Definition of index funds

index funds

Mutual funds that aim to track the performance of a specific stock or bond index. This process is also referred to as indexing and passive management.

Index Portfolio Rebalancing Service (IPRS)

index Portfolio Rebalancing Service (IPRS) is a comprehensive investment service that can help increase potential returns while reducing volatility. Several portfolios are available, each with its own strategic balance of index funds. IPRS maintains your personal asset allocation by monitoring and rebalancing your portfolio semi-annually.

Arms index

Also known as a trading index (TRIN)= (number of advancing issues)/ (number of declining
issues) (Total up volume )/ (total down volume). An advance/decline market indicator. Less than 1.0 indicates
bullish demand, while above 1.0 is bearish. The index often is smoothed with a simple moving average.

Beta (Mutual Funds)

The measure of a fund's or stocks risk in relation to the market. A beta of 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. Beta is referred to as an index of the systematic risk due to
general market conditions that cannot be diversified away.

Beta equation (Mutual Funds)

The beta of a fund is determined as follows:
[(n) (sum of (xy)) ]-[ (sum of x) (sum of y)]
[(n) (sum of (xx)) ]-[ (sum of x) (sum of x)]
where: n = # of observations (36 months)
x = rate of return for the S&P 500 index
y = rate of return for the fund

Bond indexing

Designing a portfolio so that its performance will match the performance of some bond index.

Buying the index

Purchasing the stocks in the S&P 500 in the same proportion as the index to achieve the
same return.

Consumer Price Index (CPI)

The CPI, as it is called, measures the prices of consumer goods and services and is a
measure of the pace of U.S. inflation. The U.S.Department of Labor publishes the CPI very month.

Cost of funds

Interest rate associated with borrowing money.

Dividend yield (Funds)

Indicated yield represents return on a share of a mutual fund held over the past 12
months. Assumes fund was purchased 1 year ago. Reflects effect of sales charges (at current rates), but not
redemption charges.

EAFE index

The European, Australian, and Far East stock index, computed by Morgan Stanley.

Endowment funds

Investment funds established for the support of institutions such as colleges, private
schools, museums, hospitals, and foundations. The investment income may be used for the operation of the
institution and for capital expenditures.

Enhanced indexing

Also called indexing plus, an indexing strategy whose objective is to exceed or replicate
the total return performance of some predetermined index.

Federal funds

Non-interest bearing deposits held in reserve for depository institutions at their district Federal
Reserve Bank. Also, excess reserves lent by banks to each other.

Federal funds market

The market where banks can borrow or lend reserves, allowing banks temporarily
short of their required reserves to borrow reserves from banks that have excess reserves.

Federal funds rate

This is the interest rate that banks with excess reserves at a Federal Reserve district bank
charge other banks that need overnight loans. The Fed funds rate, as it is called, often points to the direction
of U.S. interest rates.

Forward Fed funds

Fed funds traded for future delivery.

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 less capital investments in trust property and
the amortization of mortgages.

Index and Option Market (IOM)

A division of the CME established in 1982 for trading stock index
products and options. Related: Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME).

Index arbitrage

An investment/trading strategy that exploits divergences between actual and theoretical
futures prices.

Index fund

Investment fund designed to match the returns on a stockmarket index.

Index model

A model of stock returns using a market index such as the S&P 500 to represent common or
systematic risk factors.

Index option

A call or put option based on a stock market index.

Index warrant

A stock index option issued by either a corporate or sovereign entity as part of a security
offering, and guaranteed by an option clearing corporation.

Indexed bond

Bond whose payments are linked to an index, e.g. the consumer price index.

Indexing

A passive instrument strategy consisting of the construction of a portfolio of stocks designed to
track the total return performance of an index of stocks.

Jensen index

An index that uses the capital asset pricing model to determine whether a money manager
outperformed a market index. The "alpha" of an investment or investment manager.

Market value-weighted index

An index of a group of securities computed by calculating a weighted average
of the returns on each security in the index, with the weights proportional to outstanding market value.

Optimization approach to indexing

An approach to indexing which seeks to Optimize some objective, such
as to maximize the portfolio yield, to maximize convexity, or to maximize expected total returns.

