B
BACK OFFICE
Brokerage house clerical operations that support, but do not include, the trading of stocks and other securities. Includes all written confirmation and settlement of trades, record keeping and regulatory compliance.

BASIS POINTS
Refers to yield on bonds. Each percentage point of yield in bonds equals 100 basis points. If a bond yield changes from 7.25 % to 7.39 %, that's a rise of 14 basis points.

BEAR
An investor who believes a stock or the overall market will decline. A bear market isa prolonged period of falling stock prices, usually by 20% or more.

BEAR RAID
A situation in which large traders sell positions with the intention of driving prices down.

BETA (STOCKS)
Measure of a stock's risk in relation to the market. 0.7 means a stock price is likely to move up or down 70 % of the market change; 1.3 means the stock is likely to move up or down 30 % more than the market.

BETA (MUTUAL FUNDS)
The measure of a fund's risk in relation to the market. 0.7 means the fund's total return is likely to move up or down 70 % of the market change; 1.3 means total return is likely to move up or down 30 % more than the market.

BLOW-OFF TOP
A steep and rapid increase in price followed by a steep and rapid drop in price. This is an indicator seen in charts and used in technical analysis of stock price and market trends.

BREAKOUT
A rise in a security's price above a resistance level (commonly its previous high price) or drop below a level of support (commonly the former lowest price.) A breakout is taken to signify a continuing move in the same direction. Can be used by technical analysts as a buy or sell indication.

BULL
An investor who thinks the market will rise.

BULL MARKET
A market which is on a consistent upward trend.

BUYOUT
Purchase of a controlling interest (or percent of shares) of a company's stock. A leveraged buyout is done with borrowed money.

C
CAPITAL EXPENDITURES
Amount used during a particular period to acquire or improve long term asets such as property, plant, or equipment.

CAPITAL GAIN
When a stock is sold for a profit, it's the difference between the net sales price of securities and their net cost, or original basis. If a stock is sold below cost, the difference is a capital los.

CAPITAL LOSS
The difference between the net cost of a security and the net sale price, if that security is sold at a los.

CASH DIVIDEND
A dividend paid in cash to a company's shareholders. The amount is normally based on profitability and is taxable as income. A cash distribution may include capital gains and return of capital in addition to the dividend.

CASH AND EQUIVALENTS
The value of asets that can be converted into cash immediately, as reported by a company. Usually includes bank accounts and marketable securities, such as government bonds and Bankers' Acceptances. Cash equivalents on balance sheets include securities (e.g., notes) that mature within ninety days.

CASH FLOW
In investments, it represents earnings before depreciation amortization and non-cash charges. Sometimes called cash earnings. Cash Flow from operations (called Funds From Operations (FFO) by real estate and other investment trusts, is important because it indicates the ability to pay dividends.
CHANGES IN FINANCIAL POSITION
Sources of funds internally provided from operations which alter a company's cash flow position: depreciation, deferred taxes, other sources, and capital expenditures.

CHURNING
Excesive trading of a client's account in order to increase the broker's commisions.

CLOSING PURCHASE
A transaction in which the purchaser's intention is to reduce or eliminate a short position in a stock, or in a given series of options.

CLOSING SALE
A transaction in which the seller's intention is to reduce or eliminate his long position in a stock, or a given series of options.

COMISSION
Te fee paid to a broker to execute a trade, based on number of shares, bonds, options and/or their dollar value. In 1975, deregulation led to the creation of discount brokers, who charge lower commisions than full service brokers. Full service brokers offer advice and usually have a full staff of analysts who follow specific industries. Discount brokers simply execute a client's order--and usually do not offer an opinion on a stock.

COMMON STOCK/OTHER EQUITY
Value of outstanding common shares at par, plus accumulated retained earnings. Also called shareholders' equity.

CONFIDENCE INDICATOR
A measure of investors' faith in the economy and the securities market. A low or deteriorating level of confidence is considered by many technical analysts as a bearish sign.

