Investor Alerts and Bulletins

The SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy is issuing this Investor Bulletin to help educate investors about SEC Forms 3, 4, and 5. The federal securities laws require certain individuals (such as officers, directors, and those that hold more than 10% of any class of a company’s securities, together we’ll call, “insiders”) to report purchases, sales, and holdings of their company’s securities by filing Forms 3, 4, and 5.

A company has just released its quarterly earnings. Another company has auditor news that could raise a red flag, and a third company is filing for bankruptcy. Where can you find more facts? Information about these events and many more are found in a document called a current report on Form 8-K.

If you want to follow or invest in a U.S. public company, you can find a wealth of information in the company’s annual report on Form 10-K. Among other things, the 10-K offers a detailed picture of a company’s business, the risks it faces, and the operating and financial results for the fiscal year. Company management also discusses its perspective on the business results and what is driving them.

Whether you separate after only a few years or retire with 20 plus, know the steps you can take to continue to build wealth throughout and after your military career.  Learn more at Investor.gov/military and DoD’s Financial Readiness website.

The SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy is issuing this Investor Bulletin to help educate investors regarding the margin rules that apply to day trading in a Regulation T margin account and to respond to a number of frequently asked questions we have received.

The SEC has recently experienced a significant uptick in tips, complaints, and referrals involving investment scams. The SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy urges investors to be on high alert in order to protect themselves and others from becoming victims of investment fraud. Fraudsters use times of uncertainty and change, such as the current COVID-19 pandemic, to lure victims into investment scams. Below are tips to help you recognize and avoid frauds like Ponzi schemes, fake CD scams, bogus stock promotions, and community-based financial scams.

The SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy (OIEA) wants to educate investors about investing in SPACs. You may have heard the term SPAC recently referred to in the financial or other news. 

The SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy is issuing this Investor Bulletin to help educate investors about investing in fractional shares. What are Fractional Shares? A fractional share is when you own less than one full share of a stock or other security.

The SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the National Futures Association (NFA), and the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) are issuing this Investor Bulletin to highlight key messages from World Investor Week 2020, a global campaign to raise awareness about the importance of investor education and protection.  From October 5-11, 2020, investors, investment professionals, teachers, parents, researchers, and others are encouraged to make a special ef

After a natural disaster strikes, fraudsters may try to take advantage of individuals who want to help fund recovery efforts or who receive lump sum insurance payouts. Fraudsters may use recent natural disasters, including Hurricane Laura, Hurricane Sally, and the wildfires on the West Coast, to lure victims into investment scams. These scams can take many forms.