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…
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.
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.
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.
Suitability rulesSelf regulatory organizations (SROs), such as NASD, securities exchanges, and individual brokerage firms require that stockbrokers ensure that the…
Supervised LenderA person authorized to make or take assignments of most consumer loans and residential mortgages, either under a license issued by the Administrator…
Supervised LoansConsumer loans, including loans made with open-end credit, in which the finance charge is greater than 12.
supportFor dependency test purposes, support includes food, clothing, shelter, education, medical and dental care, recreation, and transportation.
Surrender feeA surrender fee is the penalty you owe if you withdraw money from an annuity or mutual fund within a certain time period after purchase.
Survivorship lifeSurvivorship life insurance, also known as a second-to-die policy, is permanent insurance that covers the lives of two people and pays the death benefit…
Suspended tradingSuspended trading means that an exchange has temporarily stopped trading in a particular stock or other security.
SuspensionThe temporary disqualification of a firm or individual from contracting with the government or participating in government programs, pending the outcome…
SwapWhen you swap or exchange securities, you sell one security and buy a comparable one almost simultaneously.
Sweep accountA brokerage firm or bank may automatically transfer - or sweep - a client's uninvested or surplus funds into a designated account.
SyndicateWhen a group of investment banks works together to underwrite and distribute a new security issue, they are acting as a syndicate.
Syntactical EditsThe loan applications will not be loaded to the FFIEC database. If they should be included on the FFIEC database, the data must be corrected.
Synthetic investmentA synthetic investment simulates the return of an actual investment, but the return is actually created by using a combination of financial instruments…
Systematic riskSystematic risk, also called market risk, is risk that's characteristic of an entire market, a specific asset class, or a portfolio invested in that asset…
Systematic withdrawalSystematic withdrawal is a method of receiving income in regular installments from your mutual fund accounts, retirement plans, or annuity contracts.
TailgatingWhen a broker places your order for a security, and then immediately places an order for his or her own account for the same security, the broker is…
Target date fundA target date fund is a fund of funds that allows you to link your investment portfolio to a particular time horizon, typically your expected retirement…
Target risk fundA target risk fund is a fund of funds that maintains a specific asset allocation in order to provide an essentially level exposure to investment risk.
tariffA tax on products imported from foreign countries.
tax avoidanceAn action taken to lessen tax liability and maximize after-tax income.
Tax bracketA tax bracket is a range of income that is taxed at a specific rate. In the United States there are six brackets, taxed at 10%, 15%, 25%, 28%, 33%, and…
tax codeThe official body of tax laws and regulations.
Tax CreditA tax credit is an amount you can subtract from the tax you would otherwise owe.
tax cutA reduction in the amount of taxes taken by the government.
tax deductionAn amount (often a personal or business expense) that reduces income subject to tax.
Tax deferredA tax-deferred account allows you to postpone income tax that would otherwise be due on employment or investment earnings you hold in the account until…
tax evasionA failure to pay or a deliberate underpayment of taxes.
Tax exemptSome investments are tax exempt, which means you don't have to pay income tax on the earnings they produce.
tax exemptionA part of a person's income on which no tax is imposed.
tax liability (or total tax bill)The amount of tax that must be paid. Taxpayers meet (or pay) their federal income tax liability through withholding, estimated tax payments, and payments…
tax preparation softwareComputer software designed to complete tax returns. The tax preparation software works with the IRS electronic filing system.
tax shiftThe process that occurs when a tax that has been levied on one person or group is in fact paid by others.
Tax-efficient fundsWhen a mutual fund minimizes the income earnings and capital gains it distributes to its shareholders, it may be described as a tax-efficient fund.
tax-exempt interest incomeInterest income that is not subject to income tax. Tax-exempt interest income is earned from bonds issued by states, cities, or counties and the District…
taxable interest incomeInterest income that is subject to income tax. All interest income is taxable unless specifically excluded.
taxesRequired payments of money to governments that are used to provide public goods and services for the benefit of the community as a whole.
