Shares

Shares
A unit of ownership interest in a corporation or financial asset. While owning shares in a business does not mean that the shareholder has direct control over the business's day-to-day operations, being a shareholder does entitle the possessor to an equal distribution in any profits, if any are declared in the form of dividends. The two main types of shares are common shares and preferred shares.

In the past, shareholders received a physical paper stock certificate that indicated that they owned "x" shares in a company. Today, brokerages have electronic records that show ownership details. Owning a "paperless" share makes conducting trades a simpler and more streamlined process, which is a far cry from the days were stock certificates needed to be taken to a brokerage before a trade could be conducted.

While shares are often used to refer to the stock of a corporation, shares can also represent ownership of other classes of financial assets, such as mutual funds.


Investment dictionary. . 2012.

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  • shares — index securities Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 shares …   Law dictionary

  • shares — shares; shares·man; …   English syllables

  • shares — Stock Stock (st[o^]k), n. [AS. stocc a stock, trunk, stick; akin to D. stok, G. stock, OHG. stoc, Icel. stokkr, Sw. stock, Dan. stok, and AS. stycce a piece; cf. Skr. tuj to urge, thrust. Cf. {Stokker}, {Stucco}, and {Tuck} a rapier.] 1. The stem …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • shares — certificates or book entries representing ownership in a corporation or similar entity. Bloomberg Financial Dictionary CME Class A Shares and Class B Shares. Chicago Mercantile Exchange Glossary See security Exchange Handbook Glossary …   Financial and business terms

  • Shares outstanding — are common shares that have been authorized, issued, and purchased by investors. They have voting rights and represent ownership in the corporation by the person or institution that holds the shares. They should be distinguished from treasury… …   Wikipedia

  • Shares authorized — is the maximum number of shares that a company can issue. This number is specified in the company s articles of association but can be changed by shareholder approval. A company usually authorizes a higher number of shares than required to be… …   Wikipedia

  • shares outstanding — The number of shares that have been issued that are actually in the hands of investors. Exchange Handbook Glossary * * * shares outstanding UK US noun [plural] FINANCE, STOCK MARKET ► OUTSTANDING SHARES(Cf. ↑outstanding shares) …   Financial and business terms

  • shares authorized — The maximum number of shares of stock of a company allowed in the articles of incorporation, which may be changed only by a shareholder vote. Bloomberg Financial Dictionary See: issued and outstanding. Bloomberg Financial Dictionary See also:… …   Financial and business terms

  • shares in public hands — A company seeking admission to the Official List must have at least 25% of its shares in public hands where they are held by a director of the company or its subsidiaries, individuals connected with the directors and any person holding 5% or more …   Financial and business terms

  • Shares Per Warrant Ratio —    A ratio measuring the amount of shares available through the exercise of a warrant.    ► See also Warrant …   Financial and business terms

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