How to read a Form 4, box by box

Section 16 reporting persons generally disclose reportable ownership transactions on Form 4 by the end of the second business day after the transaction, subject to the applicable exceptions. The form covers more than purchases and sales, and every Form 4 has the same anatomy: a header that says who traded and what their relationship to the company is, Table I for common-stock transactions, Table II for options and other derivatives, and footnotes, where the caveats are. A simple filing takes a minute to read. Joint ownership, amendments and linked derivative transactions can take several documents to untangle.

This guide follows the boxes as they are laid out on the SEC's blank Form 4, and then reads a real filing from EDGAR line by line. If you have a filing open in another tab, the section headings below map to what is in front of you.

The header: who, where, and in what capacity

The top of the form identifies the reporting person, the issuer and its ticker, and the date of the earliest transaction being reported. The most important header element is the relationship checkbox group: Director, Officer (give title below), 10% Owner, and Other. They record the person's reporting capacity. A job title is context. It says nothing about why they traded or what the stock does next.

The checkboxes are not exclusive, which trips people up. A CEO who also sits on the board has both Director and Officer checked. Read all four boxes, not the first one that is ticked.

Since the amendments adopted in Release 33-11138, "Insider Trading Arrangements and Related Disclosures", the form also carries a dedicated checkbox indicating the trade was made under a pre-scheduled Rule 10b5-1 plan, with the plan's adoption date noted in the "Explanation of Responses." The indication concerns an arrangement intended to satisfy the rule's affirmative-defense conditions. An unchecked or absent indication does not prove discretionary timing. Follow the footnote references to identify which rows a plan statement covers.