Questions and terms

Answers about the data, the reports and buying. The glossary at the bottom defines every term used across the site.

Questions

About the data

Is this legal?
Yes. 13F filings are public documents published by the SEC. Institutions are required by law to file them, and anyone can read them. We use nothing that isn't public.
Where does the data come from?
Holdings, share counts and disclosed values come from SEC filings. Sector, industry, geography and market data come from market data providers, and are labelled separately in every report. The original filing is always the source of truth. More on sourcing →
How current is it?
The SEC gives institutions 45 days after each quarter ends to file. That deadline is theirs, not ours. Every report describes a quarter that has already closed. Source: SEC Form 13F FAQ ↗.
What does a 13F not show?
Long positions in US-listed stocks and a few related securities. No short positions, bonds, cash, commodities, private holdings, or most non-US securities. It does not show what a position cost or when it was bought, only what was held on the last day of the quarter. Only managers with at least $100 million in these securities must file (SEC Form 13F FAQ ↗), and some positions can be withheld under a confidentiality request.
Can I check the numbers myself?
Yes. Every 13F is public on SEC EDGAR ↗. Each report names the institutions and the quarter it covers, so any figure can be traced to the original filing.
Why don't reports show today's price?
Holdings are a snapshot of the last day of the quarter. A live price beside them would mix two dates and invite a figure that means nothing. Reports show two closing prices instead, each labelled with its date: the price on the last day of the quarter, the same date as the holdings, and the price at the most recent month-end. Disclosed values always come from the filing, never from these prices.
How often are prices updated?
The quarter-end price is fixed once the quarter closes. The month-end price is updated once a month. Both are closing prices on the last trading day, as it traded that day, not restated for later stock splits or dividends. Neither is a live quote. A report you have downloaded does not change afterwards, so the date printed beside each price is the date it refers to.
Why can a report's total differ from the filing's total?
Reports count stocks only. Options and ETFs are left out, and so are the few lines in a filing that cannot be matched to a listed company. Each report states how much of the disclosed value this leaves out.

About the reports

What do I get?
A PDF. When the full data is too long to print, Stock and Investor reports also come with an Excel workbook holding every row.
How do I receive it?
Download it immediately after payment.
Which stocks and investors are available?
The catalogue covers widely held stocks and the institutions most people look for. Its holdings are published once a quarter, after the SEC filing deadline. Prices are updated once a month. See the reports →
What if the one I want isn't listed?
Tell us and we will look at adding it. Request a report →
Is a "Banks" report about bank stocks?
No. An Investor Type report is about the investors. "Banks" means banks doing the investing, and the report shows everything they own, across every sector.
Who decides which group an investor belongs to?
Where the SEC has assigned an industry code, we use it: Banks, Broker-Dealers and Insurance are grouped this way. Many investment firms have no code, so Large Active Investment Managers and Hedge Funds are grouped by HoldingsLens, from the firm's name and a reviewed list of large firms. Every report states which basis it uses.
Do you tell me what to buy?
No. We report what institutions filed. What it means is yours to decide. HoldingsLens gives no advice or recommendations.

About buying

What does it cost?
$15 for a Stock report, $24 for an Investor report, $30 for an Investor Type report. Two reports, 10% off. Three or more, 15% off. Refreshing a report you already own next quarter, 20% off. Prices in USD.
Can I get a refund?
No. Reports download immediately after payment, so all sales are final. At checkout you are asked to agree to immediate delivery, which under EU consumer law ends the 14-day withdrawal period. If a file is corrupted or won't open, email us and we'll fix it.
Do I need an account?
No. Pay and download. No sign-up, no subscription.
Terms

Glossary

13F filing
A quarterly report that managers holding at least $100 million in US-listed stocks must file with the SEC, listing what they held at quarter end. Public, and free to read.
Holdings
The stocks an investor owns.
Investor
A firm that files a 13F: a fund, bank, insurer, pension fund or hedge fund.
Investor type
What kind of business an investor is: a bank, a broker-dealer, an insurer. Taken from the SEC's industry code where one exists.
Investment style
How an investor invests: index or passive, active manager, hedge fund, bank or trust, insurance or pension. A HoldingsLens classification, not an SEC one.
Quarter
A three-month period. Filings are due after each one ends: 31 March, 30 June, 30 September, 31 December.
Sector
A broad group of related industries. Technology, Healthcare, Finance.
SEC
The US Securities and Exchange Commission. It requires large investors to file their holdings quarterly.

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HoldingsLens compiles data from public institutional investment filings (SEC Form 13F). It does not constitute financial advice, investment recommendations, or a solicitation to buy or sell any security. Past holdings do not predict future performance. All investment decisions remain the sole responsibility of the user.