Searching EDGAR and Using 10-K Reports

10-K Reports are annual reports all domestic publicly held companies (with stock to trade) must file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). These reports are public information, and provide a comprehensive overview of the business. Their purpose is to inform investors and potential investors of the true financial and operating condition of the company and to inform their investing decisions.
10-K reports contain a wealth of useful information in addition to the financial data.

Searching EDGAR for 10-K Reports

1. Visit the SEC Web site at: http://www.sec.gov/edgar/searchedgar/webusers.htm

2. Select the tutorial if you need further assistance in using EDGAR.

3. Otherwise, select "Companies & Other Filers."

4. In the first box of the search form, type in the company's name.
   HINTS:
   1. Do NOT type in more than 20 characters (letters, numbers, and spaces count);
   2. The search is not case sensitive (you can use any mix of capitals and lower case letters);
   3. If a search yields no results, try variant forms of the name (e.g. "sherwin williams" instead of "sherwin-williams").

5. Leave the other boxes empty, but click on the radio button to exclude ownership forms

6. Click on the Find Companies button to perform the search.

7. From the search results list, select your company by clicking on the CIK number.

8. Scan down the list of reports and select the 10-K report. Open it by clicking on the link for the html version. (opening the text version will display the source code for the html version. It is very hard to read.) If the list is too long to scan easily, fill in the box in the upper right of the screen to limit the list to 10-K reports only. To do this:
   1. In the box labeled Form Type, enter 10-K
   2. Leave the date box empty
   3. Click on the Retrieve Filings button
   4. You will retrieve a list of all 10-K reports on file, with the most recent at the top of the list.

9. In the html version, open Document 1 to see the main body of the 10-K report. The other documents are appendices.

Using 10-K Reports for Non-financial Purposes

1. Once you have opened the 10-K report, scroll through the first few screens to reach the Table of Contents.
   Note: Most, but not all, 10-K reports have a table of contents. For those that do not have one, the "Business" section is usually the first section of the report. You will have to scan the report to find other useful sections.

2. Note where to find the description of the "Business," "Properties," "Legal Proceedings," and any other useful items. Usually these are in the body of the report near the beginning, not in the appendices.

3. In these sections, look for:
   • the full corporate name;
   • major activities or line of business;
   • recent acquisitions or sales of operating units;
   • subsidiaries;
   • where the company conducts business;
   • factors influencing business operations;
   • "Forward-Looking Information" - plans for the near future;
   • properties and locations; and
   • legal proceedings against the company.

4. Other potentially useful sections deal with pension plans and stock options for employees, etc.

5. To capture the data, download it or e-mail the report to yourself, then edit the report to delete the sections you don't need. Warning: These files are VERY LARGE! Printing is not recommended, as you will have to print more than you need to get what is useful. Edit the material first, and then print what you want.

6. To do another search, use "back" to return to the search results list, then click on EDGAR Search Home at the very top of the page to reach the search screen.