S&P/NZX50 12,677 0.00% S&P/NZX20 7,999 -0.03% S&P/NZX10 12,401 -0.13% Friday 3 Dec 2021 10:47:26 PM HOME MENU HOME INVESTING GLOSSARY Investing Overview Glossary Education Resource Centre NZX Trading Hours Find a Participant NZX Podcast Back Glossary Keyword Definition 30 Day Trend The adjusted close price from the last 30 days, does not include today’s price prior to market close. 52 Week Change The change in gross value of the security from the same date 52 weeks ago. Actively Managed Where the fund manager has the discretion to select the securities in a fund and looks for opportunities to buy and sell to increase its performance. AGM Annual general meeting of shareholders required by law where directors inform shareholders of company performance and future prospects. Shareholders vote on board elections and significant company issues. Algorithmic Trading (algo) Computerised, rule-based system responsible for executing orders to buy or sell a security. Announcements Market Announcements distributed in real time. Annual Yield The annual dividend return from an investment. Calculated as the annual dividend divided by the share price. Annuity Series of identical fixed payments to be made for a specified number of years. Audit A formal verification of the accuracy of accounting records and published accounts. An audit can be external or internal and is undertaken both to ensure the correctness of classifications and amounts and to discover fraud. The external auditor has a statutory responsibility to report on the truth and fairness of the accounts. Basis Point One percent of one percent (0.01%) e.g. 0.5% is 50 basis points. Bad Debt Losses which cannot be recovered. They are generally written off. Balance The number of shares held in a security or a portfolio. Benchmark Yardstick that a fund manager compares the performance of their fund to. Beta Measure of how changes in share price correlate to the overall movements in the share market as a whole. Bid A bid is the "buying" price that an investor is prepared to pay for shares (opposite to offer/ask). Block Trade Off-market trading mechanism enabling market users to arrange and transact orders of significant size in specified contracts. Blue Chip Larger companies with a long history of profitability and stability. Board of Directors A group of people elected by shareholders to manage the overall direction of a company. Bonds All yield-traded securities traded on the debt market. Break Sharp decline or a sharp rise in price, usually after a sustained period of little or no movement. Brokerage Fee paid to a stockbroking firm for buying or selling of shares. Buy on open To buy at the beginning of a trading session at a price within the opening price range. Call option Option / warrant contract which gives the holder the right, but not the obligation, to buy the underlying asset at the exercise price at or before a fixed expiry date. Candlestick A chart that displays the high, low, opening and closing prices of a security for a specific period. Capitalisation For equity securities, the market value of instruments issued; the current market price multiplied by the number of instruments issued. For the debt market, it is the outstanding value of all bonds and hybrids. Cash covered Derivatives position, such as a written option contract, where the option writer meets their margin obligations with cash. Cash market The market for debt and equity securities. Often referred to as the underlying market. Change Current market price (or yield) less yesterday’s closing price (or yield) adjusted for corporate actions. Displayed in both absolute values and percentages. Clearing The process of matching, registering and guaranteeing transactions. Close Closing price of the day determined during market close. Used as the reference price for the following day. Closed end fund Fund that has a fixed number of shares or units on issue. Closing out To liquidate a position by taking an equal and opposite position. Code The code of the quoted instrument. Commission Fee that an advisor or a fund manager may receive for the buying or selling of securities. Company The name of the company that issues the instrument. Convertible debt security Unsecured note or debenture that is classified as an equity security because it is convertible into an equity security. Convertible note Loan made to a company at a fixed rate of interest with the right to be either redeemed (i.e. repaid by the company) for cash or converted into ordinary shares at a predetermined date or within a certain period. Corporate action Action taken by an entity for the purpose of giving an Entitlement to Holders of a class of the entity's securities. Cost basis The amount of money originally invested in a stock, as per the IPO. Cost of carry Cost factored into the pricing of derivatives instruments. It reflects the cost of holding the underlying over the life of the contract, less the amount that the contract holder would receive in income from the underlying, such as dividends, during this time. Coupon The interest paid per period to the holder of the debt security. CSN Number Common Shareholder Number. It is a number which identifies your holding to others. Current ratio A measure of liquidity that shows a company's ability to pay its short-term debts. DCM Debt Capital Markets. Debt / Equity Hybrid Any debt instrument that qualifies as regulatory capital or is treated as equity by a rating agency. This category includes deeply subordinated securities (e.g. Tier 1 and 2 capital instruments), as well as preference shares. Decliners Ranking of largest decreases over the course of the current day, based on current market price less the open adjusted price. Delta Measure of the sensitivity of an option or warrant price to movement in the price of the underlying asset. Depository