CONFIDENCE LEVEL
The degree of asurance that a specified failure rate is not exceeded.

CONFIRMATION
The written statement that follows any "trade" in the securities markets. Confirmation is isued immediately after a trade is executed. It spells out settlement date, terms, commision, etc.

CORNER A MARKET
To purchase enough of the available supply of a commodity or stock in order to manipulate its price.

COUPON RATE
In bonds, notes or other fixed income securities, the stated percentage rate of interest, usually paid twice a year.

CURRENT ASSETS
Value of cash, accounts receivable, inventories, marketable securities and other asets that could be converted to cash in les than 1 year.

CURRENT LIABILITIES
Amount owed for salaries, interest, accounts ayable and other debts due within 1 year.

CURRENT RATIO
Indicator of short-term debt paying ability. Determined by dividing current asets by current liabilities. The higher the ratio, the more liquid the company.

CURRENT YIELD
For bonds or notes, the coupon rate divided by the market price of the bond.

D
DAY ORDER
An order to buy or sell stock that automatically expires if it can't be executed on the day it is entered.

DEBT/EQUITY RATIO
Indicator of financial leverage. Compares asets provided by creditors to asets provided by shareholders. Determined by dividing long term debt by common stockholders' equity.

DEFERRED TAXES
A non-cash expense that provides a source of free cash flow. Amount allocated during the period to cover tax liabilities that have not yet been paid.

DEPRECIATION
A non-cash expense that provides a source of free cash flow. Amount allocated during the period to amortize the cost of acquiring long term asets over the useful life of the asets.

DERIVATIVE SECURITY
A financial security, such as an option, or future, whose value is derived in part from the value and characteristics of another security, the underlying security.

DIFFERENCE FROM S&P
A mutual fund's return minus the change in the Standard & Poors 500 Index for the same time period. A notation of -5.00 means the fund return was 5 percentage points les than the gain in the S&P, while 0.00 means that the fund and the S&P had the same return.

DISTRIBUTIONS
Payments from fund or corporate cash flow. May include dividends from earnings, capital gains from sale of portfolio holdings and return of capital. Fund distributions can be made by check or by investing in additional shares. Funds are required to distribute capital gains (if any) to shareholders at least once per year. Some Corporations offer Dividend ReinvestmentPlans (DRP).

DIVIDEND REINVESTMENT PLANS (DRP)
Plans offered by many corporations for the reivestment of dividends, sometimes at a discount from market price, on the dividend payment date. Many DRP's also allow the investment of additional cash from the shareholder. The DRP is usually administered by the company without charges to the holder.

DIVERGENCE
When two or more averages or indices fail to show confirming trends.

DIVIDEND
Distribution of a portion of a company's earnings, cash flow or capital to shareholders, in cash or additional stock.

DIVIDEND YIELD (STOCKS)
Indicated Yield represents annual dividends divided by current stock price.

DIVIDEND YIELD (FUNDS)
Indicated Yield represents return on a share of a mutual fund held over the past 12 months. Asumes fund was purchased 1 year ago. Reflects effect of sales charges (at current rates), but ot redemption charges.

DIVIDENDS PER SHARE
Dividends paid for the past 12 months divided by the number of common shares outstanding, as reported by a company. The number of shares often is determined by a weighted average of shares outstanding over the reporting term.

DIVIDEND REINVESTMENT PLAN
Automatic reinvestment of shareholder dividends in more shares of a company's stock, often without commisions. Some plans provide for the purchase of additional shares at a deiscount to market price. Dividend reinvestment plans allow shareholders to accumulate stock over the long term using dollar cost averaging.

DOWNGRADE
A clasic negative change in ratings for a stock, and or other rated security.

E
EARNINGS
Net income for the company during the period.

