Money Glossary L
Glossaries -
Money Glossary
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Fifth letter of a
Nasdaq stock symbol specifying that the issue is a class of stock
such as third preferred class of warrants, foreign preferred, sixth
class of preferred stock, or preferred when issued stock.
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The two-character
ISO 3166 country code for LAO PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC.
-
The
ISO 4217 currency code for Laos New Kip.
-
The two-character
ISO 3166 country code for LEBANON.
-
See:
Leveraged buyout
-
The
ISO 4217 currency code for Lebanese Pound.
-
The two-character
ISO 3166 country code for SAINT LUCIA.
-
See:
Less Than Container Load
-
See:
Less developed countries
-
See:
Long-Term Anticipation Securities
-
The two-character
ISO 3166 country code for LIECHTENSTEIN.
-
See:
London Interbank Offered Rate
-
See:
London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange
-
See:
Last in, first out
-
The two-character
ISO 3166 country code for SRI LANKA.
-
The
ISO 4217 currency code for Sri Lankan Rupee.
-
See:
Letter of credit
-
The two-character
ISO 3166 country code for LIBERIA.
-
The
ISO 4217 currency code for the Liberian Dollar.
-
The two-character
ISO 3166 country code for LESOTHO.
-
The
ISO 4217 currency code for the Lesotho Loti.
-
The two-character
ISO 3166 country code for LITHUANIA.
-
The
ISO 4217 currency code for the Lithuanian Litas.
-
See:
Loan-to-value ratio
-
The two-character
ISO 3166 country code for LUXEMBOURG.
-
The
ISO 4217 currency code for the Luxembourg Franc.
-
The two-character
ISO 3166 country code for LATVIA.
-
The
ISO 4217 currency code for the Latvian Lats.
-
The two-character
ISO 3166 country code for LIBYAN ARAB JAMAHIRIYA.
-
The
ISO 4217 currency code for the Libyan Dinar.
-
See:
Liquid yield option note
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A bond
portfolio construction strategy that invests approximately equal
amounts in every
maturity within a given
range.
-
Strategy in which a third party poses as a
white knight in a
takeover
bid, and then joins forces with an unfriendly bidder.
-
A curve conjecturing that economic output will increase if marginal tax
rates are cut. Named after economist Arthur Laffer.
-
Payment of a financial obligation later than is expected or required, as
in lead and lag. Also, the number of periods that an independent
variable in a
regression model is "held back" in order to predict the dependent
variable.
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A delay of typically about three months between the time the
weighted-average coupon of an
MBS pool crosses the threshold for refinancing and observation of an
acceleration in
prepayment speed is observed.
-
Strategy used by a
firm to
stall payments, normally in response to
exchange rate projections.
-
Economic indicators that follow rather than precede the country's
overall pace of economic activity. See also:
Leading indicators and
coincident indicators.
-
Doctrine that a government should not interfere with business and
economic affairs.
-
The ratio of a change in the
option price to a small change in the option
volatility. It is the partial derivative of the
option price with respect to the option volatility.
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A method of real estate financing; a mortgage-holding seller finances a
buyer by taking a down payment and subsequent payments in installments,
but holds the title until the
mortgage is fully repaid.
-
A property owner who rents property to a tenant.
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An option
that no longer has any value because it has reached its
expiration date without being
exercised.
-
A stock
with a high level of
capitalization, usually at least $5 billion
market value.
-
Economic indicators that follow rather than precede the country's
overall pace of economic activity. See also:
Leading indicators and
coincident indicators.
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An accounting method that fixes the cost of goods sold to the most
recent purchases. Hence, if prices are generally rising, LIFO will lead
to lower accounting profitability.
-
The most recent
trade
performed in a
security.
-
After a
stock split, the number of
shares
distributed for each share held and the date of the distribution.
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The final day under an
exchange's rules during which trading may take place in a particular
futures or
options contract. Contracts
outstanding at the end of the last trading day must be settled by
delivery of
underlying physical commodities or financial
instruments, or by agreement for monetary settlement, depending
futures contract specifications.
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A fee a credit grantor charges a borrower for a late payment.
-
A delay in the display of price changes on the tape of an
exchange because of heavy
trading.
In severe instances the first digit of each price is intentionally
deleted.
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To move illegally acquired cash through financial systems so that it
appears to be legally acquired.
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The mean
of a random sample approaches the mean (expected
value) of the population as sample size increases.
-
An economic rule stating that a given
security must have the same price no matter how the security is
created. If the payoff of a security can be synthetically created by a
package of other
securities, the implication is that the price of the package and the
price of the security whose payoff it replicates must be equal. If it is
unequal, an
arbitrage opportunity would present itself.