receipt A depository receipt (DR) is a negotiable financial instrument issued by a bank to represent a foreign company's publicly traded securities. The depository receipt trades on a local stock exchange. Derivative Instrument that derives its value from an underlying instrument. Directors Persons elected by shareholders who are responsible for the implementation of corporate objectives. Discount When a security (especially debt and derivatives) is trading at a price less than its fair value. With futures, sometimes used to refer to the price differences between futures of different delivery months, as in the phrase "July at the discount to May", indicating that the price of the July future is lower than that or May. Dividends Payments from issuing companies to shareholders as a share of the company's profits, allocated to shareholders on a per-share basis. The amount payable, in cents per security held. Dividend Imputation Tax credits passed on to a shareholder who receives a franked dividend. Imputation credits entitle investors to a rebate for tax already paid by a New Zealand company. Dividend in arrears Dividends on cumulative preference shares that have not been declared each period in accordance with the terms of their issue. Dividend reinvestment plan (DRP) An alternative to cash dividends, allowing shareholders to receive new shares instead of cash. DPS Adjusted Total dividend, in cents per share, for the year, adjusted by the dilution factor to take account of issues and reconstructions. Earnings Income or profit of an entity. May be expressed as gross or net. EBIT Earnings before interest and tax. EBITDA Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation. ECM Equity Capital Markets. EPS Earnings per share, the latest rolling 12 month’s earnings divided by the number of shares on issue. Earnings are profit after tax. Equity warrants Warrants for which the underlying asset is a security (e.g. shares in a company). Escrow Refers to units (shares) allocated to investors that are subject to restrictions such as not being able to be traded for a specified period of time. ETF Exchange-traded fund. These are investment funds usually designed to track the performance of a share price index and which allows for applications and redemptions in the primary market on a daily basis either in specie or in cash. Ex-Dividend Securities bought on or after this date will not be entitled to the dividend. Ex-Rights Securities entitling the seller to retain the right to participate in a new issue. Exercise Notification by the buyer of an option or warrant of their decision to buy or sell the underlying asset or in the case of cash settled contracts to receive a cash payment. Expiry Date The date on which a voluntary corporate restructuring event ends. Requests to participate that are received after this date are not eligible. Face Value The nominal dollar amount assigned to each debt security by the issuer. This is generally the amount repaid upon maturity. Fair Value Current value of the underlying shares or index, plus an amount referred to as the 'cost of carry'. An estimate of the price an option should sell at in an efficient market. Fiduciary A person who has been entrusted with another's confidence or responsibility with regard to financial matters. Forward contract Contract to exchange a particular good or financial instrument at a set price on a future date. They do not trade on an exchange and are traded OTC. Free Float/Float The percentage of a company's shares that are considered to be freely available for public purchase. Determining a company's free float requires analysis and classification of the company's shareholders. Frequency The number of times per year a coupon payment is paid out to holders of a debt security. Fundamental analysis Method of analysis using ratios and percentages calculated from financial data of a company to assess the company's quantitative and qualitative aspects. Futures contract A futures contract is a legal agreement, generally made on the trading floor of a futures exchange, to buy or sell a particular commodity or financial instrument at a predetermined price at a specified time in the future. Gainers Ranking of largest increases over the course of the current day, based on current market price less the open adjusted price. Gearing The extent to which an investor or business is using borrowed money. Also known as leverage. Gross Dividend Yield Rolling 12 month yield based on dividends and imputation credits. Government bond Debt security issued by the government. Government bond codes include GOV390, GOV400 and GOV410. Green bond A bond where the capital raised is used to finance or refinance projects with clear environmental benefits. Examples include ARG010 and ARG020. Hedge Transaction which partly or totally offsets the risk of a current holding. High The highest price (or yield) traded today. High Bid The highest, or “best” bid to buy currently in the order book (i.e., that has not been traded). Holding Company A company that holds the securities and/or funds of another party in his/her or its absence or for the purpose of safekeeping of assets, or for investment purposes. Hybrid security Securities which combine debt and equity characteristics. Imputation The amount, in cents per share, of imputation credits accruing to each security. Index Capitalisation The sum of the capitalisation of all the instruments in the index, with each multiplied by a factor according to the rules constructing each index. For more information on indices, please refer to the Index Methodology. Index-Tracking Fund A fund that invests in the same securities as those that make up an index in the same proportions, a type of ETF. For example, the allocation of SmartMIDZ mirrors that of the NZX MidCap Index. Indices Indices consist of