EARNINGS PER SHARE (EPS)
Also referred to as Primary Earnings Per Share. Net income for the past 12 months divided by the number of common shares outstanding, as reported by a company. The company often uses a weighted average of shares outstanding over reporting term.

EARNINGS YIELD
The ratio of Earnings Per Share after allowing for tax and interest payments on fixed interest debt, to the current share price. The inverse of the Price/Earnings ratio. It's the Total Twelve Months Earnings divided by number of outstanding shares, divided by the recent price, multiplied by 100. The end result is shown in percentage.

EQUITY
The value of the common stockholders' equity in a company as listed on the balance sheet.

EQUITY OPTIONS
Securities that give the holder the right to buy or sell a specified number of shares of stock, at a specified price for a certain (limited) time period. Typically one option equals 100 shares of stock.

EXCHANGE
The marketplace in which shares, options and futures on stocks, bonds, commodities and indices are traded. Principal US stock exchanges are: New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), American Stock Exchange (AMEX) and the National Asociation of Securities Dealers (NASDAQ)

EX-DIVIDEND DATE
The first day of trading when the seller, rather than the buyer, of a stock will be entitled to the most recently announced dividend payment. This date set by the NYSE (and generally followed on other US exchanges) is currently two business days before the record date. A stock that has gone ex-dividend is marked with an x in newspaper listings on that date.

EXECUTION
The proces of completing an order to buy or sell securities. Once a trade is executed, it is reported by a Confirmation Report; settlement (payment and transfer of ownership) occurs in the U.S. between 1 (mutual funds) and 5 (stocks) days after an order is executed. Settlement times for exchange listed stocks are in the proces of being reduced to three days in the U.S.

EXPENSE RATIO
The percentage of the asets that were spent to run a mutual fund (as of the last annual statement). This includes expenses such as management and advisory fees, overhead costs and 12b-1 (distribution and advertising ) fees. The expense ratio does not include brokerage costs for trading the portfolio, although these are reported as a percentage of asets to the SEC by the funds in a Statement of Additional Information (SAI). the SAI is available to shareholders on request. Neither the expense ratio or the SAI includes the transaction costs of spreads, normally incurred in unlisted securities and foreign stocks. These two costs can add significantly to the reported expenses of a fund. The expense ratio is often termed an Operating Expense Ratio (OER).

F
FUND FAMILY
The management company that runs and/or sells shares of the fund. Fund families often offer several funds with different investment objectives.

FUNDS FROM OPERATIONS (FFO)
Used by real estate and other investment trusts to define the cash flow from trust operations. It is earnings with depreciation and amortization added back. A similar term increasingly used is Funds Available for Distribution (FAD), which is FFO les capital investments in trust property and the amortization of mortgages.

G
GOOD 'TIL CANCELED
Sometimes simply called "GTC", it means an order to buy or sell stock that is good until you cancel it. Brokerages usually set a limit of 30-60 days, at which the GTC expires if not restated.

GROWTH RATES
Compound annual growth rate for the number of full fiscal years shown. If there is a negative or zero value for the first or last year, the growth is NM (not meaningful).

H
HEAD & SHOULDERS
In technical analysis, a chart formation in which a stock price reaches a peak and declines, rises above its former peak and again declines and rises again but not to the second peak and then again declines. The first and third peaks are shoulders, while the second peak is the formation's head. Technical analysts generally consider a head and shoulders formation to be a very bearish indication.

HEDGING
A strategy designed to reduce investment risk using "call" options, "put" options, "short" selling, or futures contracts. A hedge can help lock in existing profits. Its purpose is to reduce the potential volatility of a portfolio, by reducing the risk of los.

HIGH PRICE
The highest (intraday) price of a stock over the past 52 weeks, adjusted for any stock splits.

HOLDING COMPANY
A corporation that owns enough voting stock in another firm to control management and operations by influencing or electing its board of directors.


