Our Sources — Verified SEC Data

📄 Form 4 — Statement of Changes in Beneficial Ownership

The Form 4 is the document every insider must file with the SEC within 2 business days of a transaction involving their company's stock.

What it contains: insider name, role, transaction date, type (buy/sell/option exercise), number of shares, price, total value, and post-transaction holdings.

How we use it: Form 4 is WhaleSentiment's primary data source. Every transaction on our platform comes from a verified Form 4. We collect filings daily via the EDGAR API.

⚠️ Form 144 — Notice of Proposed Sale of Securities

A notice of intent to sell. Filed when an insider plans to sell restricted securities within the next 90 days. This is a leading indicator that very few competitors track.

How we use it: this is our "killer feature." We display Form 144 filings as separate alerts because they precede the actual sale — giving investors a genuine informational edge.

📊 XBRL Company Facts — Structured Financial Data

Company financials in a machine-readable format. Over 600 financial metrics per company: revenue, net income, EPS, debt, cash flow, and more.

How we use it: we contextualize insider transactions with fundamental data. A CEO selling after a record quarter is a very different signal than a sale after a profit warning.

🏦 Form 13F — Institutional Holdings

Quarterly holdings of institutional managers with over $100M in assets (hedge funds, pension funds, banks). A complete list of equity positions.

How we use it: we compare insider activity with institutional activity. Insiders buying + institutions accumulating = strong signal.

🎯 Form 13D/13G — Beneficial Ownership >5%

Filed when an investor crosses the 5% ownership threshold in a company. 13D = activist (intends to influence management). 13G = passive investor.

How we use it: we identify "whales" with significant positions. Useful for tracking activist campaigns and potential takeover activity.