Earnings Press Release Template and Statistics (2026)
By the PR Gun Research desk. Updated November 1, 2026.
An earnings press release is long, legal and timed to the market. In PR Gun's 2026 analysis of 2,706 earnings releases published January 1 to October 31, 2026, the median release ran 2,819 words under a 68-character headline, and 83.5% carried a forward-looking statements disclaimer. On the five wires with reliable timestamps, 48.3% of 2,160 timed earnings releases went out before the 9:30 a.m. Eastern market open and 40.3% at 4 p.m. or later. Thursday was the busiest day.
Key numbers
- PR Gun's database holds 2,706 earnings releases published January 1 to October 31, 2026, plus 1,978 notices announcing an upcoming earnings date or call.
- In PR Gun's 2026 analysis of 2,706 earnings releases, the median release ran 2,819 words, and the middle half ran 1,419 to 4,435 words. Financial tables count toward that length.
- The median earnings headline ran 68 characters, and the middle half ran 54 to 91. That's shorter than the 94-character median for other business releases.
- 83.5% of earnings releases carried a forward-looking statements disclaimer, against 10.5% of other releases.
- 62.7% showed a phone number, 57.6% a labeled media or investor contact, and 30.6% an email address visible in the published text.
- 65.0% included an attributed quote.
- On the five wires with reliable timestamps, 48.3% of 2,160 timed earnings releases went out before 9:30 a.m. Eastern and 40.3% at 4 p.m. or later. The 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. hour alone carried 30.7%.
- Thursday carried 30.9% of timed earnings releases and Wednesday 26.5%. Only 0.5% went out on a weekend.
How long is an earnings press release?
Far longer than other releases. The median earnings release ran 2,819 words, more than four times the 632-word median for other business releases. Financial tables, non-GAAP reconciliations and safe-harbor text are published as part of the release, so they count toward that length.
| Release group | Releases | Words, 25th pct | Median words | Words, 75th pct | Median headline chars | Forward-looking statements | Phone | Email visible |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Earnings date notices | 1,978 | 227 | 286 | 370 | 82 | 16.4% | 73.5% | 39.2% |
| Earnings releases | 2,706 | 1,419 | 2,819 | 4,435 | 68 | 83.5% | 62.7% | 30.6% |
| Investor litigation notices | 5,764 | 413 | 613 | 849 | 128 | 0.1% | 88.9% | 29.4% |
| All other releases | 119,490 | 463 | 632 | 870 | 94 | 10.5% | 34.3% | 24.0% |
The notice that comes before the results is the opposite. An earnings date notice, which says when results and the call will come, had a median of 286 words. It's the one routine investor release that's short.
Length varies by wire. Among wires with at least 50 earnings releases, the median ran from 1,934 words on ACCESS Newswire to 3,206 on PR Newswire.
| Wire | Earnings releases | Median words | Forward-looking statements | Email visible | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PR Newswire | 1,820 | 3,206 | 82.5% | 6.5% | 56.8% |
| ACCESS Newswire | 301 | 1,934 | 83.7% | 81.4% | 76.4% |
| GlobeNewswire | 292 | 2,610 | 86.3% | 77.4% | 68.2% |
| Newswire.com | 123 | 2,060 | 97.6% | 91.9% | 83.7% |
| Digital Journal | 121 | 3,010 | 89.3% | 73.6% | 84.3% |
PR Newswire pages often hide or obfuscate contact emails, so its 6.5% email figure measures what's visible in the text, not what the company supplied.
When are earnings releases published?
Around the market, not the newsroom. We used only the five wires in PR Gun's database with reliable clock times (PR Newswire, ACCESS Newswire, Business Wire, Newswire.com and Send2Press), converted times from UTC to Eastern and dropped date-only rows. That left 2,160 timed earnings releases and 1,657 timed date notices.
| Release group | Timed releases | Before 9:30 a.m. | 9:30 a.m. to 3:59 p.m. | 4 p.m. or later |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Earnings date notices | 1,657 | 39.3% | 12.4% | 48.3% |
| Earnings releases | 2,160 | 48.3% | 11.4% | 40.3% |
| Investor litigation notices | 4,649 | 19.4% | 51.5% | 29.1% |
| All other releases | 88,577 | 49.6% | 36.9% | 13.6% |
Earnings releases avoid the trading day. Only 11.4% went out between 9:30 a.m. and 3:59 p.m. Eastern, against 36.9% of other releases. The NYSE core trading session runs 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern, so companies publish before the open or after the close.
