Primary Document
In the SEC world, a primary document is the core filing investors and regulators rely on. It contains the original information straight from the company, not a summary or interpretation.
These documents are filed directly with the SEC and follow strict rules about format, timing, and content. That makes them consistent and easier to compare across companies.
Examples include annual reports, quarterly updates, and event-driven disclosures. When people talk about “checking the filing,” they usually mean reviewing the primary document itself.
Why It Matters
Primary documents are the most reliable source of company information. They help investors, analysts, and regulators understand what a company is actually reporting, not what others say about it.
Why are primary documents considered more reliable than summaries?
Primary documents come directly from the company and are legally required to be accurate. They are reviewed under SEC rules, which reduces the risk of missing or altered information. Summaries may leave out details or reflect someone else’s interpretation. When accuracy matters, the primary document is the safest source.
Which SEC filings are treated as primary documents?
Forms like 10-K, 10-Q, 8-K, S-1, and DEF 14A are all primary documents. Each one serves a specific purpose, such as reporting earnings, major events, or offering details. They are time-stamped and publicly available through the SEC. This makes them easy to verify and track over time.
How do primary documents affect investment decisions?
Investors use primary documents to evaluate financial health, risks, and strategy. Numbers, disclosures, and management commentary all come from these filings. Decisions based on primary documents rely on original data, not headlines. That reduces surprises when new information is released.
Real-World Example
An investor wants to understand why a company’s stock dropped suddenly. Instead of reading news articles, they open the company’s latest 8-K primary document and see a disclosed leadership change that explains the reaction.
Primary Document and FinFeedAPI
FinFeedAPI’s SEC API provides direct access to primary documents as soon as they are filed. This makes it easier to track official disclosures without manually searching EDGAR. Developers and analysts can pull filings in a structured way and focus on the original source of truth.