed investment decisions this form gives a clearer picture of everything a company does and what kinds of risks it faces investors in the know are aware that 10 ks can also be retrieved by using the company search function through the sec s edgar database the 10 k includes five distinct sections a 10 k filing also includes signed letters from the company s chief executive officer and chief financial officer in it the executives swear under oath that the information included in the 10 k is accurate these letters became a requirement after several high profile cases involving accounting fraud following the dot com bust 10 k filings and deadlinesnotably 10 k filings are public information and readily available through a number of sources in fact the vast majority of companies include them in the investor relations section of their website the information included in a 10 k can be difficult to move through but the more familiar investors become with the layout and the type of information included it will likely become easier to identify the most important details filing deadlines for the 10 k vary based on the size of the company according to the sec companies with a public float shares issued to the public that are available to trade of 700 million or more must file their 10 k within 60 days after the end of their fiscal year companies with a float between 75 million and 700 million have 75 days while companies with less than 75 million in their float have 90 days purpose of form 10 kthe primary purpose of filing a form 10 k is to provide comprehensive transparent information about how a company is doing because this information is useful to a variety of people the sec requires certain information to be presented in a certain way at a very high level it s fair to say form 10 k s purpose can be broken down into the following five categories which slightly overlap but are more high level than the five categories listed above form 10 k is prescribed by the 1934 securities exchange act who files form 10 kform 10 k is required to be filed by all publicly traded companies in the united states this requirement applies to companies listed on u s stock exchanges such as the new york stock exchange the sec imposes this filing requirement to ensure transparency and accountability in the financial markets allowing investors and other stakeholders to access relevant information about the company s operations financial condition and performance the filing of form 10 k is not limited to large corporations it applies to companies of all sizes that meet the criteria for being publicly traded this includes both domestic and foreign companies whose securities are listed on u s exchanges or are registered with the sec additionally certain smaller reporting companies may file a streamlined version of the form 10 k known as form 10 ksb or form 10 kt note that in order to file this alternative version a company has to meet some eligibility requirements penalties for form 10 k noncompliancethere are penalties for not filing a form 10 k on time these penalties can vary depending on the severity of the violation and the circumstances surrounding the late filing in most cases companies pay a fee for non compliance failure to file required periodic reports can result in the loss of good standing with stock exchanges and other regulatory bodies this could lead to delisting from stock exchanges or temporary suspensions of 10 trading days in addition the sec may take legal and regulatory actions against companies that repeatedly fail to meet filing deadlines or comply with disclosure requirements these actions can include enforcement proceedings investigations fines and sanctions against the company its officers directors or other responsible parties on the softer side of the consequences late or incomplete filings can erode investor confidence and trust in the company s management investors may perceive delayed filings as a red flag indicating potential financial problems lack of transparency or poor internal controls there s little reason for a form 10 k to be filed late and investors may and probably should be curious about the reasons behind any non compliance limitations of form 10 kwhile form 10 k reports a wealth of useful information it does have its downsides these limitations include but aren t necessarily limited to forms 10 q vs form 8 kalong with the 10 k the sec requires that public companies regularly file forms 10 q and 8 k form 10 q must be submitted to the sec on a quarterly basis this form is a comprehensive report of a company s performance and includes relevant information about its financial position unlike the 10 k the information in the 10 q is usually unaudited the company is only required to file it three times a year as the 10 k is filed in the fourth quarter the form 8 k though is required by the sec whenever companies announce major events of which shareholders must be made aware these events may include but aren t limited to sales acquisitions delistings departures and elections of executives as well as changes in a company s status or control bankruptcies information about operations assets and any other relevant news form 10 k vs annual reportthe form 10 k and the annual report serve distinct purposes and cater to different audiences the form 10 k is a regulatory filing mandated by the sec on the other hand the annual report represents a broader communication tool utilized by companies to engage with a wider range of stakeholders while it may include form 10 k as its core financial and regulatory component the annual report often incorporates additional elements such as narrative descriptions graphics photos and other visually appealing features these elements aim to provide a more reader friendly and engaging format for shareholders employees customers and other stakeholders for example companies may have high quality photographs or graphic designs as part of the introduction to their annual report the intention is to make the annual report visually attractive to entice readership form 10 k is not meant to look nearly as pretty unlike the form 10 k which is subject to specific regulatory requirements and accounting standards the annual report is not bound by such constraints instead it allows companies greater flexibility in crafting a narrative that aligns with their objectives and corporate identity through the annual report companies seek to showcase their accomplishments company values and vision to stakeholders in many ways it s fair to call an annual report a marketing and communication tool whereas the form 10 k is much more of a regulatory compliance document 