a hypothetical portfolio of securities representing a particular market or a segment of it. An index measures the performance of the market it represents. An index cannot be bought/sold, but funds can track the performance of an index (index-tracking fund, ETF). Initial margin Minimum deposit determined by the clearing house on all futures contracts and options. Initial Public Offering (IPO) The process by which a private company becomes a publicly held company by selling shares of its stock to the public for the first time. Insider trading Trading shares of a stock based on information that has not yet become available to the public. It is illegal and punishable by the Financial Markets Authority. Insider trading diminishes the integrity of capital markets. Insolvency The inability of a person or company to settle debts writyahen they become payable. Instrument/security An instrument (also known as a security) are tradeable instruments used to raise capital. Equity securities represent ownership interest in a company (shares) and debt securities represent borrowed money which may be repaid with interest (bonds). Instrument Count The number of instruments listed on the market. ISIN International Securities Identification Number (ISIN) of the Instrument, a specific code used to identify a particular security. Issued By Name of the Company that issues the instrument, also known as the issuer. Interim dividend When a dividend is paid more than once a year, dividends other than the final one are called interim dividends. Typically, dividends are paid twice a year, one interim and one final dividend. Intrinsic value Difference between the current market price of the underlying asset and the exercise price of the option or warrant, but no less than zero. Kauri Bond A Kauri bond is a bond denominated in New Zealand dollars that is issued by a foreign (i.e. non New Zealand) issuer. Leverage The extent to which an investor or business is using borrowed money. Last payment date The date on which the preceding coupon payment was paid to the holder of a debt security. LIC Listed Investment Companies. Limit order Instruction to a broker to buy or sell a security at a specified price or better. Limited liability company Company whose members have liability by shares or guarantee. In the case of the former, liability is limited to the amounts unpaid on the shares, in the case of the latter by the amount undertaken to be contributed in the event of a winding up of the company. Liquid assets Assets that can be bought or sold easily with little impact on price. Liquid market Where buying and selling can be accomplished with ease and with little impact on price because of sufficient volume on offer. Liquidity Measure of the ability to buy or sell assets easily and with little impact on price. Characterised by bid and offer prices close together and many shares available (depth) at these prices. Long Trader who has bought or holds a position that will benefit from rising prices. Lot Unit of trading equivalent to one futures contract. Low The lowest price (or yield) traded today. Low Offer The lowest, or “best” offer to sell currently in the order book (i.e., that has not been traded). Managed investments Professionally managed portfolio of assets. Mandatory Settlement Process whereby cash options or futures contracts still open at expiry are closed out by mandatory cash settlement. Margin Amount calculated by the clearing house as necessary to cover the risk of financial loss on options and futures. Margin Call A demand by a broker that an investor deposit further cash or securities to cover possible losses. This occurs when the value of the position decreases beyond a certain amount. Margin lending Borrowing money to invest in shares and using your existing shares as security. Margin interval Probable maximum one day move in the underlying asset as calculated by the clearing house. Expressed as a percentage, used in the calculation of margins for options and futures. Market capitalisation Total number of shares on issue multiplied by their market price. This can be applied to work out the market value of a company. Market order Order to a broker to do a buy or sell at the current market price at the time the order is given. Market participants Organisations that meet NZX's requirements are recognised as market participants. Includes trading participants and clearing participants. Market price Prevailing price of shares traded on NZX. May be the last price at which the shares traded, or the most recent price offered or bid for the shares. Market Risk Risk of a general decline in the market. Maturity Date The date on which the principal amount and any outstanding coupon payment is to be repaid to holders, and the instrument ceases to be listed. Memorandum of association Part of a company's constitution, the formal document subscribed by those wishing to form a company and giving details of the company. Memorandum of understanding An agreement between two or more parties. It expresses a convergence of will between the parties, indicating an intended common line of action. Merger When two or more companies combine either by takeover or creation of a new entity. Minimum Holding The minimum number of shares that can be held. Move Current market price (or yield) less yesterday's closing price (or yield) adjusted for corporate actions. Mutual fund A managed investment fund. NAV (Net Asset Value) Book value of a company's assets divided by the number of shares on issue. Net income Net income (NI) is a company's total earnings (or profit); net income is calculated by taking revenues and subtracting the costs of doing business such as depreciation, interest, taxes and other expenses. Net position Difference between the open derivatives contracts held long and the open derivatives contracts