Learn
Learn to read US companies
The terms, filings and traps you meet when you look at a US-listed company, in plain English, each tied to real SEC filings.
- 3filing walk-throughs
- 7traps explained
- 5companies as live examples
Learning paths
A few pages in a set order, each one building on the last. Your progress is kept in this browser only.
Learning path · 8 steps
Read a US company's filings, from earnings to insiders
The SEC filings behind US stock pages: earnings releases, adjusted numbers, stock pay, fiscal years, proxies, share classes and insider trades.
34 min in all
Learning path · 4 steps
Read a US IPO filing: the S-1, share classes and lock-ups
How a US company's IPO registration statement is laid out, how its share classes split the votes, and what its lock-up agreements cover.
21 min in all
How to read a filing
Real SEC filings, walked through part by part, with notes on what each line means.
How to read
How to read a proxy statement (DEF 14A): Nvidia's 2026 proxy
A part-by-part walk through Nvidia's 2026 proxy statement of May 12, 2026: proposals, vote rules, the board, executive pay, ownership and results.
Governance · 5 min read
How to read
How to read a US earnings release: Nvidia's Q2 fiscal 2027
A part-by-part walk through Nvidia's Q2 fiscal 2027 earnings release of Aug 26, 2026: GAAP and non-GAAP tables, outlook and the reconciliation.
Reading results · 5 min read
How to read
How to read an S-1: Anthropic's IPO registration statement
A section-by-section walk through Anthropic's Form S-1 of Oct 26, 2026: cover, summary, risk factors, use of proceeds, dilution, share classes, lock-ups.
Filings and announcements · 7 min read
Traps first-time investors meet
US-specific things that catch new investors out, explained from SEC and exchange rules.
Know the trap
Dual-class shares: when votes and ownership don't match
How US companies give some shares more votes, where the 10-K, proxy and S-1 show it, and what a Nasdaq controlled company is: Meta, SpaceX, Anthropic.
Ownership · 4 min read
Know the trap
Fiscal years that don't end in December: Nvidia's FY2027 explained
Why Nvidia's fiscal 2027 runs to January 2027, how US companies name fiscal years and quarters, what a 53-week year is, and how Cityfort labels periods.
Basics · 3 min read
Know the trap
Form 4 insider filings: who files, the codes and the footnotes
How to read a Form 4: who must file it, the two-business-day deadline, transaction codes such as P, S, A, F, G and M, footnotes, and finding them on EDGAR.
Filings and announcements · 4 min read
Know the trap
IPO lock-up agreements: what they are and when they end
What an IPO lock-up is, where an S-1 describes it, how Rules 144 and 701 apply once it ends, and the lock-up terms in five S-1s Cityfort covers.
Ownership · 6 min read
Know the trap
Non-GAAP measures: what a company's "adjusted" numbers leave out
Adjusted EPS, adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow explained: what SEC Regulation G and Item 10(e) require, with Nvidia, Tesla and Meta reconciliations.
Reading results · 4 min read
Know the trap
Rule 10b5-1 trading plans: how insiders pre-schedule their trades
What a Rule 10b5-1 plan is, the SEC's Dec 2022 changes (cooling-off, certifications, the Form 4 box) and where 10-Qs list plans, with Nvidia and Tesla.
Governance · 5 min read
Know the trap
Stock-based compensation and dilution: pay that becomes shares
What stock-based pay is, where it shows in the income and cash flow statements, and how diluted EPS counts the extra shares, with Nvidia, Meta, Tesla.
Reading results · 4 min read