Form 10-Q
Form 10-Q is the formal quarterly report a public company files with the SEC for each fiscal quarter except the fourth. It contains complete unaudited financial statements, management's discussion and analysis, and updates to risk factors.
How to read it
Compared with the earnings press release, the 10-Q is both more complete and more restrained: no promotional language, plus a full cash flow statement, segment data and notes on accounting policies.
The 10-Q carries structured XBRL data in which every number has a standard tag and can be read directly by software. It is the basis for verifying the numbers in the press release.
The filing deadline is 40 days after the quarter ends (for large companies). Many companies file on the same day as the press release or a few days later.
Common pitfalls
- The 10-Q is unaudited. Only the financial statements in the annual 10-K are audited.
On FinDog
On FinDog, the 8-K press release and the 10-Q for the same quarter are merged into a single period: the earnings analysis is built mainly on the press release, and once the 10-Q arrives its XBRL data is used to fill gaps and verify the numbers.
See it on a stock page →Related terms
- Form 8-KForm 8-K is the current report a public company files with the SEC when a material event occurs, and it must be filed within four business days of the event. Quarterly earnings press releases are published as exhibits to an 8-K.
- Form 10-KForm 10-K is the annual report a public company files after each fiscal year ends. It contains audited financial statements and the most complete description available of the business, its competition and its risk factors.
- MD&AMD&A is a standard section of the 10-Q and 10-K in which management explains in words why the period's results changed: which businesses grew, which costs rose, how cash flow and capital spending are being managed, and what risks it sees.
- XBRLXBRL is a standard format for tagging financial data. The SEC requires public companies to attach a standardized tag to every financial number in their 10-Qs and 10-Ks so that machines can read and compare them directly.