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In the context of general equities, this eliminates all or part of a
position by finding customers or other
dealers
to take the position.
-
Used in the context of general equities. Easily
executed
trade
or order.
See:
Lead pipe.
-
Payment of a financial obligation earlier than is expected or required.
-
The commercial or
investment bank with the primary responsibility for organizing
syndicated bank credit or
bond
issued.
The lead manager recruits additional lending or
underwriting banks, negotiates terms of the issue with the
issuer,
and assesses
market
conditions.
-
Used in the context of general equities. Virtually certain that
trade
will take place; lead pipe cinch. See:
Layup.
-
A leading self-regulatory organization that over sees compliance with a
particular section of the law, such as the
NYSE,
ASE, or
NASDAQ.
-
The head of a
syndicate of financial firms that are sponsoring an
initial public offering of
securities or a secondary offering of
securities. Could also apply to
bond
issues.
-
A stock
or group of stocks that is the first to move in a
market
upsurge or downturn.
-
Strategy used by a
firm to
accelerate payments, normally in response to
exchange rate expectations.
-
Economic series that tend to rise or fall in advance of the rest of the
economy.
-
A change in a measurable economic factor that is evident before the
economy starts to follow a specific
trend.
-
Refers to timing of
cash
flows within a corporation.
-
In the context of general equities, this is a
stock
or group of stocks moving with the
market
as a whole, but moving in advance of the general market.
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Release of information selectively or not before official public
announcement.
-
A long-term rental agreement, and a form of secured long-term
debt.
-
The legal fees and other expenses incurred when acquiring a
lease.
-
An asset
providing the right to use property under a
lease
agreement.
-
An improvement made to leased property.
-
An agreement that allows for portions of
lease
payments to be used to purchase the leased property.
-
The payment per period stated in a
lease
contract.
-
A
transaction that involves the sale of some property, and an
agreement by the seller to
lease
the property back from the buyer after the sale.
-
Used in the context of general equities. Remains to
buy or
sell of a previously entered
order
after a report of partial
execution has been given. If the
floor broker to buy 20M IBM at $115, and he then buys 6M at this
price, his report would be, "You bought 6M IBM at $115; leaves 14."
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A firm's cash balance as reported in its financial statements. Also
called
book cash.
-
A prolonged
trend
in stock
market prices, such as a multiple-period
bull
market; or, an
option
that is one side of a
spread
transaction. See:
Lifting a leg.
-
Used in the context of general equities. (1)Have a portion of the
offsetting side of a
trade
in
your pocket (spoken for) so your
capital
risk in
the transaction is reduced. (Purchase of 10,000 of a 50,000 buy
order
leaves the
trader
a "leg up".) (2) Complete one side of a two-sided transaction, as in a
swap or
contingency order.
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A computerized database maintained by the
NYSE
to keep track of enforcement actions, audits, and complaints against
member firms. This term is not an acronym but is referred to in
capitals.
-
Value at which a company's
shares
are recorded in its books.
-
A legal proceeding for
liquidating or reorganizing a business.
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The deposit of
cash
and permitted
securities, as specified in the
bond indenture, into an irrevocable trust sufficient to enable the
issuer
to fully discharge its obligations under the bond indenture.
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A person or organization that can legally enter into a
contract, and may therefore be sued for failure to comply with the
terms of the
contract.
-
Investments that a regulated entity is permitted to make under the
rules and regulations that govern its conduct.
-
A list of high-quality
debt
and
equity
securities chosen by a state agency that are acceptable holdings for
fiduciary institutions.
-
A government-regulated firm that is legally entitled to be the only
company offering a particular service in a particular area.
-
A statement, usually written by a specialized law firm, required for a
new
municipal bond
issue
stating that the
issue
is legally acceptable.
-
A stock
transaction that requires special documentation in addition to
standard stock or
bond
power to be legally valid.
-
The risk that new or changed legislation will have a large positive or
negative effect on an
investment.
-
Used in the context of general equities. Real interest in
trading
as compared to a
profile stance. See:
Natural.
Lehman
Brothers Adjustable-Rate Mortgage Index-
A
benchmark
index
that includes all agency-guaranteed
securities with
coupons
that periodically adjust based on a
spread
over a published
index.
Lehman Brothers Aggregate
Bond Index-
A
benchmark
index
made up of the Lehman Brothers
Government/Corporate
Bond Index,
Mortgage-Backed Securities Index, and
Asset-Backed Securities Index, including
securities that are of investment-grade quality or better, have at
least one year to
maturity, and have an
outstanding
par
value of at least $100 million.
