10-K Reading Checklist
A beginner-friendly checklist for reading an annual report.
Business overview
Start with the business overview. Identify products, customers, segments, geography, and how the company says it makes money.
Risk factors
Scan for risks that are specific, repeated, newly added, or connected to revenue, operations, debt, regulation, or competition.
Management discussion and analysis
Use MD&A to understand how management explains the year. Compare the explanation with the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement.
Financial statements
Review the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement together. Each statement answers a different question about the business.
Legal proceedings
Legal proceedings can highlight disputes, regulatory matters, or other issues that may affect the company. Read them as context, not automatic conclusions.
Segment information
Segment reporting can show which parts of the business are growing, profitable, or under pressure.
What changed from previous filings
Compare key language and metrics with prior filings. New risk language, changed segment commentary, or different MD&A emphasis can be useful research prompts.
How stokr can help
stokr helps summarize annual filing information and organize it into plain-English research sections.
stokr provides informational research tools only and does not provide financial advice.