Sections
Key Terms

Key Terms

actual rate of return
the total rate of return, including capital gains and interest paid, on an investment at the end of a period of time
bond
a financial contract through which a borrower such as a corporation, a city or state, or the federal government agrees to repay the amount that was borrowed plus a rate of interest over a period of time in the future
bond yield
the rate of return a bond is expected to pay at the time of purchase
bondholder
someone who owns bonds and receives the interest payments
capital gain
a financial gain from buying an asset, such as a share of stock or a house, and later selling it at a higher price
certificate of deposit (CD)
a mechanism for a saver to deposit funds at a bank with the promise to leave them at the bank for a time, in exchange for a higher rate of interest
checking account
a bank account that typically pays little or no interest, but that gives easy access to money, either by writing a check or by using a debit card
compound interest
an interest rate calculation on the principal plus the accumulated interest
corporate bond
a bond issued by firms that wish to borrow money
corporate governance
the name economists give to the institutions that are supposed to watch over top executives in companies owned by shareholders
corporation
a business owned by shareholders who have limited liability for the company’s debt, yet receive a share of the company’s profits; may be private or public and may or may not have publicly traded stock
coupon rate
the interest rate paid on a bond; can be annual or semiannual
debit card
a card that lets the person make purchases, and the cost is immediately deducted from that person’s checking account
diversification
investing in a wide range of companies to reduce the level of risk
dividend
a direct payment from a firm to its shareholders
equity
the monetary value a homeowner would have after selling the house and repaying any outstanding bank loans used to buy the house
expected rate of return
how much a project or an investment is expected to return to the investor, either in future interest payments, capital gains, or increased profitability
face value
the amount that the bond issuer or borrower agrees to pay the investor
financial intermediary
an institution, such as a bank, that receives money from savers and provides funds to borrowers
high-yield bonds
bonds that offer relatively high interest rates to compensate for their relatively high chance of default
index fund
a mutual fund that seeks only to mimic the overall performance of the market
initial public offering (IPO)
the first sale of shares of stock by a firm to outside investors
junk bonds
see high-yield bonds
liquidity
refers to how easily money or financial assets can be exchanged for a good or service
maturity date
the date that a bond must be repaid
municipal bond
a bond issued by cities that wish to borrow
mutual funds
funds that buy a range of stocks or bonds from different companies, thus allowing an investor an easy way to diversify
partnership
a company run by a group as opposed to an individual
present value
a bond’s current price at a given time
private company
a firm owned by the people who run it on a day-to-day basis
public company
a firm that has sold stock to the public, which, in turn, can be bought and sold by investors
risk
a measure of the uncertainty of that project’s or entity's profitability
savings account
a bank account that pays an interest rate, but withdrawing money typically requires a trip to the bank or an automatic teller machine
shareholders
people who own at least some shares of stock in a firm
shares
the stock of a firm, divided into individual portions
simple interest
an interest rate calculation only on the principal amount
sole proprietorship
a company run by an individual as opposed to a group
stock
a claim on partial ownership of a specific firm
Treasury bond
a bond issued by the federal government through the U.S. Department of the Treasury
venture capital
financial investments in new companies that are still relatively small in size, but that have potential to grow substantially