Short interestShort interest is the total number of shares of a particular stock that investors have sold short in anticipation of a decline in the share price and have…
Short positionIf you sell stock short and have not yet repurchased shares to replace the ones you borrowed, you are said to have a short position in that stock.
Short rate cancellationCancellation by the insured of an insurance policy for which the returned unearned premium is diminished by administration costs incurred when the…
Short Salewhen the servicer allows the homeowner to list and sell the mortgaged property with the understanding that the net proceeds from the sale may be less than…
short salesThe sale of shares which the seller does not own. The seller is speculating that the price will fall, in the hope of later purchasing the same number of…
Signature CardA card signed by each depositor and customer of a bank which may be used as a means of identification.
Signature DateThe date that a filer or reviewer digitally or electronically signed (eSigned) the financial disclosure report.
SIMPLEA SIMPLE, also known as a SIMPLE IRA, is short for Savings Incentive Match Plans for Employees, an employer sponsored retirement savings plan that may be…
Simple interestIf you earn simple interest on money you deposit in a bank or use to purchase a certificate of deposit (CD), the interest is figured on the amount of your…
sin taxA tax on goods such as tobacco and alcohol.
single filing statusIf on the last day of the year, you are unmarried or legally separated from your spouse under a divorce or separate maintenance decree and you do not…
Single interest insuranceInsurance coverage for only one of the parties having an insurable interest in that property.
Single-Family ResidenceA residential single family dwelling. Incidental office, professional, private school, or studio occupancies, including a small service operation, are…
Single-Sum DistributionNon-periodic distribution from a qualified retirement plan received before an annuity start date. TERI payouts are considered single-sum distributions.
Sinking fundTo ensure there's money on hand to redeem a bond or preferred stock issue, a corporation may establish a separate custodial account, called a sinking…
Slow marketA slow market is one with sluggish trading and static prices. In this environment, it may be difficult to find buyers willing to pay the price at which…
small cap fundA small Cap Fund is a mutual fund that holds the stocks of small capitalized companies as opposed to large "blue chip" companies.
Small order execution system (SOES)The small order execution system automatically routes, executes, reports, and compares market and limit orders between 100 and 1,000 shares in Nasdaq…
Small-capitalization stockShares of relatively small publicly traded corporations with a total market capitalization of less than $2.
SmishingA combination of “SMS” and phishing. Smishing uses cell phone text messages or SMS (Short Message Service) to deliver a message in order to get you to…
Social SecuritySocial Security is a federal government program designed to provide income for qualifying retired people, their dependents, and disabled people who meet…
Social Security TaxProvides benefits for retired workers and their dependents as well as for the disabled and their dependents.
Socially responsible fundWhen socially responsible mutual funds, also known as green funds or conscience funds, select securities to meet their investment goals, the securities…
Soft dollarsSoft dollars are amounts that money managers, including mutual fund managers, pay out of their clients' accounts to a brokerage firm to cover the cost of…
Soft marketA soft market, also known as a buyer's market, is one in which there is inactive trading in an individual stock or the market as a whole at current prices.
Software DeveloperDevelops software for the purposes of (1) formatting electronic tax return information according to IRS specifications, and/or (2) transmitting electronic…
Sole proprietorA sole proprietor is the owner and operator of a business that isn't registered as either a corporation or a limited liability company.
South Carolina Retirement System (SCRS)This is the name of the retirement system covering state employees, public school employees, public higher education personnel, and employees of other…
South Carolina Retirement SystemsThis is the name commonly used to refer to the Retirement Division of the State Budget and Control Board .
Special Government Employee (SGE)SGEs are defined at 18 U.S.C. 202(a): Generally, employees performing temporary duty for 130 days or less in any 365 day period, including Reserve and…
Special situationAn undervalued stock that one or more analysts expects to increase in price in the very near future because of an anticipated - and welcome - change…
SpecialistA specialist or specialist unit is a member of a securities exchange responsible for maintaining a fair and orderly market in a specific security or…
Specialist's display bookA display book was traditionally a written chronological record of all limit, stop, and short sale orders that had been placed with a specialist for an…
specialty fundA Specialty Fund is a mutual fund that focuses its holdings in specific types or geographic areas.
SpeculatorWhen you make a financial commitment because you believe something will happen in the market where you're trading that will provide a profit, you are…
Spending planA spending plan can help you manage your money more effectively, live within your income limits, reduce your reliance on consumer credit, and save for the…
Spin-offIn a spin-off, a company sets up one of its existing subsidiaries or divisions as a separate company.
Split-funded annuityA split-funded annuity lets you begin receiving income from a portion of your principal immediately, while the rest of the money goes into a deferred…
SpoofingSome market analysts maintain that the increased volatility in stock markets may be the result of an illegal practice known as spoofing, or phantom bids.
Spot marketCommodities and foreign currencies are traded for immediate delivery and payment on the spot market, also known as a cash market.
Spot priceThe spot, or cash, price is the price of commodities and foreign currencies that are being sold for immediate delivery with payment in cash.
SpreadIn the most general sense, a spread is the difference between two similar measures.
Stacking of UM or UIMThis coverage allows you to either multiply the amount of uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage by the number of vehicles on your policy, or to…
Staff adjusterEmployee of the insurance company’s claims department.
Stale-Dated CheckPresented to the paying bank 180 days (6 months) or more after the original issue date.
Standard & Poor's (S&P)Standard & Poor's (S&P) is an investment services company that rates bonds, stock, commercial paper, and insurance companies.
