Financial Instruments & Markets

liquidation

1. When a business or firm is terminated or bankrupt, its assets are sold and the proceeds pay creditors. Any leftovers are distributed to shareholders. 2. Any transaction that offsets or closes out a long or short position. Investopedia explains 'Liquidation' Creditors liquidate assets to try and get as much of the money owed to them as possible. They have first priority to whatever is sold off. After creditors are paid, the shareholders get whatever is left with preferred shareholders having preference over common shareholders.

fixed claim

A claim to a company, such as a bond, in which the terms of the claim are set and the holder of the claim is entitled to agreed upon revenue, such as the interest from a bond.

secured credit

Loans where the lender has the right to claim some of the borrower's assets if they do not repay it.

hedge

Making an investment to reduce the risk of adverse price movements in an asset. Normally, a hedge consists of taking an offsetting position in a related security, such as a futures contract.

capital markets

Markets for buying and selling equity and debt instruments. Capital markets channel savings and investment between suppliers of capital such as retail investors and institutional investors, and users of capital like businesses, government and individuals. Capital markets are vital to the functioning of an economy, since capital is a critical component for generating economic output. Capital markets include primary markets, where new stock and bond issues are sold to investors, and secondary markets, which trade existing securities.

Security markets

Securities market is a component of the wider financial market where securities can be bought and sold between subjects of the economy, on the basis of demand and supply.

residual claim

The right of a shareholder or some other party to the profit of a company after all prior obligations have been paid. Equity claims are perhaps most important in the event of the company's liquidation. Equity claims are also called residual claims.

coupon rate

The yield paid by a fixed income security. A fixed income security's coupon rate is simply just the annual coupon payments paid by the issuer relative to the bond's face or par value. The coupon rate is the yield the bond paid on its issue date. This yield, however, will change as the value of the bond changes, thus giving the bond's yield to maturity. Investopedia explains 'Coupon Rate' A bond's coupon rate can be calculated by dividing the sum of the security's annual coupon payments and dividing them by the bond's par value. For example, a bond which was issued with a face value of $1000 that pays a $25 coupon semi-annually would have a coupon rate of 5%. All else held equal, bonds with higher coupon rates are more desirable for investors than those with lower coupon rates.

financial instrument

a trad-able asset of any kind; either cash, evidence of an ownership interest in an entity, or a contractual right to receive or deliver cash or another financial instrument.

financial markets

is a market in which people and entities can trade financial securities, commodities, and other fungible items of value at low transaction costs and at prices that reflect supply and demand. Securities include stocks and bonds, and commodities include precious metals or agricultural goods.

risk premium

is the minimum amount of money by which the expected return on a risky asset must exceed the known return on a risk-free asset, or the expected return on a less risky asset, in order to induce an individual to hold the risky asset rather than the risk-free asset.

leverage

the ratio of a company's loan capital (debt) to the value of its common stock (equity).

nominal

1. (of a role or status) existing in name only. "Thailand retained nominal independence under Japanese military occupation" synonyms: in name only, titular, formal, official; More antonyms: real of, relating to, or consisting of names. 2. (of a price or amount of money) very small; far below the real value or cost. "some firms charge only a nominal fee for the service" synonyms: token, symbolic; More

Dollar Denominated Bond

1. A U.S. denominated bond that trades outside of the United States. Along with the principal, any coupon payments from the bond are paid in U.S. funds. 2. A bond with a price that is quoted in dollars, rather than based on its yield to maturity.

residual interest

1. A charge for borrowing money that accrues on a credit card account between the date the bill is issued and the date the cardholder pays the bill. Residual interest, also called "trailing interest," is only charged to consumers who carry a balance from month to month. 2. A type of interest payment received by investors in a real estate mortgage investment conduit (REMIC).

depreciation

1. A method of allocating the cost of a tangible asset over its useful life. Businesses depreciate long-term assets for both tax and accounting purposes. 2. A decrease in an asset's value caused by unfavorable market conditions. Investopedia explains 'Depreciation' 1. For accounting purposes, depreciation indicates how much of an asset's value has been used up. For tax purposes, businesses can deduct the cost of the tangible assets they purchase as business expenses; however, businesses must depreciate these assets in accordance with IRS rules about how and when the deduction may be taken based on what the asset is and how long it will last.

Assets

1. A resource with economic value that an individual, corporation or country owns or controls with the expectation that it will provide future benefit. 2. A balance sheet item representing what a firm owns. Investopedia explains 'Asset' 1. Assets are bought to increase the value of a firm or benefit the firm's operations. You can think of an asset as something that can generate cash flow, regardless of whether it's a company's manufacturing equipment or an individual's rental apartment. 2. In the context of accounting, assets are either current or fixed (non-current). Current means that the asset will be consumed within one year. Generally, this includes things like cash, accounts receivable and inventory. Fixed assets are those that are expected to keep providing benefit for more than one year, such as equipment, buildings and real estate.

security

A financial instrument that represents: an ownership position in a publicly-traded corporation (stock), a creditor relationship with governmental body or a corporation (bond), or rights to ownership as represented by an option.

