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
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 403(b) A 403(b) plan is a tax-advantaged retirement savings account designed specifically for employees of certain tax-exempt organizations, such… Retirement Planning 1099 A 1099 form is a series of tax documents issued by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and used… Taxation

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 Auto comprehensive coverage Auto comprehensive coverage, often simply called comprehensive coverage or “comp,” is an optional part of an auto insurance… Insurance & Risk Protection APR APR stands for Annual Percentage Rate. It is the total yearly cost of borrowing money, expressed as a… Banking & Depository Institutions Credit, Debt & Lending

B

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Beta Beta (β) is a measure of a stock’s volatility relative to the overall market. It is a key… Corporate Finance Stocks & Equity Markets Bear market A bear market is a prolonged period of declining prices in a financial market, typically defined as a… Stocks & Equity Markets 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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Cash conversion cycle The Cash Conversion Cycle (CCC) is a key financial metric that measures the time it takes for a… Financial Ratios & Analysis Financial Statements & Accounting Closed-end fund A closed-end fund is a type of investment company that raises a fixed amount of capital by selling… Mutual Funds, ETFs & Pooled Vehicles Cost of equity The cost of equity is the rate of return that a company must offer to investors to compensate… Corporate Finance

D

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Disposable income Disposable income, also known as disposable personal income (DPI), is the amount of money an individual or household… Personal Finance & Money Management Debt ceiling The debt ceiling (also known as the debt limit) is a legal cap set by the United States… Monetary & Fiscal Policy Dot plot The dot plot is a visual chart published by the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) that shows individual… Monetary & Fiscal Policy

E

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Estimated tax Estimated tax is a method of paying taxes on income that is not subject to withholding. Instead of… Taxation Expected return Expected return is a key concept in investing that represents the average amount of profit or loss an… Investing Fundamentals Effective tax rate The effective tax rate is the average rate at which an individual or a corporation is taxed on… Taxation

F

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Form S-1 Form S-1 is a registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) by companies planning to… Financial Regulation 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 Free cash flow yield Free cash flow yield is a financial ratio that measures how much free cash flow a company generates… Financial Ratios & Analysis

G

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Gross margin Gross margin is a key financial metric that shows how efficiently a company produces and sells its products.… Financial Ratios & Analysis Growth stock A growth stock is a share in a company that is expected to grow at an above-average rate… Stocks & Equity Markets 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

H

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HSA (Health Savings Account) An HSA, or Health Savings Account, is a tax-advantaged savings account that you can use to pay for… Insurance & Risk Protection High-yield (junk) bond A high-yield bond, commonly known as a junk bond, is a type of bond that offers a higher… Bonds & Fixed Income Household cash flow Household cash flow is the total amount of money moving into and out of a household over a… Personal Finance & Money Management

I

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Interest rate An interest rate is the cost of borrowing money or the return earned on savings, expressed as a… Investment-grade bond An investment-grade bond is a bond that is considered high quality and low risk by credit rating agencies.… Bonds & Fixed Income IRS Form 1040 IRS Form 1040, officially titled the “U.S. Individual Income Tax Return,” is the standard federal income tax form… Taxation

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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Leverage Leverage is the strategic use of borrowed capital (debt) to increase the potential return on an investment. In… Corporate 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 Long-term capital gains Long-term capital gains are the profits you earn from selling an asset that you have held for more… Taxation

M

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Margin account A margin account is a type of brokerage account that allows an investor to borrow money from their… Financial Markets & Market Mechanics Mid-cap Mid-cap, short for mid-capitalization, refers to companies with a market capitalization typically between $2 billion and $10 billion.… Stocks & Equity Markets Money supply – M2 Money supply M2 is a broad measure of the total amount of money in an economy. It includes… Monetary & Fiscal Policy

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 No-load fund A no-load fund is a type of mutual fund in which shares are sold directly to investors without… Mutual Funds, ETFs & Pooled Vehicles Nominal GDP Nominal Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is a measure of the total value of all final goods and services… Economics for Finance

O

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Opportunity cost Opportunity cost is the value of the next best alternative that you give up when you make a… Economics for Finance Over-the-counter (OTC) Over-the-counter (OTC) trading refers to a decentralized market where financial instruments are traded directly between two parties, without… Financial Markets & Market Mechanics Open market operations Open market operations (OMO) are the primary tool used by the Federal Reserve System to influence the supply… Monetary & Fiscal Policy

P

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Private mortgage insurance (PMI) Private mortgage insurance, commonly known as PMI, is a type of insurance that protects the lender (the bank… Real Estate & Mortgage Finance Points (discount points) Discount points, often simply called “points,” are a form of prepaid interest you can pay to your lender… Real Estate & Mortgage Finance PEG ratio The PEG ratio (Price/Earnings to Growth ratio) is a fundamental financial metric used to evaluate a stock’s value… 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 Quantitative tightening (QT) Quantitative tightening (QT) is a contractionary monetary policy tool used by a central bank, like the Federal Reserve,… Monetary & Fiscal Policy 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 Russell 2000 The Russell 2000 is a stock market index that tracks the performance of roughly 2,000 of the smallest… Stocks & Equity Markets Risk tolerance Risk tolerance is the degree of variability in investment returns that an individual is willing to withstand as… Investing Fundamentals

S

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Secured debt Secured debt is a type of loan or credit that is backed by an asset, known as collateral.… Credit, Debt & Lending Securities Exchange Act of 1934 The Securities Exchange Act of 1934 is a landmark United States federal law that created the legal framework… Financial Regulation Short-term disability insurance Short-term disability insurance (STD) is a type of insurance policy that provides partial income replacement for a limited… Insurance & Risk Protection

T

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Thrift / Savings & Loan A thrift institution, also known as a Savings and Loan Association (S&L), is a type of financial institution… Banking & Depository Institutions Tax-deferred Tax-deferred refers to a type of investment or savings account where you do not pay taxes on the… Taxation Treasury bills Treasury bills, often called T-bills, are short-term debt securities issued by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. They… Bonds & Fixed Income

U

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Underwater mortgage An underwater mortgage, also known as being in a state of negative equity, occurs when the outstanding balance… Real Estate & Mortgage Finance Unsecured debt Unsecured debt is a type of loan or credit that is not backed by any form of collateral.… Credit, Debt & Lending Universal life insurance Universal life insurance is a type of permanent life insurance that offers flexible premiums, adjustable death benefits, and… Insurance & Risk Protection

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 Variable expenses Variable expenses are costs that change from month to month based on your consumption, choices, or needs. Unlike… Personal Finance & Money Management VA loan A VA loan is a mortgage loan in the United States guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Veterans… Real Estate & Mortgage Finance

W

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Wire transfer A wire transfer is an electronic method of transferring funds from one person or entity to another, directly… Banking & Depository Institutions Withholding Withholding is the portion of an employee’s wages that an employer sends directly to the government to cover… Taxation Wash-sale rule The wash-sale rule is a regulation by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that prevents investors from claiming a… Taxation

Y

3 terms
Yield curve The yield curve is a graphical representation that shows the relationship between interest rates (yields) and the time… Bonds & Fixed Income 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 Yield is a financial term that measures the income generated by an investment, typically expressed as a percentage… Investing Fundamentals

Z

2 terms
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 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