Lehman
Brothers California Municipal Bond Index-
A
benchmark
index
that includes investment-grade, tax-exempt, and fixed-rate bonds issued
in California. All
securities have
long-term
maturities (greater than two years) and are selected from
issues
larger than $50 million.
Lehman Brothers Corporate
Bond Index-
A
benchmark
index
that includes all publicly
issued,
fixed-rate, nonconvertible, dollar-denominated,
SEC-registered,
investment-grade corporate
debt.
Lehman Brothers Government
Bond Index-
A
benchmark
index
made up of the
Treasury Bond Index and the Agency Bond Index as well as the 1-3
Year Government Index and the 20+ Year Treasury Index.
Lehman
Brothers Government/Corporate Bond Index-
A
benchmark
index
made up of the Lehman Brothers®
Government and
Corporate Bond indexes, including U.S. government
Treasury and
agency securities as well as corporate and
Yankee bonds.
Lehman
Brothers Mortgage-Backed Securities Index-
A
benchmark
index
that includes 15- and 30-year fixed-rate
securities backed by mortgage pools of the
Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA),
Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC), and Federal National
Mortgage Association (FNMA).
Lehman Brothers Municipal
Bond Index-
A
benchmark
index
that includes investment-grade, tax-exempt, and fixed-rate bonds with
long-term
maturities (greater than two years) selected from
issues
larger than $50 million.
Lehman
Brothers New York Municipal Bond Index-
A
benchmark
index
that includes investment-grade, tax-exempt, and fixed-rate bonds issued
in the state of New York. All
securities have
long-term
maturities (greater than two years) and are selected from
issues
larger than $50 million.
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An
investment with poor results.
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Named after 2001 Nobel Laureate George Akerlof's 1970 paper "The Market
for Lemons". His original example had to do with used cars. Why does the
seller want to get rid of the car? It might be a lemon. The buyer and
seller have asymmetric information. Hence, the buyer will demand a deep
discount on the car because of the possibility it is a lemon.
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To provide money temporarily on the condition that it or its equivalent
will be returned, often with an
interest fee.
-
The pool of funds available to borrows; typically categorized by
currency and
maturity.
-
Businesses that provide
loans
to others.
-
Traditionally the
Federal Reserve Bank in the US, which assists banks that face large
withdrawals of funds and in so doing stabilizes the banking system.
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Legal action of debtor against
creditors that alleges unfair enforcement of loan
covenants or violation of implied terms of a loan agreement.
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A
contract regarding funds transferred between a
lender
and a borrower.
-
A loan from one
broker
to another of
securities to cover a customer's
short position, with a
borrowing
fee included. A fee is unusual since
securities are normally lent freely between
brokers.
-
Interest paid to a customer on the credit balance received from a
short
sale.
-
Securities borrowed from a
broker's
inventory, from another customer's
margin account, or from another
broker,
when a customer is required to deliver on a
short
sale.
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The condition of a
probability density curve to have fatter tails and a higher peak at
the mean
than the normal distribution.
-
Also known as emerging markets. Countries who's per capita
GDP is below a
World
Bank-determined level.
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Shipments of less than container load size (<$50,000).
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An entity that
leases
an asset
from another entity.
-
An entity that
leases
an asset
to another entity.
-
A certificate issued by the Court evidencing the appointment of the
Administrator of an Estate.
-
A communication to the firm from the
SEC
that suggests changes to its
registration statement.
-
A form of guarantee of payment
issued
by a bank on behalf of a borrower that assures the payment of
interest and repayment of
principal on
bond
issues.
-
A letter from a bank to a brokerage firm which states that a customer
(who has written a call option) does indeed own the underlying stock and
the bank will guarantee delivery if the call is assigned. Thus the call
can be considered covered. Not all brokerage firms accept letters of
guarantee. Also: letter issued to Option Clearing Corporation by member
firms covering a guarantee of any trades made by one of its customers,
(a trader or broker on the exchange floor).
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An assurance by a
mutual fund
shareholder that a certain amount of money will be invested monthly,
in exchange for lower sales charges. In
mergers,
a preliminary
merger
agreement between companies after significant negotiations.
-
Privately placed
common stock, so-called because the
SEC
requires a letter from the purchaser stating that the
stock
is not intended for resale.
-
A certificate issued by the court evidencing the appointment of an
executor of estate.
-
A document used by security holder to accompany certificates surrendered
in an exchange or other corporate action.
-
Used in the context of general equities. Price measure of an
indication.
-
Bond with a stream of
coupon payments that remain the same throughout the life of the
bond.
-
A municipal charter provision that
debt
payments must be relatively equal from year to year so that required
revenue projections are easier.
-
A
mutual fund that charges a permanent sales charge, usually at some
fixed percentage. See:
Front-end loads and back-end loads.
