13F Information Table: the eight columns
The 13F Information Table is the part of a Form 13F that actually lists the holdings. A Form 13F has three parts: the Cover Page, the Summary Page, and the 13F Information Table. Everything a reader wants from the filing, which security, how much of it, and who controls the vote, sits in the eight columns of that table. This guide walks through each column and the two rules that most often trip up people reading the numbers. It is not investment advice.
Definition
The 13F Information Table
is the holdings table on a Form 13F. It carries eight fixed columns: issuer, class, CUSIP with optional FIGI, market value, amount and type, investment discretion, other managers, and voting authority. Values are rounded to the nearest dollar. Source: SEC, Form 13F.
What are the eight columns of the 13F Information Table?
The SEC prescribes the table title, the column headings and the order, and managers are told not to add anything else to the table. The eight columns are:
| Column | Heading | What it holds |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Name of Issuer | The issuer name as it appears on the SEC's official 13F List |
| 2 | Title of Class | The class of security, again as it appears on the 13F List |
| 3 | CUSIP Number and FIGI | The 9-digit CUSIP, plus an optional 12-character share class level FIGI |
| 4 | Market Value | Fair market value at the close of the last trading day of the quarter |
| 5 | Amount and Type | Share count or principal amount, marked SH or PRN, with Put or Call where relevant |
| 6 | Investment Discretion | SOLE, DFND or OTR |
| 7 | Other Managers | The number assigned to any other manager sharing discretion |
| 8 | Voting Authority | Shares voted with sole, shared or no authority |
Columns 6 and 8 are the two most misread. See 13F investment discretion and 13F voting authority for how each is filled in.
Are 13F values in dollars or thousands?
In dollars, but only since 3 January 2023. The SEC's amendments adopted on 23 June 2022 simplified the rounding convention so that reported dollar values round to the nearest dollar, replacing the previous requirement to round to the nearest one thousand dollars. Anyone comparing a 2021 filing with a 2024 filing is comparing two different scales, and a naive read makes an older position look a thousand times smaller than it was.
3 January 2023
Date from which Form 13F values are rounded to the nearest dollar rather than the nearest thousand
Source: SEC Release No. 34-95148, 23 June 2022
The same amendments added the optional FIGI to Column 3 alongside the CUSIP. A FIGI in a 13F is the share class level identifier, not the exchange level one, so it will not match a venue-specific code. See what is a FIGI and FIGI vs CUSIP.
How is the market value measured?
Column 4 is the fair market value at the close of trading on the last trading day of the quarter, not the value on the day the filing goes out. That is a second date to keep track of, on top of the 45-day filing deadline covered in what is a 13F filing.
Options are reported only if the options themselves are Section 13(f) securities, and then Columns 1 to 5 and 7 to 8 describe the securities underlying the option rather than the option contract, with a Put or Call designation in Column 5. Written options are not reported at all, and short equity positions are never netted against a long holding in the same issuer.
What the Information Table leaves out
Two absences are prescribed rather than accidental. Small positions can be left out under the de minimis exemption, and holdings can be withheld under a confidential treatment request. Either way, a missing name is not evidence that a manager did not hold it.
Flock decodes the Information Table of every 13F-HR it reads, keeps each holding stamped with its period and filing date, and links back to the filing on SEC EDGAR. You can also track filers over time. What the numbers mean for your money is your call to make.
Frequently asked questions
What columns are in the 13F Information Table?
Eight, in a fixed order: name of issuer, title of class, CUSIP with an optional FIGI, market value, amount and type of security, investment discretion, other managers, and voting authority split into sole, shared and none. Source: SEC, Form 13F Special Instruction 11.
Are 13F values in dollars or thousands?
Dollars. Since 3 January 2023 managers round the value to the nearest US dollar. Before that date the same column was rounded to the nearest thousand dollars, so filings either side of the change are on different scales. Source: SEC Release No. 34-95148, 23 June 2022.
Does the Information Table show short positions?
No. Form 13F reports long positions in Section 13(f) securities. Short equity positions and written options are not reported and are not netted against a long position in the same issuer. Source: SEC, Form 13F FAQs.
Where do I find the Information Table in a filing?
It is the third part of a Form 13F, after the Cover Page and the Summary Page, and it starts on its own page. On EDGAR it is filed as a separate information-table document alongside the primary document. Source: SEC, Form 13F Special Instruction 11.
Flock tracks these filings, sourced, dated, and linked back to the original. See what smart-money entities disclosed, without the guesswork about what it means.
Disclosures shown are public regulatory filings. Data may be delayed or incomplete. Smart-money entities may no longer hold positions shown. Not investment advice.