Form 13F is a quarterly report filed, per United States Securities and Exchange Commission regulations,[1] by "institutional investment managers" with control over $100M in assets to the SEC, listing all equity assets under management.
[5] In 2015, the New York Stock Exchange and the National Investor Relations Institute submitted a petition to the SEC supporting a requirement for disclosure of short positions on Form 13F.
So, for example, for positions held as of the end of December, Form 13F must be filed by February 14 (if it is not a Saturday, Sunday, or holiday).
Both the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) designation and the CFA Institute make special mention of 13F-based analysis for due diligence and monitoring of investment managers, as well as investment-idea-generation.
Absent access to privileged access to manager holdings, Form 13F provides a baseline level of data with which to analyze investment manager exposures, performance attribution, and associated risks.