If the acquisition of shares is part of an ongoing

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If the acquisition of shares is part of an ongoing merger or acquisition deal, there can be certain "safe harbors" or exceptions. For example, when the acquisition of shares is part of a planned merger or acquisition (and not intended to influence the target company before the deal closes), the parties involved may not need to file a 13D immediately. In this case, the 13D filing requirement might be delayed until the deal has reached a certain stage or the transaction has been completed. This is often referred to as the "transactional exception."

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If they are in the middle of a deal where shares have not changed hands of course there is no need to file since the acquiring party has not received shares yet. If you think otherwise then show me the SEC rules that specify what you claim.