Definition of Equityholders

Equityholders

Those holding shares of the firm's equity.

Affirmative covenant

A bond covenant that specifies certain actions the firm must take.

All equity rate

The discount rate that reflects only the business risks of a project and abstracts from the
effects of financing.

American shares

Securities certificates issued in the U.S. by a transfer agent acting on behalf of the foreign
issuer. The certificates represent claims to foreign equities.

Annualized holding period return

The annual rate of return that when compounded t times, would have
given the same t-period holding return as actually occurred from period 1 to period t.

Asset/equity ratio

The ratio of total assets to stockholder equity.

Authorized shares

Number of shares authorized for issuance by a firm's corporate charter.

Bottom-up equity management style

A management style that de-emphasizes the significance of economic
and market cycles, focusing instead on the analysis of individual stocks.

Common stock/other equity

Value of outstanding common shares at par, plus accumulated retained
earnings. Also called shareholders' equity.

Confirmation

he written statement that follows any "trade" in the securities markets. Confirmation is issued
immediately after a trade is executed. It spells out settlement date, terms, commission, etc.

Cross holdings

One corporation holds shares in another firm.

Debt/equity ratio

Indicator of financial leverage. Compares assets provided by creditors to assets provided
by shareholders. Determined by dividing long-term debt by common stockholder equity.

Deferred equity

A common term for convertible bonds because of their equity component and the
expectation that the bond will ultimately be converted into shares of common stock.

Dual syndicate equity offering

An international equity placement where the offering is split into two
tranches - domestic and foreign - and each tranche is handled by a separate lead manager.

Equity

Represents ownership interest in a firm. Also the residual dollar value of a futures trading account,
assuming its liquidation at the going market price.

Equity cap

An agreement in which one party, for an upfront premium, agrees to compensate the other at
specific time periods if a designated stock market benchmark is greater than a predetermined level.

Equity claim

Also called a residual claim, a claim to a share of earnings after debt obligation have been
satisfied.

Equity collar

The simultaneous purchase of an equity floor and sale of an equity cap.

Equity contribution agreement

An agreement to contribute equity to a project under certain specified
conditions.

Equity floor

An agreement in which one party agrees to pay the other at specific time periods if a specific
stock market benchmark is less than a predetermined level.

Equity kicker

Used to refer to warrants because they are usually issued attached to privately placed bonds.

Equity market

Related:Stock market

Equity multiplier

Total assets divided by total common stockholders' equity; the amount of total assets per
dollar of stockholders' equity.

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.

Equity swap

A swap in which the cash flows that are exchanged are based on the total return on some stock
market index and an interest rate (either a fixed rate or a floating rate). Related: interest rate swap.

Equity-linked policies

Related: Variable life

Euroequity issues

Securities sold in the Euromarket. That is, securities initially sold to investors
simultaneously in several national markets by an international syndicate. Euromarket.
Related: external market

Firm

Refers to an order to buy or sell that can be executed without confirmation for some fixed period. Also,
a synonym for company.

Firm commitment underwriting

An undewriting in which an investment banking firm commits to buy the
entire issue and assumes all financial responsibility for any unsold shares.

Firm's net value of debt

Total firm value minus total firm debt.

Firm-specific risk

See:diversifiable risk or unsystematic risk.

Foreign equity market

That portion of the domestic equity market that represents issues floated by foreign companies.

Fully diluted earnings per shares

Earnings per share expressed as if all outstanding convertible securities
and warrants have been exercised.

GEMs (growing-equity mortgages)

Mortgages in which annual increases in monthly payments are used to
reduce outstanding principal and to shorten the term of the loan.

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.

Holding period

Length of time that an individual holds a security.

Holding period return

The rate of return over a given period.

Intrinsic value of a firm

The present value of a firm's expected future net cash flows discounted by the
required rate of return.

Investor's equity

The balance of a margin account. Related: buying on margin, initial margin requirement.

Leveraged equity

Stock in a firm that relies on financial leverage. Holders of leveraged equity face the
benefits and costs of using debt.