Standard & Poor's 500 Index (S&P 500)The benchmark Standard & Poor's 500 Index, widely referred to as the S&P 500, tracks the performance of 500 widely held large-cap US stocks in the…
Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipt (SPDR)When you buy SPDRs - pronounced spiders - you're buying shares in a unit investment trust (UIT) that owns a portfolio of stocks included in Standard &…
Standard & Poor's/BARRA Growth and Value IndexesSome investors favor growth stocks while others favor value stocks. Since 1992, results of those investment styles, which tend to produce different…
Standard and Poor’s (S&P)(S&P)A financial services company which is one of the best known bond rating agencies in the country.
standard deductionReduces the income subject to tax and varies depending on filing status, age, blindness, and dependency.
Standard deviationStandard deviation is a statistical measurement of how far a variable quantity, such as the price of a stock, moves above or below its average value.
Standard payment instructionsYou must pay your credit card bill in a manner that meets all the following conditions: You must pay in U.S.
StartupWhile any new company could be considered a start-up, the description is usually applied to aggressive young companies that are actively courting private…
State Chartered Credit UnionA credit union organized under the laws of a State and chartered by that State to conduct the business of banking.
State CodeA two-digit FIPS (Federal Information Processing Standards) code that identifies the state where the property is located.
State guaranty fundsState guaranty funds, which are offered in every state, protect contract owners against the insolvency of an insurance company that has issued insurance…
State Optional Retirement ProgramA defined contribution retirement plan offered as an alternative to SCRS . The State Optional Retirement Program ( State ORP ) is available to all state…
StatementA summary of all transactions that occurred over the preceding month and could be associated with a deposit account or a credit card account.
Statutory votingWhen shareholders vote for candidates nominated to serve on a company's board of directors, they usually cast their ballots using statutory voting.
Step-up in basisWhen you inherit assets, such as securities or property, they are stepped-up in basis.
Stochastic modelingStochastic modeling is a statistical process that uses probability and random variables to predict a range of probable investment performances.
stockA share of stock that represents ownership in the company that issues it. The price of the stock goes up and down, depending on how the company performs…
Stock certificateA stock certificate is a paper document that represents ownership in a corporation.
Stock Life Insurance CompanyA life insurance company owned by stockholders who share in the company's surplus earnings.
Stock marketA stock market may be a physical place, sometimes known as a stock exchange, where brokers gather to buy and sell stocks and other securities.
Stock optionA stock option, or equity option, is a contract that gives its buyer the right to buy or sell a specific stock at a preset price during a certain time…
Stock splitWhen a company wants to make its shares more attractive and affordable to a greater number of investors, it may authorize a stock split to create more…
stock yieldThe annual dividend as a percentage of the price of the stock. For example, a stock selling at $40 a share with an annual dividend of $2 a share yields…
Stop orderYou can issue a stop order, which instructs your broker to buy or sell a security once it trades at a certain price, called the stop price.
Stop PaymentAn order not to pay a check that has been issued but not yet cashed. If requested soon enough, the check will not be debited from the payer's account.
Stop Payment FeeA charge for a stop-payment order, which is a request by a customer that the institution not pay a particular check previously written by the customer.
Stop priceWhen you give an order to buy or sell a stock or other security once it has reached a certain price, the price you name is known as the stop price.
Stop-limit orderA stop-limit is a combination order that instructs your broker to buy or sell a stock once its price hits a certain target, known as the stop price, but…
StraddleA straddle is hedging strategy that involves buying or selling a put and a call option on the same underlying instrument at the same strike price and with…
Straight lifeA straight life insurance policy is a type of permanent insurance that provides a guaranteed death benefit and has fixed premiums.
StrangleA strangle is hedging strategy in which you buy or sell a put and a call option on the same underlying instrument with the same expiration date but at…
Street nameThe term used to describe securities that are held in the name of your brokerage firm but that still belong to you.
Strike priceThe strike price, also called the exercise price, is the price at which you as an options holder can buy or sell the stock or other financial instrument…
STRIPSSTRIPS, an acronym for separate trading of registered interest and principal of securities, are special issues of US Treasury zero-coupon bonds.
Structured productFinancial institutions create investment products, known generically as structured products, that trade on a stock exchange and link the return on an…
Stub stockWhen a company has a negative net worth as a result of being bought out or going bankrupt, it may convert some of the bonds it has issued into shares of…
Student LoanLoans made, insured, or guaranteed under any program authorized by the Higher Education Act. Loan funds are used by the borrower for education purposes.
SubaccountThe separate account funds to which you allocate your variable annuity premiums are sometimes called subaccounts.
subclassEach asset class - stock, bonds, and cash equivalents, for example - is made up of a number of different groups of investments called subclasses.
Submit-for-RateAn application for flood insurance on a building for which no risk rate is published in the Flood Insurance Manual.
SubmittedThe term used to collectively describe those FDM disclosure report Review Statuses that are not Draft.
Submitted DateThe original date the filer electronically submitted a financial disclosure report.
Subordinated debtSubordinated debt generally refers to debt securities that have a secondary or lesser claim to the issuer's assets than more senior debt, should the…
Subprime“Prime” and “Subprime” refers to the interest rate and terms of the loan based on the borrower’s credit history.
Subprime MortgagesA classification of mortgages with a higher perceived risk of default than prime and Alt-A loans.
SubrogationThe process of recovering the amount of claims damages paid out to a policyholder from the legally liable party.
Subscription priceThe subscription price is the discounted price at which a current shareholder can buy additional shares of company stock before these newly available…
Subscription rightIf a corporation's charter has a preemptive rights clause, before the company offers a new issue of securities to the public, it must offer existing…
Substitute checkA substitute check is a paper copy of the front and back of the original check.