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How to find a deal's terms in public filings

Announced deal values and the amounts actually paid are often different. Public filings let readers check both, and EDGAR full text search makes them easy to find.

• EDGAR full text search covers all EDGAR filings submitted electronically since 2001, including exhibits. Putting a phrase in quotation marks finds the words in that exact order, and results can be filtered by date range and filing type.¹
• The announcement press release is usually attached to an 8-K as Exhibit 99.1. Twitter's April 2022 release, filed this way, described the Musk deal as approximately USD 44 billion.²
• The closing 8-K or the next quarterly report gives what was actually paid. Facebook announced WhatsApp at about USD 16 billion plus restricted stock units, and its closing 8-K reported 177,760,669 shares and about USD 4.59 billion in cash.^3,4
• Quarterly reports record the purchase price used in the accounts. Facebook announced Instagram at about USD 1 billion, while its 10-Q recorded a total purchase price of USD 521 million at completion.^5,6
• When a deal fails, the termination agreement is often filed too. Adobe's 8-K of December 2023 attached the Figma termination agreement and stated the USD 1 billion fee.⁷

Sources

1. US Securities and Exchange Commission, EDGAR Full Text Search frequently asked questions (28 October 2026)
2. Twitter Inc. via SEC EDGAR, Elon Musk to Acquire Twitter (Exhibit 99.1) (25 April 2022)
3. Meta Platforms Investor Relations, Facebook to Acquire WhatsApp (19 February 2014)
4. US Securities and Exchange Commission (EDGAR), Facebook Inc. Form 8-K, closing of WhatsApp acquisition (6 October 2014)
5. Meta Newsroom, Facebook to Acquire Instagram (9 April 2012)
6. US Securities and Exchange Commission (EDGAR), Facebook Inc. Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 30 September 2012 (24 October 2012)
7. US Securities and Exchange Commission (EDGAR), Adobe Inc. Form 8-K, termination of Figma merger agreement (18 December 2023)