floating interest rate

An interest rate that is allowed to move up and down with the rest of the market or along with an index. This contrasts with a fixed interest rate, in which the interest rate of a debt obligation stays constant for the duration of the agreement. A floating interest rate can also be referred to as a variable interest rate because it can vary over the duration of the debt obligation.

equity

1. A stock or any other security representing an ownership interest. 2. On a company's balance sheet, the amount of the funds contributed by the owners (the stockholders) plus the retained earnings (or losses). Also referred to as "shareholders' equity". 3. In the context of margin trading, the value of securities in a margin account minus what has been borrowed from the brokerage. 4. In the context of real estate, the difference between the current market value of the property and the amount the owner still owes on the mortgage. It is the amount that the owner would receive after selling a property and paying off the mortgage. 5. In terms of investment strategies, equity (stocks) is one of the principal asset classes. The other two are fixed-income (bonds) and cash/cash-equivalents. These are used in asset allocation planning to structure a desired risk and return profile for an investor's portfolio.

junk bonds

A colloquial term for a high-yield or non-investment grade bond. Junk bonds are fixed-income instruments that carry a rating of 'BB' or lower by Standard & Poor's, or 'Ba' or below by Moody's. Junk bonds are so called because of their higher default risk in relation to investment-grade bonds. Investopedia explains 'Junk Bond' Junk bonds are risky investments, but have speculative appeal because they offer much higher yields than safer bonds. Companies that issue junk bonds typically have less-than-stellar credit ratings, and investors demand these higher yields as compensation for the risk of investing in them. A junk bond issued from a company that manages to turn its performance around for the better and has its credit rating upgraded will generally have a substantial price appreciation.

Indenture Agreement

A legal and binding contract between a bond issuer and the bondholders. The indenture specifies all the important features of a bond, such as its maturity date, timing of interest payments, method of interest calculation, callable/convertible features if applicable and so on.

protective covenant

A part of an indenture or loan agreement that limits certain actions a company may take during the term of the loan to protect the lender's interests.

call provision

A provision on a bond or other fixed-income instrument that allows the original issuer to repurchase and retire the bonds. If there is a call provision in place, it will typically come with a time window under which the bond can be called, and a specific price to be paid to bondholders and any accrued interest are defined. Callable bonds will pay a higher yield than comparable non-callable bonds.

derivative

A security whose price is dependent upon or derived from one or more underlying assets. The derivative itself is merely a contract between two or more parties. Its value is determined by fluctuations in the underlying asset. The most common underlying assets include stocks, bonds, commodities, currencies, interest rates and market indexes. Most derivatives are characterized by high leverage. A derivative security is distinguished by the fact that its claim to future payments depends upon the value of some other underlying asset. Also known as contingent claims.

money markets

A segment of the financial market in which financial instruments with high liquidity and very short maturities are traded. The money market is used by participants as a means for borrowing and lending in the short term, from several days to just under a year. Money market securities consist of negotiable certificates of deposit (CDs), bankers acceptances, U.S. Treasury bills, commercial paper, municipal notes, federal funds and repurchase agreements (repos).

hedge fund

An aggressively managed portfolio of investments that uses advanced investment strategies such as leveraged, long, short and derivative positions in both domestic and international markets with the goal of generating high returns (either in an absolute sense or over a specified market benchmark). Legally, hedge funds are most often set up as private investment partnerships that are open to a limited number of investors and require a very large initial minimum investment. Investments in hedge funds are illiquid as they often require investors keep their money in the fund for at least one year.

Convertible Preferred Stock

Preferred stock that includes an option for the holder to convert the preferred shares into a fixed number of common shares, usually anytime after a predetermined date. Also known as "convertible preferred shares."

market price

The current price at which an asset or service can be bought or sold. Economic theory contends that the market price converges at a point where the forces of supply and demand meet. Shocks to either the supply side and/or demand side can cause the market price for a good or service to be re-evaluated. Investopedia explains 'Market Price' For example, suppose that the market price for a widget has been $10 for a number of years. Suddenly, the market price shifts to $20 when it is announced that only half of this year's widgets will be sold in stores. In this case, a drop in supply causes the market price to increase.

par value

The face value of a bond. Par value for a share refers to the stock value stated in the corporate charter. Par value is important for a bond or fixed-income instrument because it determines its maturity value as well as the dollar value of coupon payments. Par value for a bond is typically $1,000 or $100. Shares usually have no par value or very low par value, such as 1 cent per share. The market price of a bond may be above or below par, depending on factors such as the level of interest rates and the bond's credit status. In the case of equity, par value has very little relation to the shares' market price. Also known as nominal value or face value.

inflation

The rate at which the general level of prices for goods and services is rising, and, subsequently, purchasing power is falling. Central banks attempt to stop severe inflation, along with severe deflation, in an attempt to keep the excessive growth of prices to a minimum. Investopedia explains 'Inflation' As inflation rises, every dollar will buy a smaller percentage of a good. For example, if the inflation rate is 2%, then a $1 pack of gum will cost $1.02 in a year. Most countries' central banks will try to sustain an inflation rate of 2-3%.