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Investments glossary

Leverage Ratio Definition

A leverage ratio is any one of several financial measurements that look at how much capital comes in the form of debt (loans) or assesses the ability of a company to meet its financial obligations. The leverage ratio category is important because companies rely on a mixture of equity and debt to finance their operations, and knowing the amount of debt held by a company is useful in evaluating whether it can pay off its debts as they come due. Several common leverage ratios are discussed below.

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Investments glossary

Zero-Bound Interest Rate

Zero-bound interest rate is a reference to the lower limit of 0% for short-term interest rates beyond which monetary policy is not believed to be effective in stimulating economic growth.

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Investments glossary

Pretax Earnings

Pretax earnings is a company’s income after all operating expenses, including interest and depreciation, have been deducted from total sales or revenues, but before income taxes have been subtracted. Because pretax earnings exclude taxes, this measure enables the intrinsic profitability of companies to be compared across industries or geographic regions where corporate taxes differ. For instance, while U.S.-based corporations face the same tax rates at the federal level, they face different tax rates at the state level. read more

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Investments glossary

Speculation

In the world of finance, speculation, or speculative trading, refers to the act of conducting a financial transaction that has substantial risk of losing value but also holds the expectation of a significant gain or other major value. With speculation, the risk of loss is more than offset by the possibility of a substantial gain or other recompense.

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Investments glossary

Aggregate Stop-Loss Insurance

Aggregate stop-loss insurance is a policy designed to limit claim coverage (losses) to a specific amount. This coverage ensures that a catastrophic claim (specific stop-loss) or numerous claims (aggregate stop-loss) do not drain the financial reserves of a self-funded plan. Aggregate stop-loss protects the employer against claims that are higher than expected. If total claims exceed the aggregate limit, the stop-loss insurer covers the claims or reimburses the employer.

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Investments glossary

Undersubscribed

Undersubscribed is a situation in which the demand for an initial public offering (IPO) or other offering of securities is less than the number of shares issued. Undersubscribed offerings are often a matter of overpricing the securities for sale.

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Investments glossary

Open Kimono

Open kimono means to reveal what is being planned or to share important information freely. Similar to ”open the books” or an open door policy, opening the kimono means revealing the inner workings of a project or company to an outside party. The practice is also referred to as opening (up) one’s kimono.

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Investments glossary

Undersubscribed

Undersubscribed is a situation in which the demand for an initial public offering (IPO) or other offering of securities is less than the number of shares issued. Undersubscribed offerings are often a matter of overpricing the securities for sale.

Categories
Investments glossary

Open Kimono

Open kimono means to reveal what is being planned or to share important information freely. Similar to ”open the books” or an open door policy, opening the kimono means revealing the inner workings of a project or company to an outside party. The practice is also referred to as opening (up) one’s kimono.

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Investments glossary

Dead Cat Bounce Definition

A dead cat bounce is a temporary recovery of asset prices from a prolonged decline or a bear market that is followed by the continuation of the downtrend. A dead cat bounce is a small, short-lived recovery in the price of a declining security, such as a stock. Frequently, downtrends are interrupted by brief periods of recovery — or small rallies — where prices temporarily rise. The name dead cat bounce is based on the notion that even a dead cat will bounce if it falls far enough and fast enough. read more