Companies sell stock to raise capital for expansion, operations, investment or retiring debt. Buyers of these shares become potential owners of the company, entitling them to certain rights and privileges, including voting rights, dividends, and claims on assets of the firm. Older SEC filings dating back to the early 1970s are available on microfiche. Company annual reports may vary on microfiche by year. Current proxies are not collected and older proxies vary by company and year.
Mutual funds consist of stocks, bonds, currencies, or other investment vehicles.
Mutual funds also invest by sector and category, such as small-caps, blue chips, technology, aggressive growth, income, utilities, etc. By investing in mutual funds the investor achieves greater asset diversification and greater stability than with individual investments. Corporations and government entities issue bonds to raise money for acquisitions or financing. Commodities define a broad spectrum of products and instruments. These products and instruments can include precious metals, agricultural items, energy related issues, currencies, interest rates, or equity indexes.