Profitability index

The present value of the future cash flows divided by the initial investment. Also called
the benefit-cost ratio.

Pure index fund

A portfolio that is managed so as to perfectly replicate the performance of the market portfolio.

Risk indexes

Categories of risk used to calculate fundamental beta, including (1) market variability, (2)
earnings variability, (3) low valuation, (4) immaturity and smallness, (5) growth orientation, and (6) financial risk.

Single index model

A model of stock returns that decomposes influences on returns into a systematic factor,
as measured by the return on the broad market index, and firm specific factors.

Single-index model

Related: market model

Stock index option

An option in which the underlying is a common stock index.

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.

Stratified sampling approach to indexing

An approach in which the index is divided into cells, each
representing a different characteristic of the index, such as duration or maturity.

Stratified sampling bond indexing

A method of bond indexing that divides the index into cells, each cell
representing a different characteristic, and that buys bonds to match those characteristics.

Strike index

For a stock index option, the index value at which the buyer of the option can buy or sell the
underlying stock index. The strike index is converted to a dollar value by multiplying by the option's contract multiple.
Related: strike price

Surplus funds

Cash flow available after payment of taxes in the project.

Term Fed Funds

Fed funds sold for a period of time longer than overnight.

Treynor Index

A measure of the excess return per unit of risk, where excess return is defined as the
difference between the portfolio's return and the risk-free rate of return over the same evaluation period and
where the unit of risk is the portfolio's beta.

12b-1 funds

Mutual funds that do not charge an upfront or back-end commission, but instead take out up to
1.25% of average daily fund assets each year to cover the costs of selling and marketing shares, an
arrangement allowed by the SEC's Rule 12b-I (passed in 1980).

Profitability index

See cash value added.

Shareholders’ funds

The capital invested in a business by the shareholders, including retained profits.

Profitability Index

A method for determining the profitability of an investment. It is
calculated by dividing the present value of the future net cash flows
by the initial cash investment.

present value index

see profitability index

profitability index (Pl)

a ratio that compares the present value of net cash flows to the present value of the net investment

internally generated funds

Cash reinvested in the firm; depreciation plus earnings not paid out as dividends.

market index

Measure of the investment performance of the overall market.

profitability index

Ratio of net present value to initial investment.

Standard & Poor’s Composite Index

index of the investment performance of a portfolio of 500 large stocks. Also called the
S&P 500.

Consumer Price Index (CPI)

An index calculated by tracking the cost of a typical bundle of consumer goods and services over time. It is commonly used to measure inflation.

Federal Funds Rate

The interest rate at which banks lend deposits at the Federal Reserve to one another overnight.

Index

A series of numbers measuring percentage changes over time from a base period. The index number for the base period is by convention set equal to 100.
indexing
Linking money payments to a price index to hold the real value of those money payments constant.

Price Index

A measure of the price level calculated by comparing the cost of a bundle of goods and services in a given year with its cost in a base year. See also index.

Labour-Sponsored Venture Funds

Venture capital corporations established by labour unions. They function as other venture capital corporations but are subject to government regulation.

EFT (electronic funds transfer)

funds which are electronically credited to your account (e.g. direct deposit), or electronically debited from your account on an ongoing basis (e.g. a pre-authorized monthly bill payment, or a monthly loan or mortgage payment). A wire transfer is a form of EFT.

growth funds

Mutual funds that seek long-term capital growth. This type of fund invests primarily in equity securities.

income funds

Mutual funds that seek regular income. This type of fund invests primarily in government, corporate and other types of bonds, debt securities, and other income producing securities and in certain circumstances can also hold common and preferred shares.

index

An index is a statistical measure of a market based on the performance of a sample of securities in that market. For example, the S&P/TSX Composite index reflects the performance of the most actively traded stocks on The Toronto Stock Exchange.

NSF (non-sufficient funds)

This appears on your statement if there are insufficient funds in your account to cover a cheque that you have written or a pre-authorized payment that you have already arranged. You will be charged a service fee for non-sufficient funds.

savings funds

Mutual funds that seek to preserve capital. This type of fund invests primarily in short-term securities with an average term to maturity of one year or less, or in the case of money market funds, 90 days or less.

Indexation

The adjustment of benefits to compensate for the effects of inflation.

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