Teaser rateA teaser rate is a low introductory interest rate on a credit card or an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM).
Technical analysisTechnical analysts track price movements and trading volumes in various securities to identify patterns in the price behavior of particular stocks, mutual…
Telemarketing FraudUnsolicited telephone call from a criminal who tries to trick the consumer into disclosing personal information (bank account number, credit card number…
telephone tax refundTaxpayers are eligible to file for refunds of all excise tax they have paid on long-distance service billed to them after Feb. 28, 2003.
Tenancy-in-commonWhen two or more people own property as tenants-in-common (TIC), they share in the property's tax benefits, any income it generates, and its growth in…
Tender offerWhen a corporation or other investor offers to buy a large portion of outstanding shares of another company, called the target company, at a price higher…
TermA term is the length of time between when a fixed-income security, such as a bond or note, is offered for sale and its maturity date.
Term InsuranceA plan of insurance that covers the insured for only a certain period of time (the term), not for his or her entire life.
TerminationA Reporting Status for an employee who is leaving a covered position that requires the filer to file an SF 278.
Termination DateThe SF 278 filer's last day in the position. It is the last day paid for that position.
TermsThe period of time and the interest rate arranged between creditor and debtor to repay a loan.
Thin marketA thin market is one where securities trade infrequently. The term can refer to an entire securities market, such as one in an emerging nation, a specific…
Thinly tradedA particular stock, sector, or market is said to be thinly traded if transactions occur only infrequently, and there are a limited number of interested…
Third marketExchange-listed securities, such as those that are traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) or the American Stock Exchange (AMEX), may also be bought…
Third Party Feesa fee that you pay up front for a mortgage broker to pay to another party, such as to obtain a credit report, order an appraisal, or to do a title search.
ThriftAn organization that primarily accepts savings account deposits and invests most of the proceeds in mortgages.
TickA tick is the minimum movement by which the price of a security, option, or index changes. With stocks, a tick may be little as one cent.
Ticker (tape)While the stock markets are in session, there is a running record of trading activity in each individual stock.
Ticker symbolA ticker symbol, also known as a stock symbol, is a unique string of letters that identifies a particular stock on one of two electronic tapes that report…
Time depositA time deposit (also known as a term deposit) is a money deposit at a bank that cannot be withdrawn for a certain "term" or period of time.
Time value of moneyThe concept that money today is worth more than the same amount in the future, when inflation has reduced its value.
tip incomeMoney and goods received for services performed by food servers, baggage handlers, hairdressers, and others.
TitleA title is a legal document proving ownership of a piece of property. If you are buying real estate you authorize a title search, or examination of…
Title InsuranceTitle insurance protects your lender's interest in your home and real property in case its ownership is contested in court.
Title SearchA title search is an examination of property records by a title company or attorney to ensure that the person from whom you are buying a piece of property…
Toehold purchaseA toehold purchase is one in which an individual investor or investment firm caps holdings in a potential target company at less than 5% of the company's…
Total returnTotal Return is the change in value of the fund plus any distribution (i.e. capital gain, interest, and dividends) divided by the value of the fund at the…
Total return indexA total return index is an equity market index that's calculated using the assumption that all of the dividends that the stocks in the index pay are…
Tracking stockSome corporations issue tracking stock, a type of common stock whose value is linked to the performance of a particular division or business within a…
Trade dateThe trade date is the day on which you buy or sell a security, option, or futures contract.
TraderTraders who are dealers or market makers select the securities in which they will specialize and provide quotes on those securities in the marketplace.
Trading floorThe trading floor is the active trading area of a stock exchange, such as the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
Trading rangeA trading range means different things on different types of markets. On a stock exchange or over-the-counter market, it's the spread between the highest…
Trading symbolAll companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the American Stock Exchange (AMEX), or the NASDAQ Stock Market are represented by a unique…
Trading volumeTrading volume is the quantity of stocks, bonds, futures contracts, options, or other investments that are bought sold in a specific period of time…
TrancheCertain securities, such as collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs), are made up of a number of classes, called tranches, that differ from each other…