Long-term debt to equity ratio

A capitalization ratio comparing long-term debt to shareholders' equity.

Management/closely held shares

Percentage of shares held by persons closely related to a company, as
defined by the Securities and exchange commission. 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.

Neglected firm effect

The tendency of firms that are neglected by security analysts to outperform firms that
are the subject of considerable attention.

Outstanding shares

shares that are currently owned by investors.

Performance shares

shares of stock given to managers on the basis of performance as measured by earnings
per share and similar criteria. A control device used by shareholders to tie management to the self-interest of
shareholders.

Preferred equity redemption stock (PERC)

Preferred stock that converts automatically into equity at a
stated date. A limit is placed on the value of the shares the investor receives.

Preferred shares

Preferred shares give investors a fixed dividend from the company's earnings. And more
importantly: preferred shareholders get paid before common shareholders. See: preferred stock.

Return on equity (ROE)

Indicator of profitability. Determined by dividing net income for the past 12
months by common stockholder equity (adjusted for stock splits). Result is shown as a percentage. Investors
use ROE as a measure of how a company is using its money. ROE may be decomposed into return on assets
(ROA) multiplied by financial leverage (total assets/total equity).

Shareholders' equity

This is a company's total assets minus total liabilities. A company's net worth is the
same thing.

Shares

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

Small-firm effect

The tendency of small firms (in terms of total market capitalization) to outperform the
stock market (consisting of both large and small firms).

Stockholder equity

Balance sheet item that includes the book value of ownership in the corporation. It
includes capital stock, paid in surplus, and retained earnings.

Stockholder's equity

The residual claims that stockholders have against a firm's assets, calculated by
subtracting total liabilities from total assets.

Stratified equity indexing

A method of constructing a replicating portfolio in which the stocks in the index
are classified into stratum, and each stratum is represented in the portfolio.

T-period holding-period return

The percentage return over the T-year period an investment lasts.

Target firm

A firm that is the object of a takeover by another firm.

Top-down equity management style

A management style that begins with an assessment of the overall
economic environment and makes a general asset allocation decision regarding various sectors of the financial
markets and various industries. The bottom-up manager, in contrast, selects the specific securities within the
favored sectors.

Total debt to equity ratio

A capitalization ratio comparing current liabilities plus long-term debt to
shareholders' equity.

Withholding tax

A tax levied by a country of source on income paid, usually on dividends remitted to the
home country of the firm operating in a foreign country. Tax levied on dividends paid abroad.

RATE OF RETURN ON STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

The percentage return or profit that management made on each dollar stockholders invested in a company. Here’s how you figure it:
(Net income) / (Stockholders’ equity)

RATIO OF DEBT TO STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

A ratio that shows which group—creditors or stockholders—has the biggest stake in or the most control of a company:
(Total liabilities) / (Stockholders’ equity)

STOCKHOLDERS’ (OR OWNERS’) EQUITY

The value of the owners’ interests in a company.

Equity

Funds raised from shareholders.

Authorized shares

The number of shares of stock that the company is legally authorized to sell.

Contra-equity account

An account that reduces an equity account. An example is Treasury stock.

Equity

Amounts contributed to the company by the owners (contributed capital) plus the residual earnings of the business (retained earnings).

Issued shares

The number of shares that the company has sold to the public.

Outstanding shares

The number of shares that are in the hands of the public. The difference between issued shares and outstanding shares is the shares held as treasury stock.

Shareholders' equity

The total amount of contributed capital and retained earnings; synonymous with stockholders' equity.