| Eastern hour | Earnings releases | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 a.m. to 1 a.m. | 17 | 0.8% | |
| 1 a.m. to 2 a.m. | 20 | 0.9% | |
| 2 a.m. to 3 a.m. | 28 | 1.3% | |
| 3 a.m. to 4 a.m. | 67 | 3.1% | |
| 4 a.m. to 5 a.m. | 59 | 2.7% | |
| 5 a.m. to 6 a.m. | 79 | 3.7% | |
| 6 a.m. to 7 a.m. | 313 | 14.5% | |
| 7 a.m. to 8 a.m. | 285 | 13.2% | |
| 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. | 131 | 6.1% | |
| 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. | 55 | 2.5% | |
| 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. | 36 | 1.7% | |
| 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. | 25 | 1.2% | |
| 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. | 111 | 5.1% | |
| 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. | 38 | 1.8% | |
| 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. | 12 | 0.6% | |
| 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. | 14 | 0.6% | |
| 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. | 664 | 30.7% | |
| 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. | 100 | 4.6% | |
| 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. | 35 | 1.6% | |
| 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. | 18 | 0.8% | |
| 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. | 8 | 0.4% | |
| 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. | 14 | 0.6% | |
| 10 p.m. to 11 p.m. | 25 | 1.2% | |
| 11 p.m. to 12 a.m. | 6 | 0.3% |
The single busiest hour was 4 p.m. to 5 p.m., with 30.7% of timed earnings releases. The morning releases spread across 6 a.m. (14.5%) and 7 a.m. (13.2%). Date notices cluster even harder at 4 p.m., with 40.3% of 1,657.
| Day | Earnings releases | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 245 | 11.3% | |
| Tuesday | 413 | 19.1% | |
| Wednesday | 572 | 26.5% | |
| Thursday | 668 | 30.9% | |
| Friday | 252 | 11.7% | |
| Sunday | 10 | 0.5% |
Thursday led with 30.9% of timed earnings releases, then Wednesday with 26.5%. Monday (11.3%) and Friday (11.7%) were the quietest weekdays.
Earnings come in seasons. On PR Newswire, which PR Gun's database covers in volume from May 2026, earnings releases made up 4.7% of August releases and 3.1% of May releases, but only 0.5% of June and September releases.
| Month (2026) | Earnings releases | All PR Newswire releases | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-05 | 340 | 10,941 | 3.1% |
| 2026-06 | 75 | 15,364 | 0.5% |
| 2026-07 | 392 | 13,595 | 2.9% |
| 2026-08 | 594 | 12,727 | 4.7% |
| 2026-09 | 81 | 15,052 | 0.5% |
| 2026-10 | 338 | 14,713 | 2.3% |
Which services carry earnings news?
Earnings releases concentrate on financial wires. In PR Gun's 2026 window, PR Newswire carried 67.3% of all earnings releases, ACCESS Newswire 11.1% and GlobeNewswire 10.8%. 24-7 Press Release, PRWeb and EIN Presswire carried two or fewer each, and PRLog and Send2Press none. Each wire's coverage window differs, so read the share with the dates.
| Wire | All releases | Window (2026) | Earnings releases | Share of all earnings releases | Share of wire's volume | Date notices |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PR Newswire | 82,398 | Jan 5 to Oct 31 | 1,820 | 67.3% | 2.2% | 1,176 |
| ACCESS Newswire | 11,396 | Jul 10 to Oct 31 | 301 | 11.1% | 2.6% | 113 |
| GlobeNewswire | 6,085 | May 7 to Oct 19 | 292 | 10.8% | 4.8% | 223 |
| Newswire.com | 3,251 | May 7 to Oct 31 | 123 | 4.5% | 3.8% | 69 |
| Digital Journal | 3,364 | May 7 to Oct 31 | 121 | 4.5% | 3.6% | 68 |
| Business Wire | 2,784 | Sep 24 to Oct 19 | 44 | 1.6% | 1.6% | 328 |
| 24-7 Press Release | 5,331 | Jan 1 to Oct 31 | 2 | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0 |
| PRWeb | 5,684 | Mar 31 to Oct 31 | 2 | 0.1% | 0.0% | 1 |
| EIN Presswire | 6,798 | Feb 19 to Oct 31 | 1 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0 |
Business Wire looks small here because PR Gun's database covers it only from September 24 to October 19, 2026. In that short window it carried 328 date notices, 16.6% of all notices in the study, against 44 earnings releases.
GlobeNewswire had the highest earnings share of its own volume among large wires, at 4.8% of 6,085 releases. For PR Newswire it was 2.2% of 82,398.
A few facts from the services' own pages, checked November 1, 2026, help with the choice.
- PR Newswire has no public rate card, so pricing is quote only. It was acquired by Cision in 2015. See PR Newswire pricing and PR Newswire vs. Business Wire.
- Business Wire lists national circuits as quote based on its pricing page, checked November 1, 2026. See Business Wire alternatives.
- GlobeNewswire is quote only and is operated by Notified, an affiliate of Equiniti.
- EIN Presswire publishes prices, and its packages carry word limits of 700, 1,000 and 2,500 words. A median earnings release of 2,819 words is longer than all three. See EIN Presswire pricing.
- Newswire.com says its prices cover unlimited words and images. Its State Distribution package is labeled not for regulatory distribution.
If your release is a regulatory disclosure, confirm with the service that the package you buy meets your exchange's disclosure rules before you order.
