Reference

Glossary Terms

Browse our comprehensive glossary of terms. Search, filter by topic, or navigate alphabetically.

463 Total Terms
18 Topics

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8 terms
457 plan A 457 plan is a type of tax-advantaged retirement savings account offered to employees of state and local… Retirement Planning 10-Q The 10-Q is a detailed financial report that publicly traded companies in the United States must file with… Financial Statements & Accounting Stocks & Equity Markets 10-K The 10-K is an annual report that publicly traded companies must file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange… Financial Statements & Accounting

A

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Appraisal An appraisal is a professional estimate of the market value of a property, such as a home, land,… Real Estate & Mortgage Finance Aggregate supply Aggregate supply (AS) is the total quantity of goods and services that all firms in an economy are… Economics for Finance Adjusted gross income (AGI) Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) is a key number used in the United States tax system. It represents your… Taxation

B

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Broker A broker is an individual or firm that acts as an intermediary between buyers and sellers in financial… Financial Markets & Market Mechanics Business cycle The business cycle—also called the economic cycle or trade cycle—refers to the natural, recurring fluctuations in economic activity… Economics for Finance Bank statement A bank statement is a document issued by a bank or credit union that summarizes all financial transactions… Banking & Depository Institutions

C

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Collateral Collateral is an asset, such as a house, car, or cash, that a borrower pledges to a lender… Credit, Debt & Lending Contribution limit A contribution limit is the maximum amount of money that an individual or their employer can legally deposit… Retirement Planning Cost basis Cost basis is the original value of an asset for tax purposes, usually the purchase price plus any… Taxation

D

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Dividend policy Dividend policy refers to the set of guidelines and strategies that a company’s management uses to decide how… Corporate Finance Debt-to-income (DTI) ratio The Debt-to-Income (DTI) ratio is a personal finance metric that compares your total monthly debt payments to your… Credit, Debt & Lending Down payment A down payment is an upfront, partial payment made by a buyer when purchasing a high-value asset, most… Credit, Debt & Lending Real Estate & Mortgage Finance

E

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Experian Experian is one of the three major credit reporting agencies (along with Equifax and TransUnion) that collect and… Credit, Debt & Lending Exchange An exchange is a regulated marketplace where buyers and sellers come together to trade financial instruments such as… Financial Markets & Market Mechanics Elasticity Elasticity is an economic concept that measures how much one economic variable changes in response to a change… Economics for Finance

F

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Full Retirement Age (FRA) Full Retirement Age (FRA) is the age at which you become eligible to receive your full, unreduced Social… Retirement Planning Front-end load A front-end load is a sales charge or commission that investors pay when they purchase shares of a… Mutual Funds, ETFs & Pooled Vehicles Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) is the monetary policy body of the Federal Reserve System in the… Monetary & Fiscal Policy

G

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Glass-Steagall Act The Glass-Steagall Act (officially the Banking Act of 1933) was a landmark piece of U.S. legislation that created… Financial Regulation GAAP GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) is a common set of accounting rules, standards, and procedures that companies in… Financial Statements & Accounting Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the total monetary value of all finished goods and services produced within a… Economics for Finance

H

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Home equity loan A home equity loan is a type of second mortgage that allows homeowners to borrow money using the… Real Estate & Mortgage Finance Hard inquiry A hard inquiry (also called a hard pull or hard credit check) is a record of when a… Credit, Debt & Lending Hurdle rate The hurdle rate is the minimum acceptable rate of return on an investment or project that a company… Corporate Finance

I

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Installment debt Installment debt is a type of loan that is repaid over time with a set number of scheduled… Credit, Debt & Lending Index fund An index fund is a type of exchange-traded fund or mutual fund designed to track the performance of… Mutual Funds, ETFs & Pooled Vehicles Investment Advisers Act of 1940 The Investment Advisers Act of 1940 is a landmark piece of federal legislation that established the legal framework… Financial Regulation

J

2 terms
JOBS Act The JOBS Act, officially the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, is a landmark piece of U.S. legislation signed… Financial Regulation Jumbo loan A jumbo loan is a type of mortgage used to finance properties that are too expensive for a… Real Estate & Mortgage Finance

L

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Loan-to-value (LTV) Loan-to-Value (LTV) is a critical financial ratio used by mortgage lenders to evaluate the risk of a loan.… Real Estate & Mortgage Finance Limit order A limit order is a type of order to buy or sell a security at a specific price… Financial Markets & Market Mechanics Liquidity Liquidity is a financial concept that describes how quickly and easily an asset can be bought or sold… Financial Markets & Market Mechanics

