A printed annual report is usually a saddle stitched or perfect bound book on coated stock, printed once the audited numbers are final and timed to the proxy mailing. Public companies that hold an annual meeting to elect directors must send shareholders an annual report with or before the proxy statement. Under the SEC's notice-and-access rule, many can post those materials online and mail paper only to shareholders who ask for it.
That rule changes how many copies to print more than anything else, so it is where planning starts.
Is the annual report the same as the 10-K?
Not necessarily. The 10-K is the report filed with the SEC. The annual report to shareholders is what the SEC's investor bulletin calls a document that sometimes appears as a "colorful, glossy publication", and it notes that some companies simply send their 10-K as the annual report. The bulletin is How to Read a 10-K.
In print that gives you three common formats:
- A designed annual report: a full-color book with a letter to shareholders, photography and highlights, plus the financial statements.
- A 10-K wrap: a printed cover, and often a shareholder letter, wrapped around the filed 10-K. Cheaper and faster, because most of the pages are the filing itself.
- The 10-K alone, printed and bound, for companies that send it as the annual report.
SEC Rule 14a-3 requires the annual report to accompany or precede the proxy statement for a meeting where directors are elected, and says the report "may be in any form deemed suitable by management". The text is at 17 CFR 240.14a-3. Registered investment companies are carved out of that paragraph and follow their own rules. Your securities counsel decides what has to go in the report; the format is yours.
How many annual reports should we print?
Print for the delivery method you are using. A company that mails a full set of proxy materials to every holder needs a copy for each, while a company using notice-and-access needs enough for paper requests, the meeting itself and investor relations.
| Delivery method | What shareholders receive | Print planning |
|---|---|---|
| Full set delivery | Paper proxy statement, annual report and proxy card | One copy per holder on the mailing list, plus spares |
| Notice and access | A notice of internet availability, sent at least 40 calendar days before the meeting | A smaller run, with reserve stock for paper requests |
| Paper on request | A paper copy, free of charge, sent within three business days of the request | Keep copies on hand, or plan a short digital reprint |
| Meeting and investor relations | Copies at the meeting, for investors, analysts and recruiting | Add to either run; easy to reprint later |
The timing and request rules are in 17 CFR 240.14a-16. The three-business-day turnaround on requests is where short-run digital printing earns its place: rather than guessing a large reserve, a company can hold a modest stock and reprint quickly. Our digital vs offset guide explains where the cost lines cross.
How should an annual report be printed and bound?
Bind by page count. Saddle stitching suits reports up to about 64 pages, and perfect binding gives longer reports a flat, printed spine. A 10-K wrap is often long enough to need perfect binding even when the designed pages are few.
- Text: 80lb or 100lb gloss or matte. Matte is easier to read on pages that are mostly tables; gloss suits photography.
- Cover: 100lb cover or 12pt, with soft touch laminate, gloss laminate or spot UV. Foil or embossing on the cover for a milestone year.
- Spine: if perfect bound, we calculate spine width from the final page count and stock before the cover is designed.
- Mailing: a booklet envelope that opens on the long side, usually 9 x 12 or 10 x 13, which mails as a flat. Sizes are in our envelope size guide.
The binding choices themselves, including why saddle stitch needs multiples of four pages, are covered in our booklet binding comparison.
On annual reports the late change is almost always in the financial section, after the auditors sign off, and it is rarely the same length as what it replaces. Two extra pages in a saddle stitched book means four, because the count has to stay a multiple of four. In a perfect bound book it changes the spine width, and a cover already printed will not fit. Agree a final page count with your team before the cover is approved, and keep a blank or notes page in reserve that can absorb a late change.
What do prospectuses, fact sheets, memoranda and board books need?
Each investor document has a different job, and the print choices follow from it. A pitch book has to win a meeting. A fact sheet will be replaced next month.
| Document | What it is | How it is usually printed |
|---|---|---|
| Prospectus | Long-form offering document | Lightweight text stock to keep a long document manageable, bound to suit the page count |
| Investor presentation | Deck for an investor day, roadshow or update | Full color with laminated covers and custom tab dividers |
| Fund fact sheet | Short summary of a fund's performance and holdings | Short runs, monthly or quarterly, reprinted as the figures change |
| Offering memorandum | Confidential information memorandum for a private transaction | Bound to deal-team standard, with confidentiality legends and numbered copies |
| Board book | Packet sent to directors before a board meeting | Numbered, confidential, collated and bound to order, often with tabs |
| Compliance booklet | Regulatory and disclosure document | Saddle stitched, in bulk or short run |
Fund fact sheets
A fact sheet is out of date the day the next month's numbers arrive, so print what will be handed out before then and no more. Keep the layout fixed and change only the figures and the as-of date, so each update is a file swap and a short digital run rather than a new design.
Offering memoranda and board books
Both go to a known list of people, so number every copy and keep a record of who received which number. Board materials change up to the last day, so confirm the final versions before collating, and ask for tab dividers if directors will be flipping between sections during the meeting.
Investor presentations
Investor decks share most of their production with pitch books: wire-o binding to lie flat, mylar-reinforced tabs, laminated covers and a physical proof to check chart colors. Our pitch book printing guide covers those details, so they are not repeated here.
How is confidential financial material handled?
Deal and investor material is handled as confidential by default. Files are not retained beyond the job, documents can be printed with confidentiality or privilege legends applied throughout, and if your firm needs a signed confidentiality agreement before sending files, ask and we will supply one.
Deal schedules are tight, and overnight production is common on financial work. Tell us the meeting time rather than the delivery time and we will build the schedule backward from it. Delivery is free anywhere in Manhattan.
Annual report printing questions
Do public companies still have to print annual reports?
Not always. A company soliciting proxies for an annual meeting that elects directors must furnish an annual report, but under the SEC's notice-and-access rule it can post the materials online and send a notice instead. A shareholder who requests a paper copy must then be sent one free of charge within three business days.
What is the difference between a 10-K and an annual report?
The 10-K is the report filed with the SEC. The annual report to shareholders overlaps with it but is often a designed, glossy publication, and some companies send the 10-K itself as their annual report.
What is a 10-K wrap?
A printed cover, often with a shareholder letter, wrapped around the filed 10-K. It costs less than a fully designed report because most of the pages are the filing.
What binding is best for an annual report?
Saddle stitch for reports up to about 64 pages, perfect binding for longer ones. Perfect binding gives a flat spine that can carry the company name and year.
How often should fund fact sheets be printed?
As often as the figures change, usually monthly or quarterly, in short runs sized to what will be handed out before the next update.
See our financial and legal printing services, or send your page count, quantity and meeting date and we will tell you whether the schedule holds.
Need this printed? We are at 40 Wall Street, and we deliver free anywhere in Manhattan.