-
Scheduling
principal and
interest payments (P&I) due under a
mortgage so that total monthly payment of P&I is the same. Different
from the typical mortgage for which the
principal payment component of the monthly payment becomes gradually
greater while the monthly interest component shrinks.
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A
life insurance policy with a fixed
face
value and increasing
premiums.
-
The use of
debt financing, or property of rising or falling at a proportionally
greater amount than comparable investments. For example, an
option
is said to have high leverage compared to the
underlying
stock
because a given price change in the stock may result in a greater
increase or decrease in the value of the option.
-
A group of
shareholders who, because of their personal
leverage, seek to invest in corporations that maintain a compatible
degree of corporate leverage.
-
Measures of the relative value of
stockholders, capitalization, and
creditors obligations, and of the firm's ability to pay financing
charges. Value of firm's
debt to
the total value of the firm (debt plus stockholder capitalization).
-
Making transactions to adjust (rebalance) a firm's
leverage ratio to a target ratio.
-
The beta
of a
leveraged
required return; that is, the beta as adjusted for the degree of
leverage in the firm's
capital structure.
-
A transaction used to take a public corporation private that is financed
through
debt such as bank
loans
and bonds.
Because of the large amount of debt relative to
equity
in the new corporation, the bonds are typically rated below
investment-grade, properly referred to as
high-yield bonds or
junk
bonds.
Investors can participate in an LBO through either the purchase of
the debt (i.e., purchase of the bonds or participation in the bank loan)
or the purchase of
equity
through an LBO fund that specializes in such investments.
-
A company that has
debt in
its
capital structure.
-
Stock
in a firm that relies on financial
leverage. Holders of leveraged equity experience the benefits and
costs of using
debt.
-
An
investment company or
mutual fund entitled to
borrow
capital
for its operations. Also, an
investment company that issues both income
shares
and
capital
shares.
-
A lease
arrangement under which the
lessor
borrows a large proportion of the funds needed to purchase the
asset.
The
lender has a
lien on
the assets and a pledge of the lease payments to secure the borrowing.
-
A
portfolio that includes
risky assets purchased with funds borrowed.
-
Often used in risk arbitrage. A public company takes on significant
additional
debt with the purpose of either paying an extraordinary
dividend or repurchasing
shares,
leaving the public
shareholders with a continuing interest in a more financially
leveraged company. Popular form of
shark repellent See:
Stub.
-
The
required return on an investment when the investment is financed
partially by
debt.
-
Stocks
financed with credit, such as that purchased on a
margin account.
-
Investment at least partially financed by borrowing.
-
A financial obligation, or the
cash
outlay that must be made at a specific time to satisfy the
contractual terms of such an obligation.
Liability funding strategies
-
Investment strategies that select
assets
so that
cash
flows will equal or exceed the client's obligations.
-
Insurance guarding against damage or loss that the policyholder, may
cause another person in the form of bodily injury or property damage.
-
An
interest rate swap used to alter the
cash
flow characteristics of an institution's
liabilities so as to provide a better match with its
assets.
-
A contract by which a domestic company (the licensor) allows a foreign
company (the licensee) to market its products in a foreign country in
return for royalties, fees, or other forms of compensation.
-
Arrangement in which a local
firm in
the host country produces goods in accordance with another
firm's
(the licensing
firm's)
specifications; as the goods are sold, the local
firm
can retain part of the
earnings.
-
A
security interest in one or more
assets
that
lenders hold in exchange for
secured debt financing.
-
An
annuity that pays a fixed amount for the lifetime of the annuitant.
-
The lifetime of a product or business, from its creation to its demise
or transformation.
-
The length of time that an average person is expected to live, which is
used by insurance companies use to make projections of benefit payouts.
-
An
insurance policy that pays a monetary benefit to the insured
person's survivors after death.
-
The dollar amount of life insurance that a company has
issued,
measured as the sum of policy
face
values and
dividends paid.
-
The
contract that sets out the terms of
life insurance coverage.
-
A type of
mortgage in which a homeowner
borrows
against the value a home, while retaining title, and making no payments
while residing in the home. When the owner ceases living in the house,
the property is sold, and the loan repaid.
-
An increase in
securities prices, as shown by some economic indicator.
-
Refers to over-the-counter trading. Having an
offer
taken in a
stock, followed by the
market maker raising the
offer
price.
-
Closing out one side of a long-short
arbitrage before the other is closed.
-
Selling some part of a
stock
or bond
position in a
portfolio to realize
capital gains or to losses or increase cash
assets.
-
Peru's major securities market.
-
See
Trading Limit.