M

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Modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) is a critical calculation used by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to determine… Taxation Minimum balance A minimum balance is the lowest amount of money a bank or credit union requires you to keep… Banking & Depository Institutions Mortgage-backed security (MBS) A mortgage-backed security (MBS) is a type of investment product that represents a claim on the cash flows… Real Estate & Mortgage Finance

N

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Net margin Net margin, also known as net profit margin, is a key profitability ratio that measures how much of… Financial Ratios & Analysis Nonfarm payrolls Nonfarm payrolls are a monthly economic indicator released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) that measures… Economics for Finance NYSE The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is the world’s largest stock exchange by market capitalization, located at 11… Stocks & Equity Markets

O

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Out-of-pocket maximum The out-of-pocket maximum is the most money you will have to pay for covered healthcare services in a… Insurance & Risk Protection OCC (Office of the Comptroller of the Currency) The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is an independent bureau within the U.S. Department of… Financial Regulation Opportunity cost Opportunity cost is the value of the next best alternative that you give up when you make a… Economics for Finance

P

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PCAOB The PCAOB (Public Company Accounting Oversight Board) is a nonprofit corporation established by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.… Financial Regulation Principal Principal is the original sum of money borrowed in a loan or the original amount invested, before any… Credit, Debt & Lending Price-to-sales (P/S) The Price-to-Sales (P/S) ratio is a valuation metric that compares a company’s stock price to its revenue per… Financial Ratios & Analysis

Q

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Quantitative easing (QE) Quantitative easing (QE) is an unconventional monetary policy tool used by a central bank — like the U.S.… Monetary & Fiscal Policy Qualified plan A qualified plan is a retirement savings plan that meets the requirements of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC)… Retirement Planning Quick (acid-test) ratio The quick ratio, also known as the acid-test ratio, is a stringent measure of a company’s short-term liquidity.… Financial Ratios & Analysis

R

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Real GDP Real GDP (Gross Domestic Product adjusted for inflation) is a critical economic measure that reflects the total value… Economics for Finance Renters insurance Renters insurance is a type of policy designed specifically for people who rent their home or apartment. It… Insurance & Risk Protection Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI) The Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI) is a rule established by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)… Financial Regulation

S

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SIPC The Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) is a nonprofit, membership-funded organization created by the Securities Investor Protection Act… Financial Regulation Share class I (institutional) Share class I (institutional) is a category of mutual fund shares designed specifically for institutional investors, such as… Mutual Funds, ETFs & Pooled Vehicles Secondary market The secondary market is a financial marketplace where investors buy and sell previously issued securities, such as stocks,… Financial Markets & Market Mechanics

T

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Ticker symbol A ticker symbol, also known as a stock symbol, is a unique series of letters assigned to a… Stocks & Equity Markets Tax-loss harvesting Tax-loss harvesting is a strategy used by investors to reduce their taxable income by selling investments that have… Taxation Trade-off theory The trade-off theory is a core concept in corporate finance that explains how companies decide on their mix… Corporate Finance

U

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Universal life insurance Universal life insurance is a type of permanent life insurance that offers flexible premiums, adjustable death benefits, and… Insurance & Risk Protection Unsecured debt Unsecured debt is a type of loan or credit that is not backed by any form of collateral.… Credit, Debt & Lending Unemployment rate The unemployment rate is a key economic indicator that measures the percentage of the labor force that is… Economics for Finance

V

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Vesting Vesting is a legal and financial term that refers to the process by which an employee earns the… Retirement Planning Volatility Volatility is a statistical measure of the dispersion of returns for a given security or market index. In… Investing Fundamentals Value stock A value stock is a share of a company that trades at a lower price relative to its… Stocks & Equity Markets

W

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Withholding Withholding is the portion of an employee’s wages that an employer sends directly to the government to cover… Taxation Whole life insurance Whole life insurance is a type of permanent life insurance that provides coverage for the insured’s entire lifetime,… Insurance & Risk Protection W-2 A W-2 form, officially called the “Wage and Tax Statement,” is a crucial tax document that employers in… Personal Finance & Money Management

Y

3 terms
Yield Yield is a financial term that measures the income generated by an investment, typically expressed as a percentage… Investing Fundamentals Yield to maturity (YTM) Yield to Maturity (YTM) is the total return anticipated on a bond if it is held until it… Bonds & Fixed Income Yield curve The yield curve is a graphical representation that shows the relationship between interest rates (yields) and the time… Bonds & Fixed Income

Z

2 terms
Zero-based budgeting Zero-based budgeting (ZBB) is a method of budgeting where every expense must be justified for each new period,… Personal Finance & Money Management Zero-coupon bond A zero-coupon bond is a type of bond that does not pay periodic interest payments (coupons) to its… Bonds & Fixed Income