Investment Terms You Need to Know - Volume A

Every industry has it's own 'language' and the world of investing is no different. While millions of people 'play' the stock market there are still plenty who are too hesitant to take the leap. We're here to provide you with some essential terms to help demystify investor 'jargon.'

When we recently constructed the piece 'The 'Essential 10' Terms Everyone Should Know Prior to Investing' we assumed that it would be an enjoyable, informative read. What we weren't prepared for however was the overwhelmingly positive response the article received from budding investors visiting the site.

Since we posted the original list of 10, we've been inundated with emails from our readers requesting that we compile a series of similar pieces that soon-to-be investment professionals could then go on to use as a reference piece.

While we're not yet sure if we plan to make The ABC of Investing an ongoing premise, we do like to keep our readers satisfied and kept inside the investment loop. So, here is our second (of possibly many,) Terms Everyone Should Know Prior to Investing.

'A'

Access Fee - A fee that is incurred by the investor for accessing funds contained within their account. An access fee is mostly recognised as being associated with financial institutions such as Banks.

Accrue - When you accrue something, you increase the amount of that item which you currently possess. If your stocks perform well, you'll accumulate or 'accrue' more money.

Acquisition - If an established company is purchased and taken over by another, this is referred to as an Acquisition as the 'new' party is acquiring the company in question.

Adequate Disclosure - Investors, new and old, need to know important information about a company prior to investing their money with that corporation. Adequate Disclosure relates to the clear disclosure of pertinent information, often found within a financial statement, which allows potential investors to make an educated investment decision.

All Ordinaries Index - The 'All-Ords' is an index of common share prices for over 300 Australian companies that are currently traded on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX.)

Amateur Investor - The Amateur Investor is a rapidly growing demographic in the world of Investment. The pure definition of an Amateur Investor is one who doesn't list investing as their primary source of income.

Analyst In the Investment world an analyst is often an employee of a brokerage firm, bank etc whose sole purpose is put intense amounts of research into organisations in order to offer recommendations on what to buy and what to sell.

Annual Gross Income - An investor's annual gross income is your total annual income prior to any deductions being made.

Appraisal - A term most frequently used when referring to real estate, an appraisal a professional's estimation of that total market value of a property; more often than not, a home. An appraisal is often required prior to selling your property in order to ensure you don't sell your asset for less than what it's worth.

At the Bell - Investors on the stock market would be most familiar with this term. At the Bell refers to a trade being completed on the stock exchange either at the very beginning or immediately before the conclusion of a trading session.