Asset Class Different categories of investment are referred to as asset classes. The most popular asset classes for most investors are cash, bonds, and stocks. Automatic Reinvestment A fund service giving shareholders the option to purchase additional shares using dividend and capital gain distributions. These are terms you may hear on the nightly news. Bulls are investors who feel that the market for stocks will continue to be positive.
Bears are the folks who are equally certain that a downswing is imminent.
Before-tax contributions have the effect of reducing the total amount of income taxes paid. The price at which a mutual fund's shares are redeemed, or bought back, by the fund. The bid or redemption price is usually the current net asset value per share. Bonds and Bond Funds Bonds, often called fixed income investments, represent loans made to a company or a government body. Over time, regular interest payments are made to the bondholder by the borrower, and at the end of the loan term, the principal balance is repaid.