-
An attractor for non-linear
dynamic systems which has periodic cycles or orbits in
phase space. An example is an undamped pendulum which will have a
closed circle orbit equal to the amplitude of the pendulum's swing. See:
Attractor,
Phase Space.
-
An order
to buy or sell
stock
at the closing price only if the price is at a predetermined level or
better.
-
An order
to buy a
stock
at or below a specified price, or to sell a stock at or above a
specified price. For instance, you could tell a
broker
"buy me
100
shares of XYZ Corp at $8 or less" or "sell 100 shares of XYZ at $10
or better" The customer specifies a price, and the order can be
executed only if the
market
reaches or betters that price. A conditional
trading
order designed to avoid the danger of adverse unexpected price changes.
-
A record of
unexecuted
limit orders maintained by the
specialist. These
orders
are treated equally with other orders in terms of priority of
execution.
Limit order information
system-
The electronic system supplying information about
securities
traded
on participating
exchanges so that the best
securities prices can be found.
-
See:
Maximum price fluctuation
-
The maximum price change allowed for a
commodity
futures
contract per
trading
day.
Limitation on asset
dispositions-
A
bond covenant that restricts in some way a firm's ability to sell
major
assets.
-
Applies mainly to convertible securities. Possible delay in
convertibility. More frequently, the right to convert may be terminable
prior to a
redemption date, preventing the holder from receiving a final
coupon
or
dividend. See:
Accrued interest.
-
A
bond covenant that restricts in some way a firm's ability to grant
liens
on its
assets.
Limitation on
merger, consolidation, or sale-
A
bond covenant that restricts in some way a firm's ability to
merge
or consolidate with another firm.
Limitation on
sale-and-leaseback-
A
bond covenant that restricts in some way a firm's ability to enter
into
sale-and-leaseback transactions, financing techniques that could
affect creditor thinness..
Limitation on subsidiary
borrowing-
A
bond covenant that restricts in some way a firm's ability to borrow
at the level of firm subsidiary.
-
A form of business commonly used in the U.K. comparable to incorporation
in the U.S.
-
Permission by a client that allows a
broker
to make certain
stock
and
option
trades without first consulting the client about the
trade.
Limited
flexibility exchange rate system-
The
International Monetary Fund's name for an
exchange rate system with a
managed float.
-
Limitation of loss to what has already been invested.
-
A
security, such as a
call
option, in which the owner can lose only the initial investment.
-
A partner who has
limited legal liability for the obligations of the
partnership.
-
A
partnership that includes one or more partners who have
limited liability.
-
Life insurance providing full life protection but requiring
premiums
for only part of the customer's lifetime.
-
The risk inherent in
options
contracts, which is much lower than that of a
futures
contract, which has unlimited risk. The maximum loss in buying a
call
option, for example, is the
premium
paid for the
option.
-
Used in the context of general equities. See:
Limit order.
Limited-tax general
obligation bond -
A general obligation
bond of
a government backed by specified or constrained revenue sources.
-
A warranty with certain conditions and limitations on the parts covered,
type of damage covered, and/or time period for which the agreement is
good.
-
An informal loan arrangement between a bank and a customer allowing the
customer to borrow up to a prespecified amount.
-
Technique for finding the maximum value of some equation, subject to
stated linear constraints.
-
A statistical technique for fitting a straight line to a set of data
points.
-
Method for calculating rates of return that multiplies one plus the
interim
rate of return.
-
John Lintner's work (1956) suggests that
dividend policy is related both a target level, and to the speed of
adjustment of change in dividends.
Lipper Mutual Fund
Industry Average-
The average level of performance for all
mutual funds, as reported by Lipper Analytical Services.
-
Asset
that is easily and cheaply turned into
cash-notably,
cash itself and short-term
securities.
-
A market
allowing the buying or selling of large quantities of an
asset
at any time and at low
transactions costs.
-
Zero-coupon,
callable, putable,
convertible bond developed by Merrill Lynch & Co.
-
Payment by a firm to its owners from
capital
rather than from
earnings.
-
Occurs when a firm's business is terminated.
Assets
are sold, proceeds are used to pay
creditors, and any leftovers are distributed to
shareholders. Any transaction that
offsets
or closes out a
long or
short position. Related:
Buy in,
evening up,
offset
liquidity.
-
Sale or realization of a
debtor
firm's
assets voluntarily agreed to by its
creditors who estimate that the firm's liquidation value exceeds its
going-concern value.
-
The rights of a firm's securityholders in the event the firm
liquidates.
-
Net amount that could be realized by selling the
assets
of a firm after paying the
debt.
-
Person appointed by an
unsecured creditor in the United Kingdom to oversee the sale of an
insolvent firm's
assets
and the repayment of its
debts.
