Learn · The glossary

Plain-English explainers for the filings that move stocks.

Insider buying, 13F holdings, Congressional disclosures, halal screens. The same filings the wire reads from, written up so you can read them too.

§ Filings

Filings

6 min read · Updated 2026-05-16

SEC Form 4: What insider transaction filings actually tell you

SEC Form 4 is the disclosure officers, directors, and 10% owners must file within 2 business days of trading their own company's stock. Here's how to read it.

7 min read · Updated 2026-05-16

13F filings: How to track Berkshire, Bridgewater, and the rest of the smart money

Form 13F is the quarterly long-only equity disclosure that funds managing $100M+ must file. Here's what's in it, what's not, and how to read fund moves.

5 min read · Updated 2026-05-16

10b5-1 plans: The legal way for insiders to sell on a schedule

Rule 10b5-1 lets corporate insiders sell stock on a pre-set schedule without violating insider-trading laws. Here's how the plans work and what's changed since 2023.

§ Politicians

Politicians

5 min read · Updated 2026-05-16

The STOCK Act: Why Congress members have to disclose their trades within 45 days

The STOCK Act of 2012 requires Members of Congress to disclose stock trades within 45 days. Here's the rule, the loopholes, and what the data actually looks like.

§ Halal

Halal

7 min read · Updated 2026-05-16

The AAOIFI halal stock screen: How financial ratios decide what's Sharia-compliant

AAOIFI defines the financial-ratio thresholds that determine whether a stock is halal: debt-to-assets, interest income, and cash-receivables ratios. Here's the rule set.

5 min read · Updated 2026-05-16

Halal screens vs ESG screens: What's the same, what's different, where they conflict

Halal stock screens and ESG screens both exclude tobacco, weapons, and gambling. But on debt, interest income, and oil & gas, they part ways. Here's the side-by-side.

§ Signals

Signals

6 min read · Updated 2026-05-16

The InsiderWire consensus score: How we combine insider, fund, and Congressional signals

InsiderWire's consensus score combines per-source quality weights, signal volume curves, recency decay, and cross-source bonuses into a single number. Here's the math.

5 min read · Updated 2026-05-16

Insider cluster buying: Why multiple executive purchases beat a single big buy

When multiple executives at the same company purchase stock within a tight window, it's called cluster buying. Here's why the academic literature treats it as a stronger signal than any single insider's buy.

Educational content. Not investment advice. InsiderWire aggregates publicly-available SEC and Congressional filings — past activity is not a guarantee of future returns. Consult a licensed advisor before acting on any signal.