SEC Is Revamping Earnings Season. Will Companies Really Ditch Quarterly Reports?

The SEC is hoping to make quarterly earnings reports a little less … well, quarterly.

Comments are due Monday on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s proposed rule changes to allow public companies to report financial results semiannually. The agency said it could reduce short-termism, in which companies focus on near-term goals rather than long-term objectives. While it may be a worthy aim, the concept of less frequent reporting has struck a nerve in both the investment management industry and the general public. The SEC received roughly 37,000 submissions so far. In addition to pre-written campaign letters, there are also hundreds of individually drafted comments coming from asset managers, law firms, trade associations, academics, investor advocates and good-governance groups. 

The irony is that what seems like a seismic shift may turn out to be a tempest in a teacup, according to Jason Moser, senior analyst at Motley Fool. “I honestly think most companies will appreciate the flexibility to do semiannual reporting, but the vast majority would still continue with quarterly reporting,” Moser told Advisor Upside. “It’s what Wall Street has come to expect, and it’s frankly not that burdensome on companies, especially now that AI can help you produce earnings reports at the click of a button.”

For and Against

Supporters of semiannual reporting argue that quarterly reports encourage an excessive focus on short-term earnings, while increasing compliance costs and even potentially discouraging companies from remaining public. Supporters likewise emphasize that the proposal is optional, not mandatory, and companies could continue filing quarterly reports if investors demand them. Writing in favor of the proposal, Commissioner Mark Uyeda emphasized that point, saying the framework should allow market participants to select the optimal reporting period for their business.

“Issuers will select a reporting period, and investors and market intermediaries will signal whether such period aligns with their expectations,” Uyeda said. There will still be robust reporting rules, he added:

• Companies will continue to communicate important information through means other than the quarterly Form 10-Q.
• They will also remain subject to requirements to file Form 8-K for certain material events.

Opponents, who include Moser and the Motley Fool, worry that Main Street investors could receive less timely information compared with institutional investors, who already possess alternative data sources. They also fear increased volatility between reporting periods and weaker corporate accountability. “Think about how much has happened in the first six months of 2026 with politics, tariffs and the war in Iran,” Moser said. “Nike just got a billion-dollar tariff refund, which we may not have known about.”

Will the SEC Heed? Nobody has a crystal ball, but Moser’s sense from conversations with other analysts and stakeholders like Better Markets, a consumer advocacy group focused on investment industry fairness and transparency, is that the SEC intends to implement the proposal “more or less as is.”