-
A high level of
trading
activity, allowing buying and selling with minimum price disturbance.
Also, a market characterized by the ability to
buy and
sell with relative ease. Antithesis of illiquidity.
-
Investing in a variety of
maturities to reduce the price
risk to
which holding long
bonds
exposes the
investor.
-
A California company that buys real estate
limited partnership
interests at 25% to 35% lower than the current value of the real
estate
assets.
Liquidity preference
hypothesis-
The argument that greater liquidity is valuable, all else equal. Also,
the theory that the
forward rate exceeds expected future
interest rates.
-
Forward rate minus expected future short-term
interest rate.
-
Ratios that measure a firm's ability to meet its short-term financial
obligations on time, such as the ratio of current assets to current
liabilities.
-
The risk
that arises from the difficulty of selling an
asset
in a timely manner. It can be thought of as the difference between the
"true value" of the asset and the likely price, less
commissions.
Liquidity theory of
the term structure -
A biased
expectations theory that asserts that the implied forward rates will
not be a pure estimate of the
market's
expectations of future
interest rates because they embody a
liquidity
premium.
-
Stock exchange
trading
stocks,
bonds, and unit trusts. The BVL general index is the
exchange's official
index.
-
A company whose
stock
trades
on a
stock exchange, and conforms to listing requirements.
-
An option
that has been accepted for
trading
on an
exchange.
-
Stock
or bond
that has been accepted for
trading
by one of the organized and registered
securities
exchanges in the United States. Generally, the advantages of being
listed are that exchanges provide: (1) an orderly marketplace; (2)
liquidity; (3) fair price determination; (4) accurate and continuous
reporting on sales and
quotations; (5) information on listed companies; and (6) strict
regulation for the protection of securityholders. Antithesis of
OTC
Security.
-
Stocks
that are
traded on an
exchange.
-
In the context of real estate, written agreement between a property
owner and a real estate
broker
that gives the
broker
permission to find a buyer or tenant for some property. See:
Listing broker.
-
In the context of equity, when a stock is traded in exchange it is said
to be listed. A licensed real estate
broker
who completes a listing of a property for sale.
-
Requirements, including minimum
shares
outstanding,
market value, and income, that are laid down by an
exchange for any
stock
to be listed for
trading.
-
Life insurance benefits from which the insured can draw cash while
still living, usually in the case of some high-cost illness.
-
A trust that an individual establishes during the individual's lifetime,
enabling the person to control the
assets
contributed to the trust. Also known as an
inter vivos trust.
-
A document specifying the kind of medical care a person wants-or does
not want-in the event of terminal illness or incapacity.
-
A marketplace in London for
underwriting syndicates.
-
The sales fee charged to an
investor when
shares
are purchased in a
load
fund or
annuity.
See: Bank-end load;
front-end load; level load.
-
A
mutual fund that sells
shares
with a
sales charge-typically 4% to 8% of the net amount indicated. Some
no-load funds also levy distribution fees permitted by Article
12b-1 of the Investment Company Act; these are typically 0. 25%. A
true no-load fund has neither a sales charge nor
-
Arrangement whereby the customer pays for the last
delivery when the next one is received.
-
A method of allocating the annual sales charge on
load
funds, often through percentage deductions from a customer's
periodic fixed payments.
-
Temporary borrowing of a sum of money. If you borrow $1 million you have
taken out a loan for $1 million.
-
The timetable for repaying the
interest and
principal on a
loan.
-
Assurance by a lender to make money available to a borrower on specific
terms in return for a fee.
-
Historical term. In the 1920's and 1930's, it refers to the group of
member firms that
lend or
borrow
securities needed to cover the
positions of customers who have sold
short
securities. The crowd could be found around the loan post.
-
The theory that a
covered
loan is less expensive when its cost is calculated in one
currency, it will also be less expensive in all other currencies.
-
Group of banks sharing a
loan.
See:
Syndicate.
-
The maximum percentage of the value of
securities that a
broker
can lend to a
margin account customer, as dictated by the
Federal Reserve Board in Regulation T.
-
The ratio of money borrowed on a property to the property's fair
market value.
-
Securities lent
interest-free between
brokers
to cover customers'
short
sale
positions.
-
A
futures
exchange member who
trades
securities for his or her own
account.
Local expectations hypothesis
(LEH)-
Theory that
bonds similar in all aspects except
maturity will have the same holding-period
rate of return.
-
A form of the
pure expectations theory that suggests that the
returns
on bonds
of different
maturities will be the same over a short-term investment horizon.
-
Property, sewer, school, or other community paid to a locality. Local
taxes are usually deductible for federal income tax purposes.
-
Advantages (natural and created) that are available only or primarily in
a particular place.