I
INDICATED DIVIDEND
Total amount of dividends that would be paid on a share of stock over the next 12 months if each dividend were the same amount as the most recent dividend. Usually represent by the letter e in stock tables

INDICATED YIELD
The yield, based on the most recent quarterly rate times four. To determine the yield, divide the annual dividend by the price of the stock. The resulting number is represented as a percentage.

INDUSTRY
The category describing a company's primary business activity. This usually is determined by the largest portion of revenue.

INITIAL PUBLIC OFFERING (IPO)
A company's first sale of stock to the public. Securities offered in an IPO are often, but not always, those of young, small companies seeking outside equity capital and a public market for their stock. Investors purchasing stock in IPOs generally must be prepared to accept very large risks for the posibility of large gains. IPO's by investment companies (closed end funds) usually contain underwriting fees which represent a load to buyers.

INSIDER INFORMATION
Relevant information about a company that has not yet been made public. It is illegal for holders of this information to make trades based on it, however received.

INVENTORY
For companies: Raw materials, items available for sale or in the proces of being made ready for sale. They can be individually valued by several different means, including cost or current market value, and collectively by FIFO, LIFO or other techniques. The lower value of alternatives is usually used to preclude overstating earnings and asets. For security firms: securities bought and held by a broker or dealer for resale.

INVENTORY TURNOVER
The ratio of annual sales to inventory. Low turnover is an unhealthy sign, indicating exces stocks and/or poor sales.

INVESTMENT TRUST
A closed-end fund regulated by the Investment Company Act of 1940. These funds have a fixed number of shares which are traded on the secondary markets similarly to corporate stocks. The market price may exceed the net aset value per share, in which case it is considered at a "premium." When the market price falls below the NAV/share, it is at a "discount." Many closed end funds are of a specialized nature, with the portfolio representing a particular industry, country, etc. These funds are usually listed on US and foreign exchanges.

IRA/KEOGH ACCOUNTS
Special accounts where you can save and invest, and the taxes are deferred until money is withdrawn. These plans are subject to frequent changes in law with respect to the deductibility of contributions. Withdrawals of tax deferred contributuons are taxed as income, including the capital gains from such accounts.

L
LAST SPLIT
After a stock split, the number of shares distributed for each share held and the date of the distribution.

LIMIT ORDER
An order to buy a stock at or below a specified price or to sell a stock at or above a specified price. For instance, you could tell a broker "Buy me 100 shares of xyz Corp at $8 or les" or to "sell 100 shares of xyz at $10 or better."

LOAD FUND
A mutual fund with shares sold at a price including a sales charge--typically 4 % to 8% of the net amount indicated. Some "no-load" funds have distribution fees permitted by article 12b1 of the Investment Company Act; these are typically 0.25%. A "true no-load" fund has neither a sales charge not 12b1 fee. A load implies that the fund purchaser receives some investment advice or other service worthy of the charge.

LONG POSITION
Occurs when an individual owns securities. An owner of 1000 shares of stock is said to be "Long the Stock."
LONG TERM ASSETS
Value of property, equipment and other capital asets minus the depreciation. This is an entry in the bookkeeping records of a company, usually on a "cost" basis and thus does not necesarily reflect the market value of the asets.

LONG TERM DEBT
Value of obligations of over 1 year that require that interest be paid.

LONG TERM DEBT/CAPITALIZATION
Indicator of financial leverage. Shows long term debt as a proportion of the capital available. Determined by dividing long term debt by the sum of long term debt, preferred stock and common stockholders' equity.

LONG TERM LIABILITIES
Amount owed for leases, bond repayment and other items due after 1 year.

LOW PRICE
The lowest (intraday) price of a stock over a certain period of time.

M
MANAGEMENT/CLOSELY HELD SHARES
Percentage of shares held by persons closely related to a company, as defined by the Securities and Exchange Commision. Part of these percentages often is included in Institutional Holdings--making the combined total of these percentages over 100. There is overlap as institutions sometimes acquire enough stock to be considered by the SEC to be closely allied to the company.