Common headline patterns
Earnings headlines are short and formulaic. 60.0% of the 2,706 used "reports" and 29.2% "announces". 33.1% said "financial results". 89.1% named a year.
| Earnings releases | Says "reports" | Says "announces" | Says "financial results" | Says "record" | Mentions guidance or outlook | All caps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2,706 | 60.0% | 29.2% | 33.1% | 6.3% | 6.1% | 11.4% |
Only 8.2% put a currency figure in the headline and 8.4% a percent. 6.3% called the quarter a record. 11.4% of earnings headlines were in all capitals, well above the 3.97% rate across all releases.
The common pattern is "[Company] Reports [Quarter] [Year] Financial Results". It's predictable, and investors searching for results expect it. If the quarter had one standout number, a second clause like "Revenue Up 18%" is where it goes.
Structure checklist
| Element | What it does |
|---|---|
| Headline | Company, quarter, year, "financial results" |
| Dateline | City, date, and the wire's timestamp |
| Highlights | Bulleted key figures with year-over-year change |
| CEO quote | Why the quarter went the way it did |
| Financial discussion | Revenue, margins, net income, EPS, cash |
| Outlook | Guidance, if the company gives it |
| Call details | Date, time, dial-in and webcast link |
| Non-GAAP note | Definitions and reconciliation |
| Forward-looking statements | Safe-harbor disclaimer |
| About and contacts | Boilerplate, investor contact, media contact |
| Financial tables | Income statement, balance sheet, cash flow |
Fill in the blank template
Built from the structure above. Aim for a headline of about 54 to 91 characters, the middle half of earnings headlines in this study. Your length will follow your tables. Every name, figure and date in the filled example is invented for illustration.
Invented example headline and opening, for illustration only. Northfield Robotics is a made-up company.
For an earnings date notice, keep it to about 300 words. The median notice in this study ran 286 words. Give the date, whether results come before the open or after the close, the call time in Eastern time, the dial-in and the webcast link.
Frequently asked questions
- How long is an earnings press release?
- Long. In PR Gun's 2026 analysis of 2,706 earnings releases, the median ran 2,819 words and the middle half ran 1,419 to 4,435 words, because financial tables and legal text are part of the release.
- What time are earnings press releases published?
- Before the market opens or after it closes. On five wires with reliable timestamps, 48.3% of 2,160 timed earnings releases went out before 9:30 a.m. Eastern and 40.3% at 4 p.m. or later.
- What day of the week do companies release earnings?
- Most often Thursday (30.9% of timed earnings releases in PR Gun's 2026 data) and Wednesday (26.5%). Monday and Friday each carried under 12%.
- Does an earnings release need a forward-looking statements disclaimer?
- Most include one. 83.5% of earnings releases in PR Gun's 2026 data did. Check your exchange's disclosure rules for what your release needs.
- Which press release services carry earnings releases?
- Mostly financial wires. In PR Gun's 2026 data, PR Newswire carried 67.3% of earnings releases, ACCESS Newswire 11.1% and GlobeNewswire 10.8%. Small-business wires carried almost none.
- How were earnings releases identified?
- By headline keywords. A headline needed a period term such as "third quarter" or "fiscal 2026" and a results term such as "results" or "earnings", without date-notice or exclusion terms. A hand check of a sample of 30 matches found 29 correct. Recall wasn't measured, so the counts are a lower bound.
How we researched this
- Source is PR Gun's database of published press releases, queried read-only on November 1, 2026.
- Window is releases with a publish date of January 1 to October 31, 2026. We kept one copy per wire and headline and required at least 50 words of body text, which left 129,938 releases.
- Earnings releases are headlines with a period term (quarter, Q1 to Q4, fiscal year, FY, half-year, full-year, year-end, annual, interim, quarterly, six or nine months) and a results term (results, earnings, financial highlights, net income, net loss, net sales, revenue, EPS, profit). Headlines that also say things like "to report", "to announce", "conference call", "webcast", "date" or "schedules" are counted as date notices instead. Headlines mentioning meetings, votes, clinical trials, studies or surveys are excluded, and so are investor litigation notices.
- Precision was checked by hand. A first version of the rules scored 26 of 30 on a random sample, so we added exclusions. On a fresh random sample the final rules scored 29 of 30 for earnings releases (96.7%) and 30 of 30 for date notices. Recall wasn't measured, so counts are a lower bound.
- Timing uses only five wires with reliable clock times. Stored UTC times were converted to Eastern, and rows at exactly 00:00:00 UTC (date-only) were excluded.
- Each wire's coverage window differs and is shown in the wire table. PR Newswire's coverage in volume starts in May 2026.
- Service facts come from PR Gun's vendor research checked November 1, 2026, and the NYSE trading hours page checked the same day.
- PR Gun sells press release distribution and competes with the services on this page.
Not every release is an earnings release. For product, partnership and company news, PR Gun distributes press releases from $49 (PR Basic), and PR Gun reviews every release before distribution. See PR Gun pricing.
Ready to distribute your press release?
Get your news in front of thousands of journalists with PR Gun's distribution network.