Importance of the Annual Report

In a recent Annual Report Survey conducted by WithumSmith+Brown, three-out-of-four participants agreed that the annual report is the single most important publication a public company produces. The study included over one hundred individual investors, portfolio managers and securities analysts. Nearly 79% of all survey participants agreed that annual reports are an important tool in making investment decisions about companies. And, 90% of all participants agreed that annual reports should contain additional information facing the company and its industry, such as sustainability of the environment or corporate governance, and not just the company’s financial and shareholder issues. In addition, 81% of all participants prefer a printed annual report versus one in an electronic format.