Glossary
Not sure about the terminology? This is the place to find out what everything means.
S
SAYE
Save As You Earn. Employer run schemes for employees to buy shares in the company.
Scaling down
When a new issue is oversubscribed, the procedure whereby applicants receive a proportion of the number of shares for which they applied.
Scrip dividends
Scrips and enhanced scrip dividends - In this instance the company will announce that shares can be offered in lieu of a cash dividend.
Scrip issue
This is where investors in a company are given shares free of charge by the company as a 'bonus'. The result is to increase the number of shares in issue.
SEATS
Stock Exchange Automated Trading Services. Allows sales and purchases to be matched electronically.
Securities
The general name given to stocks and shares of all types.
Securities house
General term for a bank/financial institution that conducts securities investment business.
Sector
Investment funds are grouped into a variety of sectors reflecting their investment strategy and objectives. E.g. Global Growth, UK Equity Income and Specialist. Dividing funds into sectors makes it easier to make comparisons between similar funds.
Sector average
Shows the average of all funds within the same sector.
Sector ranking
Shows the position of a fund relative to equivalent funds in the same sector.
SEDOL
The identification number for investments. SEDOL stands for Stock Exchange Daily Official List.
Self Invested Personal Pension (SIPP)
A SIPP is a form of personal pension giving the holder control over how the fund is invested.
SETS
Stock Exchange Electronic Trading System. Order driven electronic trading system employed to deal in the FTSE 100 and ex FTSE 100 equities.
Settlement date
The date that any monies outstanding for deals placed needs to be paid by.
Share certificates
See 'certificate'.
Share exchange
Facility offered by ISA managers whereby they sell your shares and invest the proceeds in an ISA.
Share option
The right (but not the obligation) to buy shares at an agreed upon price within a given time frame or on a certain date.
Shares
Companies divide their capital into equal units called shares. Buying the shares brings rights - a stake in the business- and the risk of losing your investment.
Short
A short position is when someone sells a warrant or the underlying asset. Contrasts with Long position.
Short position
Selling shares that are not owned by the individual in hope of being able to buy them back at a cheaper rate.
Short termism
Allegation made against fund managers that they expect prices of shares
in which they have invested to rise quickly and are not willing to exert
influence on management to improve corporate performance
six month performance indicators - How an investment has performed in
the last 6 months.
Specialist sector
Specific investment type. Identifies industry sector of specific investment focus, for example Government bonds, commodity shares, smaller companies, index tracking and convertible bonds.
Spread
The difference between the Bid and the Offer Price.
Stag
Someone who applies for a new issue of shares intending selling them (at a profit) as soon as secondary market dealings start.
Stamp duty/Stamp Duty Reserve Tax (SDRT)
These are the UK government taxes, charged on the purchases of shares.
Stochastics
The stochastic oscillator is a momentum indicator used in technical analysis, introduced by George Lane in the 1950s, to compare the closing price of a commodity to its price range over a given time span. The idea behind this indicator is that prices tend to close near their past highs in bull markets, and near their lows in bear markets. Transaction signals can be spotted when the stochastic oscillator crosses its moving average.
Stocks
Generally used as another word for equities. Technically, this more accurately refers to fixed interest securities.
Stock settlement
The warrant holder receives the underlying if the warrant can be exercised profitably at expiry.
Stock split
The division of a company's outstanding common shares into a larger number of common shares. A three-for-one split by a company with one million shares outstanding would result in three million shares outstanding.
Stockbroker
The agent that buys and sells shares on your behalf and earns commission on the value of the transaction.
Stop order
An order to buy/sell shares when the share price rises to or above/falls to or below a specified stop price. When buying, a Stop order is used to make an investment but only when an upward trend in the share price has been established. When selling, a Stop order is used as protection from a sudden fall in the share price or lock-in profits already made.
Stop order (to sell)
Also known as a Stop Loss order. An order to sell shares when the share price falls to or below a specified stop price. Used to cap the amount you are prepared to lose on a holding.
Stop price
The price at which a Stop order is triggered. For purchases the stop price acts as a minimum price you will pay if an investment is made and for sales the stop price acts as the maximum price you will receive if a holding is sold.
Strike price
The price at which the investor may buy or sell the underlying during (if American style) or at the end (if European style) of the expiry period. Also referred to as 'expiry price' and 'exercise price'. It is known when the warrant is issued.
Striking price
The price at which the underlying security can be bought or sold.