MARGIN ACCOUNT (STOCKS)
A leverageable account in which stocks can be purchased for a combination of cash and a loan. The loan in the margin account is collateralized by the stock and, if the value of the stock drops sufficiently, the owner will be asked to either put in more cash, or sell a portion of the stock. Margin rules are federally regulated, but margin requirements and interest may vary among broker/dealers.

MARKET CAPITALIZATION
The total dollar value of all outstanding shares. Computed as shares times current market price. It is a measure of corporate size.

MARKET CYCLE
The period between the 2 latest highs or lows of the S&P 500, showing net performance of a fund through both an up and a down market. A market cycle is complete when the S&P is 15 % below the highest point or 15 % above the lowest point (ending a down market). The dates of the last market cycle are: 12/04/87 to 10/11/90 (low to low).

MARKET ORDER
An order to buy or sell a stock at the going price.

MINIMUM PURCHASES
For mutual funds, the amount required to open a new account (Minimum Initial Purchase) or to deposit into an existing account (Minimum Additional Purchase). These minima may be lowered for buyers participating in an automatic purchase plan

MONEY MARKET FUND
A mutual fund that invests only in short term securities, such as bankers' acceptances, commercial paper, repurchase agreements and government bills. The net aset value per share is maintained at $1.00. Such funds are not federally insured, although the portfolio may consist of guaranteed securities and/or the fund may have private insurance protection.

MOVING AVERAGE
Used in charts and technical analysis, the average of security or commodity prices constructed in a period as short as a few days or as long as several years and showing trends for the latest interval. As each new variable is included in calculating the average, the last variable of the series is deleted.

MUTUAL FUND
An open end investment company that pools investors' money to invest in a variety of stocks, bonds, or other securities. A mutual fund isues and redeems shares to meet demand, and the redemption value per share is the net aset value per share, les in some cases a redemption fee which represents a rear-end load. A closed end fund, often incorrectly called a mutual fund, is instead an investment trust. Both are investment companies regulated by the Investment Company Act of 1940.

N
NET ASSET VALUE (NAV)
The value of a fund's investments. For a mutual fund, the net aset value per share usually represents the fund's market price, subject to a posible sales or redemption charge. For a closed end fund, the market price may vary significantly from the net aset value.

NET INCOME
The company's total earnings, reflecting revenues adjusted for costs of doing business, depreciation, interest, taxes and other expenses

NOISE
Price and volume fluctuations that can confuse interpretation of market direction.

NO LOAD MUTUAL FUND
An open-end investment company, shares of which are sold without a sales charge. There can be other distribution charges, however, such as Article 12b-1 fees. A true "no load" fund will have neither a sales charge nor a distribution fee.

NM
Abbreviation for Not Meaningful.

O
OBJECTIVE (MUTUAL FUNDS)
The fund's investment strategy category as stated in the prospectus. There are more than 20 standardized categories.

OPENING SALE
A transaction in which the seller's intention is to create or increase a short position in a given series of options.

OPTION
Gives the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell stock at a set price on or before a given date. Investors, not companies, isue options. Investors who purchase call options bet the stock will be worth more than the price set by the option (the strike price), plus the price they paid for the option itself. Buyers of put options bet the stock's price will go down below the price set by the option.

OTHER CURRENT ASSETS
Value of non-cash asets, including prepaid expenses and accounts receivable, due within 1 year.

OTHER LONG TERM LIABILITIES
Value of leases, future employee benefits, deferred taxes and other obligations not requiring interest payments that must be paid over a period of more than 1 year.

OTHER SOURCES
Amount of funds generated during the period from operations by sources other than depreciation or deferred taxes. Part of Free Cash Flow calculation.

OVERBOUGHT\OVERSOLD INDICATOR
An indicator that attempts to define when prices have moved too far and too fast in either direction and thus are vulnerable to reaction.

