8-K is the market’s emergency notification system. While the 10-K and 10-Q follow predictable schedules, an 8-K appears when something significant changes—good or bad—and investors need to know right away.
Companies file an 8-K for all kinds of major events: leadership changes, mergers, layoffs, bankruptcy warnings, product recalls, data breaches, or sudden financial surprises. The goal is transparency. Instead of waiting months for the next report, the SEC requires companies to share important updates within just four business days.
What makes the 8-K so valuable is its immediacy. The language is often blunt and factual, revealing shifts companies may not have planned to talk about yet. Traders watch 8-K filings closely because they can move markets quickly—sometimes within minutes of being released.
8-K filings matter because they alert investors to breaking developments that could affect a company’s value. They provide crucial context between regular earnings cycles and help traders react to new risks or opportunities.
Companies must file an 8-K when a major event occurs, such as executive departures, acquisitions, bankruptcies, legal issues, or major financial changes. The purpose is to give investors fast, factual updates.
Most 8-K events must be reported within four business days. This strict timeline ensures the market gets timely and fair access to important information.
Imagine a company’s CEO unexpectedly resigns. Instead of waiting for the next 10-Q, the company files an 8-K explaining what happened. That filing hits the SEC website, investors see the news instantly, and the stock reacts within minutes.
FinFeedAPI’s SEC API lets you pull 8-K filings the moment they appear in EDGAR. Developers use this to build alerting tools, automated research workflows, and dashboards that track breaking company events without manual searching.
