Investing term

What is Annual report?

The yearly disclosure that includes audited financials, MD&A, and footnotes — the primary source for serious investors.

An annual report is a company's yearly disclosure to shareholders, containing audited financial statements, management's discussion of the business (MD&A), and the footnotes where the real detail hides. For anyone evaluating a stock seriously, it's the primary source — far more reliable than headlines or summaries, because the audited numbers and footnotes are legally accountable.

For example

The footnotes of an annual report often reveal a looming debt repayment or a lawsuit that never makes it into the cheerful summary at the front.

Annual report is taught hands-on in Stage 14 — Reading Financial Statements.

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Related terms

Accounts receivable (A/R)Money customers owe the company for goods or services already delivered but not yet paid.AccrualsAccounting entries that record revenue or expense before cash actually moves.Balance sheetThe 'photo' statement — what the company owns, what it owes, and what's left for owners, on a single date.Capital expenditures (CapEx)Money spent on long-lived assets — buildings, equipment, software, improvements.
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