P
PAYMENT DATE
Date on which a declared stock dividend or a bond interest payment is scheduled to be made.

PIVOT
Price level established as being significant by market's failure to penetrate or as being significant when a sudden increase in volume accompanies the move through the price level.

POINT AND FIGURE CHART
A price-only chart that takes into account only whole integer changes in price, i.e., a 2-point change. Point and figure charting disregards the element of time and is solely used to record changes in price.

PREFERRED STOCK
A security that shows ownership in a corporation and gives the holder a claim, prior to the claim of common stockholders, on earnings and also generally on asets in the event of liquidation. Most preferred stock pays a fixed dividend, stated in a dollar amount or as a percentage of par value. This stock does not usually carry voting rights.

PRICES
Price of a share of common stock on the date shown. Highs and lows are based on the highest and lowest intraday trading price.

PRICE/BOOK RATIO
Compares a stock's market value to the value of total asets les total liabilities (book). Determined by dividing current price by common stockholders' equity per share (book value), adjusted for stock splits. Also called Market-to-Book.

PRICE/EARNINGS RATIO
Shows the "multiple" of earnings at which a stock sells. Determined by dividing current price by current earnings per share (adjusted for stock splits). Earnings per share for the P/E ratio is determined by dividing earnings for past 12 months by the number of common shares outstanding. Higher "multiple" means investors have higher expectations for future growth, and have bid up the stock's price.

P/E RATIO EQUATION
Asume XYZ Co sells for $25.50 per share and has earned $2.55 per share this year
$25.50 = 10 times $2.55
XYZ stock sells for 10 times earnings.

PRICE/SALES RATIO
Determined by dividing stock's current price by revenue per share (adjusted for stock splits). Revenue per share for the P/S ratio is determined by dividing revenue for past 12 months by number of shares outstanding.

PRIMARY MARKET
The first buyer of a newly isued security buys that security in the primary market. All subsequent trading of those securities is done in the secondary market.

PROFIT MARGIN
Indicator of profitability. Determined by dividing net income by revenue for the same 12-month period. Result is shown as a percentage.

PROGRAM TRADING
Trades based on signals from computer programs, usually entered directly from the trader's computer to the market's computer system and executed automatically.

PROSPECTUS
Formal written document to sell securities that describes the plan for a proposed business enterprise, or the facts concerning an existing one, that an investor needs to make an informed decision. Prospectuses are used by Mutual Funds to describe the fund objectives, risks and other esential information.

PROXY
Document intended to provide shareholders with information necesary to vote in an informed manner on matters to be brought up at a stockholders' meeting. Includes information on closely held shares. Shareholders can and often do give management their proxy, representing the right and responsibility to vote their shares as specified in the proxy statement.

Q
QUICK RATIO
Indicator of a company's financial strength (or weaknes). Calculated by taking current asets les inventories, divided by current liabilities. Also called Acid Test.

R
RANGE
The difference between the high and low price during a given period.

RETURN
The percentage gain or los for a mutual fund in a specific time period. This number asumes that all distributions are reinvested.

RECORD DATE
Date by which a shareholder must officially own shares in order to be entitled to a dividend. For example, a firm might declare a dividend on Nov 1, payable Dec 1 to holders of record Nov 15. Once a trade is executed an investor becomes the "owner of record" on settlement, which currently takes 5 business days for securities, and one business day for mutual funds. Stocks trade ex-dividend the fourth day before the record date, since the seller will still be the owner of record and is thus entitled to the dividend.

REDEMPTION CHARGE
The commision charged by a mutual fund when redeeming shares. For example, a 2 % redemption charge (also called a "back end load") on the sale of shares valued at $1000 will result in payment of $980 (or 98 % of the value) to the investor. This charge may decrease or be eliminated as shares are held for longer time periods.