-
Attempt to exploit discrepancies in
exchange rates between banks.
-
Used in the context of general equities. Make a
market
both ways (bid
and offer)
either on the bid,
offering, or an
in-between price only. Locking on the offering occurs to attract a
seller, since the
trader
is willing to pay (and
ask) the
offering side when others only ask it. Locking on the bid side attracts
buyers for similar reasons. Typically, the sell side requires a
plus
tick to comply with
short
sale rules.
-
To ensure that an individual transacts all his or her business with a
sole
broker by providing superior services, such as accommodating block
buy and
sell needs or preparing excellent research (soft-dollar
lock). This usually guarantees a certain volume of business.
-
With
PAC bond
CMO classes, the period before the PAC
sinking fund becomes effective. With
multifamily loans, the period of time during which
prepayment is prohibited.
-
CDs that are
issued
with the tacit understanding that the buyer will not
trade
the certificate. Quite often, the issuing bank will insist that it hold
the certificate for safekeeping by it to ensure that the buyer holds the
understanding.
-
Often used in risk arbitrage. Privilege offered a
white knight (friendly acquirer) by a
target company to buy
crown jewels or additional
equity.
The aim is to discourage a hostile
takeover. See:
Shark repellent.
-
A collection and processing service provided to firms by banks, which
collect payments from a dedicated postal box to which the firm directs
its customers to send payment to. The banks make several collections per
day, process the payments immediately, and deposit the funds into the
firm's bank account.
-
When an
investor is unable to take advantage of preferential tax treatment
because of time remaining on a required
holding period. Also, a
commodities
position in which the
market
has a limit up or limit down day and
investors are unable to move in to or out of the
market.
-
A market
is locked if the
bid
price equals the
ask
price. This can occur, for example, if the
market
is brokered and one side pays brokerage only, in
over-the-counter trading the initiator of the transaction. Highly
competitive market environment with inside bid and offering at the same
price. Often occurs when an
OTC
dealer has not updated the market.
Log-linear least-squares
method-
A statistical technique for fitting a curve to a set of data points. One
of the
variables is transformed by taking its logarithm, and then a
straight line is fitted to the transformed set of data points.
-
Pattern of frequency of occurrence in which the logarithm of the
variable follows a
normal distribution. Lognormal distributions are used to describe
returns
calculated over periods of a year or more.
-
Applies mainly to international equities.
Interest rate the German Bundesbank uses as an upper limit to the
day-to-day money rate, since no bank will pay higher rates in the money
market
than it has to pay for very short-term recourse to Lombard credit.
-
Merged with the London International Financial Futures and Options
Exchange in 1996.
-
The bid rate that a Euromarket bank is willing to pay to attract a
deposit from another Euromarket bank in London. Related:
LIBOR.
London Interbank Offered Rate
(LIBOR)-
The rate of
interest that major international banks in London charge each other
for borrowings. Many
variable interest rates in the US are based on spreads off LIBOR. By
contrast with the
bid rate
LIBID quoted by banks seeking such deposits.
London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange (LIFFE)-
A leading market for trading options and futures on euro money market
derivatives.
-
A market
for
trading base metals, where
traded
options
contracts are available against the
underlying
futures
contract.
-
The U.K.'s six regional
exchanges joined together in 1973 to form the
stock exchange of Great Britain and Ireland, later named the LSE.
The FTSE
100 index (known as the
footsie)
is its dominant
index.
-
One who has bought a
contract to establish a
market
position and who has not yet closed out this position through an
offsetting sale; the opposite of
short.
-
Bonds
with a long
current maturity. The "long bond" is the 30-year US
Treasury bond.
-
(1) Bonds
or notes
with a long
current maturity. (2) A bond on which one of the
coupon
periods, usually the first, is longer than the other periods or the
standard period.
-
Contracts that state
exchange rate at which a specified amount of a particular currency
can be exchanged at a future date (more than one year from today).
-
The purchase of a
futures contract in anticipation of actual purchases in the
cash market. Used by processors or exporters as protection against
an advance in the cash price. Related:
hedge,
short hedge
-
The part of an
option spread in which an agreement to buy the
underlying security is made.
-
The
market value of a
security, excluding
options,
as of the close of the last business day.
-
Owning or holding options (i.e., the number of contracts bought exceeds
the number of contracts sold). For equities, a long position occurs when
an individual owns
securities. An owner of 1,000
shares
of stock
is said to be "Long the stock." Related:
Short position.
-
Purchase of an
options.
-
A period of time in which all costs are
variable; longer than one year.
-
Taking a
long position in both a
put and
a
call option.
-
In accounting terms, one year or longer.