Stockholders' equity

The total amount of contributed capital and retained earnings; synonymous with shareholders’ equity.

debt-to-equity ratio

A widely used financial statement ratio to assess the
overall debt load of a business and its capital structure, it equals total liabilities
divided by total owners’ equity. Both numbers for this ratio are
taken from a business’s latest balance sheet. There is no standard, or
generally agreed on, maximum ratio, such as 1:1 or 2:1. Every industry
is different in this regard. Some businesses, such as financial institutions,
have very high debt-to-equity ratios. In contrast, many businesses
use very little debt relative to their owners’ equity.

equity

Refers to one of the two basic sources of capital for a business, the
other being debt (borrowed money). Most often, it is called owners’
equity because it refers to the capital used by a business that “belongs”
to the ownership interests in the business. Owners’ equity arises from
two quite distinct sources: capital invested by the owners in the business
and profit (net income) earned by the business that is not distributed to
its owners (called retained earnings). Owners’ equity in our highly developed
and sophisticated economic and legal system can be very complex—
involving stock options, financial derivatives of all kinds, different
classes of stock, convertible debt, and so on.

owners' equity

Refers to the capital invested in a business by its shareowners
plus the profit earned by the business that has not been distributed
to its shareowners, which is called retained earnings. Owners’
equity is one of the two basic sources of capital for a business, the other
being borrowed money, or debt. The book value, or value reported in a
balance sheet for owners’ equity, is not the market value of the business.
Rather, the balance sheet value reflects the historical amounts of capital
invested in the business by the owners over the years plus the accumulation
of yearly profits that were not paid out to owners.

return on equity (ROE)

This key ratio, expressed as a percent, equals net
income for the year divided by owners’ equity. ROE should be higher than
a business’s interest rate on debt because the owners take more risk.

stockholders' equity, statement of changes in

Although often considered
a financial statement, this is more in the nature of a supporting schedule
that summarizes in one place various changes in the owners’ equity
accounts of a business during the period—including the issuance and
retirement of capital stock shares, cash dividends, and other transactions
affecting owners’ equity. This statement (schedule) is very helpful
when a business has more than one class of stock shares outstanding
and when a variety of events occurred during the year that changed its
owners’ equity accounts.

Cost of Equity

Same as the cost of common stock. Sometimes viewed as the
rate of return stockholders require to maintain the market value of
the company's common stock.

Return on Common Equity Ratio

A measure of the percentage return earned on the value of the
common equity invested in the company. It is calculated by
dividing the net income available for distribution to shareholders
by the book value of the common equity.

Equity

The difference between the total of all recorded assets and liabilities on the balance
sheet.

Owners' equity

The total of all capital contributions and retained earnings on a business’s
balance sheet.

issued shares

shares that have been issued by the company.

outstanding shares

shares that have been issued by the company and are held by investors.

Equity

Ownership. Common stock represents equity in a corporation.

Equity Method

Accounting method for an equity security in cases where the investor has sufficient
voting interest to have significant influence over the operating and financial policies of an
investee.

Equity Security

An ownership interest in an enterprise, including preferred and common stock.

Shareholders' Equity

The residual interest or owners' claims on the assets of a corporation
that remain after deducting its liabilities.

Common Shares

Are equity instruments that take no security against assets, have no fixed terms of repayment and pay no fixed dividends.

Debt/Equity Ratio

A comparison of debt to equity in a company's capital structure.

Equity

The net worth of a business, consisting of capital stock, capital (or paid-in) surplus (or retained earnings), and, occasionally, certain net worth reserves. Common equity is that part of the total net worth belonging to the common shareholders. Total equity includes preferred shareholders. The terms common stock, net worth, and common equity are frequently used interchangeably.

Equity Buy-Back

Refers to the investors percentage ownership of a company that can be re-acquired by the company, usually at a pre-determined amount.

Preferred Shares

Are equity instruments that take no security against assets, have flexible terms of repayment and pay fixed or floating dividends.

Quasi-Equity

Funds, other than paid-up capital and retained earnings, employed in a business and which will remain in a business as permanent capital.

Shareholder's Equity

Represents the total assets of a corporation less liabilities.

equity

The net worth of a company. This represents the ownership interest of the shareholders (common and preferred) of a company. For this reason, shares or stocks are often known as equities.

Equity-based insurance

Life insurance or annuity product in which the cash value and benefit level fluctuate according to the performance of an equity portfolio.

Equity investment

Through equity investment, investors gain part ownership of the corporation. The primary type of equity investment is corporate stock.

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