RELATIVE STRENGTH
A stock's price movement over the past year as compared to a market index (the S&P 500). Value below 1.0 means the stock shows relative weaknes in price movement (underperformed the market); a value above 1.0 means the stock shows relative strength over the 1-year period. Equation for Relative Strength: [current stock price/year-ago stock price] [current S&P 500/year-ago S&P 500]

RETRACEMENT
A price movement in the opposite direction of the previous trend.

RETURN ON ASSETS (ROA)
Indicator of profitability. Determined by dividing net income for the past 12 months by total asets. Result is shown as a percentage.

RETURN ON EQUITY (ROE)
Indicator of profitability. Determined by dividing net income for the past 12 months by common stockholders' equity (adjusted for stock splits). Result is shown as a percentage.

REVERSE STOCK SPLIT
A proportionate decrease in the number of shares, but not the value of shares of stock held by shareholders. Shareholders maintain the same percentage of equity as before the split. For example, a 1-for-3 split would result in stockholders owning 1 share for every 3 shares owned before the split. A firm generally institutes a reverse split to boost its stock's market price and attract investors.

RIGHTS OFFERING
Isuance of "rights" to current shareholders allowing them to purchase additional shares, usually at a discount to market price. Shareholders who do not exercise these rights are usually diluted by the offering. Rights are often transferrable, allowing the holder to sell them on the open market to others who may wish to exercise them. Rights offerings are particularly common to closed end funds, which cannot otherwise isue additional common stock.

S
SALES CHARGE
The fee charged by a mutual fund when purchasing shares, usually payable as a commision to amarketing agent, such as a financial advisor, who is thus compensated for his asistance to a purchaser. It epresents the difference, if any, between the share purchase price and the share net aset value.

SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commision, the primary federal regulatory agency of the securities industry.

SECONDARY MARKET
A market that provides for the purchase or sale of previously owned securities. Most trading is done in the secondary market. The New York Stock Exchange, as well as all other stock exchanges, the bond markets, etc., are secondary markets.

SELLING SHORT
If an investor thinks the price of a stock is going down, the investor could borrow the stock from a broker and sell it. Eventually, s/he must buy the stock back on the open market. For instance, you borrow 1000 shares of XYZ on July 1 and sell it for $8 per share. Then, on Aug 1, you purchase 1000 shares of XYZ at $7 per share. You've made $1000 (les commisions and other fees) by selling short.

SETTLEMENT DATE
The date on which payment is made to settle a trade. For stocks traded on US exchanges, settlement is currently 5 business days after the trade, but this will be reduced to 3 days in 1995. For mutual funds, settlement usually occurs in the U.S. the day following the trade. In some regional markets, foreign shares may require months to settle.

SHARES
Certificates or book entries representing ownership in a corporation or similar entity

SHARE REPURCHASE
Program by which a corporation buys back its own shares in the open market. It is usually done when shares are undervalued. Since it reduces the number of shares outstanding and thus increases earnings per share, it tends to elevate the market value of the remaining shares held by stockholders.

SHORT POSITION (STOCKS)
Occurs when a person sells stocks s/he does not yet own. Shares must be borrowed, before the sale, to make "good delivery" to the buyer. Eventually, the shares must be bought to close out the transaction. Technique is used when an investor believes the stock price is going down.

SHORT SALE
Selling a security that the seller does not own but is committed to repurchasing eventually. It is used to capitalize on an expected decline in the security's price.

SLIPPAGE
The difference between estimated transaction costs and actual transaction costs. The difference is usually composed of revisions to price difference or spread and commision costs.

SIC
Abbreviation for Standard Industrial Clasification. Each 4-digit code represents a unique business activity.

STOCK DIVIDEND
Payment of a corporate dividend in the form of stock rather than cash. The stock dividend may be additional shares in the company, or it may be shares in a subsidiary being spun off to shareholders. Stock dividends are often used to conserve cash needed to operate the business. Unlike a cash dividend, stock dividends are not taxed until sold.