-
Value of property, equipment, and other capital
assets
minus the
depreciation. This is an entry in the bookkeeping records of a
company. It is usually established on a "cost"
basis,
and thus does not necessarily reflect the
market value of the
assets.
-
A profit
on the sale of a
security or
mutual fund
share
that has been held for more than one year.
-
An obligation having a
maturity of more than one year from the date it was
issued.
Also called
funded debt.
Long-term debt/capitalization
-
Indicator of financial
leverage. Shows long-term debt as a proportion of the capital
available. Determined by dividing long-term debt by the sum of long-term
debt,
preferred stock and common
stockholder's equity.
Long-term debt-to-equity
ratio-
A
capitalization ratio comparing
long-term debt to shareholders'
equity.
-
The ratio of long-term debt to total
capitalization.
Long-Term
Anticipation Securities (LEAPS)-
Long-term options.
-
Financial plan covering two or more years of future operations.
-
Liabilities repayable in more than one year plus
equity.
-
A profit
on the sale of a
capital
assets
held longer than 12 months, and eligible for long-term
capital gains tax treatment.
-
Financial goals expected to be accomplished in five years or longer.
-
A person who makes
investments for a period of at least five years in order to finance
his or her long-term goals.
-
Amount owed for
leases,
bond
repayment, and other items due after 1 year.
-
A loss on the sale of a
capital
asset
held less than 12 months that can be used to offset a
capital gain.
-
Used for listed equity securities. See:
Picture.
-
A method for calculating US taxes owed on income from controlled foreign
corporations that was introduced by the
Tax Reform Act of 1986.
-
An option
that allows the buyer to choose as the option
strike price any price of the
underlying asset that has occurred during the life of the option.
For a call
option, the buyer will choose the minimum price; for a
put
option, the buyer will choose the maximum price. This option will always
be in the money.
-
In the context of general equities, this describing a
buy
interest in which a
dealer
is asked to
offer
stock,
often involving a capital commitment.
Antithesis of
in
touch with.
-
A technicality in some legislation or regulation that makes it possible
to avoid certain consequences or circumvent a rule without breaking the
law, such as in the use of a
tax
shelter.
-
Policy by the
Federal Reserve Board to make loans less expensive and more
available by reducing
interest rates through open
market
operations.
-
The opposite of gain.
-
A tax provision that allows
operating losses to be used as a
tax
shield to reduce
taxable income in prior and future years. Losses can be carried
backward for up to three years and forward for up to 15 years under
current tax codes.
-
Actions that an insured person or company takes at the instigation of an
insurance company in order to prevent accidents or losses.
-
Insurance coverage that will pay out income that a policyholder loses as
a result of a disability, injury, or business disruption.
-
The ratio of losses paid or accrued by an insurer to
premiums
collected over a year.
-
In the context of general equities, this
blocks or portions of
trades.
Can express a specific transaction in a
stock
at a certain time, often implying
execution at the same price (e.g., "I traded 40m in two lots of 10
and four lots of 5.").
-
1987 agreement between countries to attempt to stabilize the value of
the US dollar.
-
In the context of general equities, this is a specific minimum limit
required by a seller in
execution an
order
("I'll sell 50 with an eighth low."); implies a
not-held limit order. Antithesis of
top.
-
A method of calculating
interest on the basis of the lowest balance of an
account
over the applicable period.
-
Slang for making an offer well below the fair value of an asset in hopes
that the seller may be desperate to sell.
-
Refunding of a low-coupon
bond
with a new, higher-coupon bond.
-
A bond
with a
rating of B or lower.
-
A
mutual fund that charges a sales
commission of 3.5% or less for the purchase of
shares.
-
The day's lowest price of a
security that has changed hands between a buyer and a seller.
Low price-earnings ratio
effect -
The tendency of
portfolios of stocks with a low price-earnings
ratio to outperform portfolios of stocks with high
price-earnings ratios.
-
A large one-time payment of money.
-
A single payment that represents an employee's interest in a qualified
retirement plan. The payment must be prompted by retirement (or other
separation from service), death, disability, or attainment of age
59-1/2, and must be made within a single tax year to avoid the federal
government's 10% penalty tax.
A measure of the dynamics of an
attractor. Each dimension has a Lyapunov exponent. A positive
exponent measures sensitive dependence on initial conditions, or how
much our forecasts can diverge based upon different estimates of
starting conditions. Another way to view Lyapunov exponents is the loss
of predictive ability as we look forward into time.
Strange Attractors are characterized by at least one positive
exponent. A negative exponent measures how points converge towards one
another.
Point Attractors are characterized by all negative
variables. See:
Attractor,
Limit Cycle,
Point Attractor,
Strange Attractor.