Where to find and how to read a listed company's official filings
A map of the primary sources for an Indian listed company: exchange announcements, the company's investor relations page, the results statement, the annual report and what each contains.
Anyone can read the documents a listed company files. They are the original source for its numbers, more reliable than a summary written by someone else. This guide shows where to find them and what is in each.
At a glance
| Where | What you find | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| The company’s investor relations page | Results, presentations, annual reports, transcripts, policies | One place for a single company |
| Stock exchange announcements (BSE and NSE company pages) | Every disclosure the company makes, dated | Checking the date and the exact filing |
| The annual report | Full financial statements, notes, management discussion, auditor’s report | Depth |
| SEBI website | Rules, circulars, orders | The rules companies follow |
Listed companies must also disclose on their own websites, so the same document is usually available in two places.
The documents, and what each one is
Results statement. The formal filing of the quarter’s or year’s financial results, with the auditor’s report or limited review report. It is the definitive document. See our complete guide to quarterly results.
Press release and investor presentation. The company’s own summary, often with charts. Useful for context; it is the company’s presentation, not an independent one.
Earnings call transcript. Management’s remarks and answers to questions from analysts. Statements about the future here are the company’s, and should be attributed to it.
Shareholding pattern. Who holds the shares, by category (promoters, institutions, the public), filed every quarter.
Board meeting outcome and other announcements. Dividends, appointments, acquisitions and so on, each filed with a date.
Annual report. The most detailed document. Its main parts:
- Directors’ report / Board’s report: the year in words, dividends, risks.
- Management discussion and analysis (MD&A): management’s explanation of performance and outlook.
- Corporate governance report and, for large listed companies, a business responsibility and sustainability report.
- Financial statements and notes: the numbers and the accounting policies behind them.
- Independent auditor’s report: the auditor’s opinion, including matters they highlight.
How to read a filing with care
- Check the date and the period. Is it the quarter or the full year? Is it the latest version, or has it been revised?
- Standalone or consolidated? Both may be filed; they can differ a lot. See standalone versus consolidated.
- Read the notes. Changes in accounting policy, one-off items and related-party transactions are usually explained there.
- Read the auditor’s report. Look for anything the auditor highlights beyond the standard wording.
- Attribute. When you repeat something from a filing, say who said it: “the company said” rather than stating it as your own view.
Primary versus secondary sources
A primary source is the filing itself. A secondary source is anything that summarises it: a news article, a data website, a social post. Secondary sources are convenient but can contain errors or omit context. When a number matters, open the primary source.
Two habits that help
- Keep the link to the exact filing, with the date you read it.
- When two sources disagree, the company’s own filing decides, and a later revision replaces an earlier one.
Common questions
Is everything free to read? The results and announcements are public on the exchange and company sites. Some data providers charge for their compiled versions.
What if the company website and the exchange differ? Use the exchange filing and note the difference; the exchange copy carries a timestamp.
Where is the annual report? On the company’s investor relations page and in the exchange announcements, usually released before the annual general meeting.