STOP (LOSS) ORDER
An order to sell a stock when the price falls to a specified level.

T
10-K
Annual report required by the SEC each year. Provides a comprehensive overview of a company's state of business. Must be filed within 90 days after fiscal year end. A 10Q report is filed quarterly.

TICK INDICATOR
A market indicator based on the number of stocks whose last trade was an uptick or a downtick. Used as an indicator of market sentiment or psychology to try to predict the market's trend.

TOTAL REVENUE
Total sales and other revenue for the period shown. Known as "turnover" in the UK.

TRADE
A verbal (or electronic) transaction involving one party buying a security from another party. Once a trade is consummated, it is considered "done" or final. Settlement occurs 1-5 business days later.

TRADE DATE
The date on which a trade occurs. Trades generally settle (are paid for) 1-5 business days after a trade date. With stocks, settlement is generally 5 business days after the trade. TRADING RANGE
The difference between the high and low prices traded during a period of time; with commodities, the high/low price limit established by the exchange for a specific commodity for any one day's trading.

TURNOVER
Mutual Funds: A measure of trading activity during the previous year, expresed as a percentage of the average total asets of the fund. A turnover ratio of 25 % means that the value of trades represented one-fourth of the asets of the fund. Finance: The number of times a given aset, such as inventory, is replaced during the accounting period, usually a year. Corporate: The ratio of annual sales to net worth, representing the extent to which a company can growth without outside capital. Markets: The volume of shares traded as a percent of total shares listed during a specified period, usually a day or a year. Great Britain: Total revenue

12B-1 FEES
The percent of a mutual fund's asets used to defray marketing and distribution expenses. The amount of the fee is stated in the fund's prospectus. The SEC has recently proposed that 12b1 fees in exces of 0.25% be clased as a load. A true "no load" fund has neither a sales charge nor 12b1 fee.

V
VOLATILITY
A measure of risk based on standard deviation in fund performance over 3 years. Scale is 1-9; higher rating indicates higher risk.
Std Deviation Rating Std Deviation Rating
up to 7.99 1
8.00-10.99 2
11.00-13.99 3
14.00-16.99 4
17.00-19.99 5
20.00-22.99 6
23.00-25.99 7
26.00-28.99 8
29.00 and up 9

W
WANTED FOR CASH
A statement displayed on market tickers which indicates that a bidder will pay cash for same day settlement of a block of a specified security.

WARRANT
A security entitling the holder to buy a proportionate amount of stock at some specified future date at a specified price, usually one higher than current market. This "warrant" is then traded as a security, the price of which reflects the value of the underlying stock. Warrants are usually isued as a "sweetener" bundled with another clas of security to enhance the marketability of the latter,

WASTING ASSET
An aset which has a limited life and thus, decreases in value (depreciates) over time. Also applied to consumed asets, such as gas, and termed "depletion."

WATCH LIST
A list of securities selected for special surveillance by a brokerage, exchange or regulatory organization; firms on the list are often takeover targets, companies planning to isue new securities or stocks showing unusual activity.

WITHDRAWAL PLAN
The ability to establish automatic periodic mutual fund redemptions and have proceeds mailed directly to the investor.

W-TYPE BOTTOM
A double bottom where the price or indicator chart has the appearance of a W.

Y

YIELD
The percentage rate of return paid on a stock in the form of dividends, or the rate of interest paid on a bond or note.

YIELD TO CALL
The percentage rate of a bond or note, if your were to buy and hold the security until the call date. This yield is valid only if the security is called prior to maturity. Generally bonds are callable over several years and normally are called at a slight premium. The calculation of yield to call is based on the coupon rate, length of time to the call and the market price.

YIELD TO MATURITY
The percentage rate of return paid on a bond, note or other fixed income security if you buy and hold it to its maturity date. The calculation for YTM is based on the coupon rate, length of time to maturity and market price. It asumes that coupon interest paid over the life of the bond will be reinvested at the same rate.