# Investing guides > Plain-English guides to the filings, events and data that move stocks: SEC forms, insider trading, analyst ratings, FDA catalysts, earnings, dividends and more. Source: https://www.quantisnow.com/guides ## SEC filings - [How to read SEC filings: a practical guide to EDGAR and the forms that move stocks](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/how-to-read-sec-filings.md): A plain-English guide to SEC filings: what each major form is, when it is due, where to find it on EDGAR, and which filings tend to matter most to investors. - [Form 8-K explained: every item number that matters to investors](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/form-8-k-explained.md): What a Form 8-K is, when it is due, and what each key item number means, from 1.01 material agreements and 2.02 earnings to 4.02 restatements and 5.02 executive changes. - [Form 10-K vs 10-Q: annual and quarterly reports explained](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/form-10-k-vs-10-q.md): The difference between a 10-K and a 10-Q: what each report contains, filing deadlines by company size, audited vs reviewed financials, and which sections to read first. - [Schedule 13D vs 13G: what 5% ownership filings tell you](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/schedule-13d-vs-13g.md): Schedule 13D vs 13G explained: who must file when crossing 5% ownership, the 2024 deadlines, how activists differ from passive holders, and what Item 4 reveals. - [Form S-1 and IPO filings: how to read a registration statement](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/form-s-1-and-ipo-filings.md): What a Form S-1 is, how the IPO filing sequence works from confidential draft to 424B4 final prospectus, and which S-1 sections reveal valuation, dilution and risk. - [Shelf offerings and dilution: how to read S-3s, 424B supplements, ATMs and warrants](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/shelf-offerings-and-dilution.md): How shelf registrations, 424B prospectus supplements, at-the-market programs and warrants work, and how to spot share dilution in SEC filings before it hits the stock. - [Proxy statements (DEF 14A) explained: executive pay, board votes and shareholder proposals](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/proxy-statements-def-14a.md): What a DEF 14A proxy statement is, when it is filed, how to read executive pay and voting proposals, and which proxy items signal dilution, governance fights or deals. ## Insiders and institutions - [Form 4 explained: how to read insider trading filings](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/form-4-insider-trading-explained.md): Form 4 is the SEC filing that discloses when officers, directors and 10% owners buy or sell company stock, due within 2 business days. Learn every key field and code. - [How to track insider buying and judge the signal](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/how-to-track-insider-buying.md): Insider buying is tracked through SEC Form 4 code P filings. Learn how to find open-market purchases, spot cluster buys and judge which insider trades carry real signal. - [Form 13F explained: how to read institutional holdings filings](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/form-13f-institutional-holdings.md): What Form 13F is, which investment managers must file, the 45-day deadline, what 13F holdings include and leave out, and how to read institutional positions. - [Form 144 explained: what a notice of proposed sale tells you about insider selling](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/form-144-explained.md): What Form 144 is, who must file it under Rule 144, the 5,000 share or $50,000 threshold, how it differs from Form 4, and how to read a proposed insider sale. ## Trading the news - [Trading news catalysts: how news moves stock prices](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/trading-news-catalysts.md): A news catalyst is an event like earnings, an FDA ruling or a merger that makes a stock reprice. Learn how fast prices react, why stocks sell the news and how halts work. - [Analyst upgrades and downgrades: ratings, price targets and initiations](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/analyst-upgrades-and-downgrades.md): An analyst upgrade or downgrade is a change in a sell-side analyst's stock rating. Learn what Buy, Hold and Sell mean, how price targets work and which changes matter. - [Press releases vs SEC filings: where company news first appears](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/press-releases-vs-sec-filings.md): Companies publish news through wire press releases and SEC filings like the 8-K. Learn how Reg FD links them, which comes first and what Items 2.02, 7.01 and 8.01 mean. - [Mergers and acquisitions news: how to read a deal announcement](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/mergers-and-acquisitions-news.md): M&A news covers deals where one company agrees to buy another. Learn what a definitive agreement, tender offer, go-shop and merger arbitrage spread mean. - [How to build a stock news watchlist that catches what matters](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/building-a-news-watchlist.md): A news watchlist is a set of tickers paired with filters and alerts for the events that move them. Learn how to choose tickers, pick event types and keep alerts useful. ## Earnings and dividends - [How to read an earnings report: revenue, EPS, guidance and the 8-K](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/how-to-read-an-earnings-report.md): An earnings report is a company's quarterly results release, usually filed under 8-K Item 2.02. Learn how to read revenue, EPS, margins, guidance and the 10-Q. - [Earnings season calendar: when companies report, BMO vs AMC, and guidance](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/earnings-season-calendar.md): Earnings season starts about two weeks after each quarter ends and runs roughly six weeks. Learn the timing, BMO and AMC releases, whisper numbers and guidance. - [Dividend dates explained: declaration, ex-dividend, record and payment dates](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/dividend-dates-explained.md): To receive a dividend you must own the stock before the ex-dividend date. Under T+1 settlement the ex-date now usually falls on the record date itself. - [Stock splits and corporate actions: splits, reverse splits, spin-offs, buybacks and ticker changes](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/stock-splits-and-corporate-actions.md): Corporate actions change a company's shares or structure without a trade by you. Learn how stock splits, reverse splits, spin-offs, buybacks and ticker changes work. ## Biotech and FDA - [FDA approval process: IND, NDA and BLA, priority review, CRLs and accelerated approval](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/fda-approval-process.md): A new drug needs an IND to start human trials and an approved NDA or BLA to be sold. Learn each FDA step, review timelines, expedited programs and what a CRL means. - [PDUFA dates explained: what an FDA goal date is and how to track it](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/pdufa-dates-explained.md): A PDUFA date is the FDA's target date to act on a drug or biologic application. Learn how it is calculated, why it can move, and what happens on the day. - [Clinical trial phases explained: Phase 1, 2, 3 and 4 for investors](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/clinical-trial-phases.md): Clinical trials run in phases. Phase 1 tests safety in 20 to 100 people, Phase 2 tests efficacy in up to several hundred, and Phase 3 confirms results in 300 to 3,000. ## Market structure - [Short volume vs short interest: what FINRA data actually tells you](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/short-volume-vs-short-interest.md): Short volume counts shares sold short each day; short interest counts positions still open on a settlement date. Learn how FINRA publishes each and how to read them. - [The IPO lifecycle: from S-1 filing to lockup expiration](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/ipo-lifecycle.md): An IPO moves from a confidential S-1 to pricing, first trade, analyst initiations about 25 days later and lockup expiry around day 180. Here is what each stage means. - [Stock exchanges explained: NYSE, Nasdaq tiers, OTC and delisting](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/stock-exchanges-explained.md): US stocks trade on exchanges like the NYSE and Nasdaq or over the counter. Learn the Nasdaq tiers, the $1 minimum bid rule, deficiency notices and how delisting works. - [Options chain basics: calls, puts, implied volatility and open interest](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/options-chain-basics.md): An options chain lists every call and put for a stock by strike and expiration. Learn to read bid, ask, volume, open interest, implied volatility and earnings IV crush. - [Sectors and industries: how stocks are classified with GICS, SIC and NAICS](https://www.quantisnow.com/guides/sectors-and-industries.md): Sectors are broad groups of companies and industries are narrower groups within them. Learn how GICS, SEC SIC codes and NAICS classify stocks and why it matters.