Common Stock A security that represents ownership in a corporation. Holders of common stock exercise control by electing a board of directors and voting on corporate policy.
Common stockholders are on the bottom of the priority ladder for ownership structure.
In the event of liquidation common shareholders have rights to a company's assets only after bond holders, preferred shareholders and other debt holders have been paid in full. In other words if the company goes bankrupt the common stockholders will not receive their money until the creditors and preferred shareholders have received their respective share of the leftover assets. The upside to common shares are that they usually outperform bonds and preferred shares. Stock Basics - a tutorial by Investopedia on what the stock market is and the different types of equity securities there are. How to Read a Stock Table - Learn how to read the stock table's quoted in various newspapers and websites.