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Management Fee to Over The Counter Stock
Management
fee. Fee paid
to mutual fund managers to compensate them for services, pay
the rent, brokerage commissions on portfolio transactions,
and so forth. Some funds also charge 12b-1 fees, which compensate
for the cost of advertising and marketing the fund directly
from the funds asset.
Margin buying.
The act of financing the purchase of securities partly with
money borrowed from the brokerage firm. Regulations permit
buying up to 50% "on margin," meaning an investor
can borrow up to half the purchase price of an investment.
See l everaging.
Money-market
fund. A mutual
fund that invests in short-term corporate and government debt
and passes the interest payments on to shareholders. A key
feature of money-market funds is that their market value doesn't
change, making them an ideal place to earn current market
interest with a high degree of liquidity.
Mutual fund.
A professionally managed portfolio of stocks and bonds or
other investments divided up into shares. Minimum purchase
is often $500 or less, and mutual funds stand ready to buy
back their shares at any time. The market price of the fund
's shares, called the net-asset value, fluctuates daily
with the market price of the securities in its portfolio.
Mutual fund
manager. These
individuals do the specialized work of selecting which securities
to buy, keep and sell. The result of their decisions determine
the returns the fund pays.
Nasdaq.
Pronounced Naz-dak, the acronym for the National Association
of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations System, a computerized
price-reporting system used by brokers to track over the counter
securities as well as some exchange-listed issues.
Net assets.
The value of
a mutual fund determined by subtracting its total liabilities
(such as management and operating costs) from its total assets.
Net asset value
(NAV). This
is the price at which mutual fund shares are bought and sold
by investors. The number represents the value of the fund's
holdings, minus management expenses, divided by the number
of fund shares outstanding. Most funds calculate the net asset
value after each trading day.
Odd lot.
A stock trade involving fewer than 100 shares. For contrast,
see round lot.
Open-end fund.
A mutual fund
open to any investor with the money to make a minimum initial
purchase. The fund issues new shares to accommodate new purchases
and retires shares when investors redeem them by selling them
back to the fund. Most funds opperate this way.
Opportunity
cost. The cost
of passing up one investment in favor of another. For instance,
if you pull money out of a money-market fund, where it is
earning 7% interest, to invest it in a stock that has
promise but yields just 4%, your opportunity cost while
you're waiting is 3%.
Option.
The right to buy or sell a security at a given price within
a given time. The right to buy the security is called a "call."
Calls are bought by investors who expect the price of the
stock to rise. The right to sell a stock is called a "put.
" Puts are purchased by investors who expect the price
of the stock to fall. Investors use puts and calls to bet
on the direction of price movements without actually having
to buy or sell the stock. One option represents 100 shares
and sells for a fractio n of the price of the shares themselves.
As the time approaches for the option to expire, its price
will move up or down depending on the movement of the stock
price.
Options can also be used to wring a little income out of stock
you own without selling it. By writing (selling) a "covered
call," you collect the premium and, assuming the stock
price stays under the call price, get to keep the stock. The
risk, of course, is that the stock will get called away and
you will miss out on the price rise. Return to Call.
Over the counter.
The place where stocks and bonds that aren't listed on
any exchange (such as the New York or American stock exchange)
are bought and sold. Despite the small-stock, small-town image
conjured up by its name, in reality the over-the- counter
market (OTC) is a high-speed computerized network called
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