Definition: Payments made to shareholders by corporations. When a company earns profit, the company can use the money to either re-invest in the business (called retained earnings) or to give…

Definition: A ratio showing how much a company pays in dividends each year relative to its share price. Assuming that the stock price does not change, the dividend yield is…

Definition P/E Ratio. It sounds good and makes novice investors feel like they have a grasp of the situation but how valuable is the Earnings Price Ratio? Surprisingly, the price…

Definition: When you are selling your shares of a security, the bid price is what the buyer is willing to pay for your shares. This Bid Price offers you an…

Definition: The ask or offer price is the lowest price that a seller is willing to accept for a stock or other security. The ask size will specify the number…

Definition: Market Orders are an order to buy or sell a stock at the best available price. Generally, this type of order will be executed immediately. However, the price at…

Definition: A limit order is an order to buy or sell a stock at a specific price or better. A buy limit order can only be executed at the limit…

Definition The Income Statement is one of the financial statements that all publicly traded companies share with their investors. The income statement shows the company’s sales, expenses, and net profit…

Definition: Diversification is a widely used strategy for investors who want to minimize risk to a certain degree. Diversification simply means spreading your investments over different market vehicles. Just like…

Definition: Short selling or Selling Short is the act of borrowing a security from someone else, usually a broker, selling it and later repurchasing the stock in the hopes that…

Definition: The S&P 500 is currently the most followed stock index in the world. It works like a model portfolio holding stocks in 500 of the biggest, and most traded,…

Definition The Dow Jones Industrial Average, more frequently known as the Dow or the Dow Jones, is a stock market index made up of 30 of the largest publicly-owned companies…

The Definition of a Stock Stocks are shares in ownership of a company. Stocks represents a claim on the company’s assets and earnings. As you increase your holdings of a…

Common Stock Common stock is, well, common. When people talk about stocks they are usually referring to this type. In fact, the majority of stock is issued is in this…

I want to make my first stock trade. How do I find stocks to buy? That is a very good question. Finding stocks to buy is easy, but finding GOOD…

There are many research tools available and many of them are free. Of course, there are some very sophisticated tools that come with hefty price tags; however, for most investors…

IPO

Definition: The initial sale of stock by a private company to the public which turns it into a public company. IPOs are typically offered by smaller, younger companies who are…

Definition: A stock quote represents the last price at which a seller and a buyer of a stock agreed on a price to make the trade. Because stock prices are…

Definition: With stock charts, you can view as much as 20 years of data or as little as a few minutes with a variety of line styles, color pallets and…

The goal of a smart investor should be to build a diversified portfolio of stocks and bonds with low fees and the Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) offer seven advantages over…