held short in any one contract. Next Record Date The next date on which the holder of each security is determined for the purposes of paying coupon interest. Non-renounceable rights Rights offer that may only be taken up or forfeited, and cannot be traded on the market. Note A loan made to a company at a fixed rate of interest with the right to be either redeemed (i.e. repaid by the company) for cash or converted into ordinary shares at a predetermined date or within a certain period. Novation Process undertaken by the clearing house whereby it substitutes itself between the buyer and the seller of a trade, acting as the 'middleman' to guarantee the obligations of each party. NTA Net Tangible Assets divided by the number of shares on issue at last reported balance date. OCR (Official Cash Rate) Rate at which the central bank charges on overnight loans to commercial banks. Main method by which the Reserve Bank of New Zealand influences interest rates. Off market transfer The transfer of shares between parties without going through the market place. Offer Price at which someone is prepared to sell securities. Open Retains the value of the last traded price (or yield). This is adjusted for corporate actions. Open-ended fund Managed investment where there is no restriction on the number of units in the fund that will be issued. ETFs are open ended funds. Option Contract between two parties giving the taker (buyer) the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell a pre-existing underlying asset at a particular price on or before a particular date. Ordinary Share The most commonly traded security in New Zealand. Holders of ordinary shares are part-owners of a company and may receive payments in cash, called dividends, if the company trades profitably. They have no preferential rights as to either dividends out of profits or capital on a winding up. OTC (Over the counter) Refers to any transaction in securities that does not occur on an organised securities exchange but rather via an electronic or telephone network. Outstanding The nominal value on issue; the number of instruments outstanding multiplied by the face value. Oversubscription During a voluntary offer such as an election merger, shares are allocated to shareholders that choose to participate (or subscribe). If there are more subscriptions than shares allocated, the offer has been over-subscribed. Can also occur in IPOs. Par Value The face value of a stock which has no relation to its market value. P/E Ratio (price-earnings ratio) A valuation ratio of a company’s current share price compared to its earnings-per-share. Also sometimes known as "price multiple" or "earnings multiple" - the number of times the price covers the earnings per security over a 12-month period. Commonly used to measure the attractiveness of particular shares and to compare shares in one company with those in another. Parent company or entity Controlling company or entity. Participating dividend Dividend paid to preference shareholders in addition to the normal preference dividends payable. Participating preference shares Share with a claim to profits ahead of ordinary shares. These shares may also have access to any additional dividends to be paid after ordinary shareholders have received theirs. Payable The date on which the dividend is paid to those who held the security on the Record Date. Period Whether the dividend is an interim, special or final dividend for the year. Physical market The market for physical goods, also known as commodities. This includes energy products, agricultural products and metals. Preference Shares Shares that rank before ordinary shares in the event of liquidation. Premium (option) Amount payable by the buyer of the option to the writer of the option on buying the option. Premium (margin) Current market value of an exchange traded option based on the previous day's closing market price and represents the current cost of liquidating the position. Previous Payment Date The date on which the preceding interest payment was paid. Price 20 minutes delayed market price. In historical series the price is adjusted to normalise movements due to Corporate Actions such as share splits or consolidations. Price per $100 (Debt Securities) The price traded for a parcel of securities with a nominal value of $100. Private equity fund Investment fund not available to the general public that often makes concentrated investments directly into companies. Promissory note An unconditional written promise to pay a specified sum of money on demand or at a specified date. Pro rata issue Issue offered to all holders of securities in a class on a pro rata basis. Property trust Trusts that enable investors to purchase an interest in a diversified portfolio of real estate assets. Investors in property trusts gain exposure to the value of the real estate the trust owns, and receive rental income through distributions the trust pays to investors. Proxy Written authorisation given by one person to another so that the second person can act in place of the first person, e.g. attending and voting at shareholders' meetings. The person authorised to act is also known as the proxy. Put Option Option / warrant contract giving the holder the right, but not the obligation, to sell the underlying asset at the exercise price. Quotation Securities in a listed entity are quoted on NZX for trading. Defined in the Listing Rules as Official Quotation. Receiver Person appointed either by a court or by an individual under a power contained in a statute, or an instrument, to investigate the affairs of a company which has run into financial difficulties. Reconstruction An alteration to the issued capital of a company. Includes share splits, consolidations, capital reductions (partial repayments) schemes of arrangement and name changes. Record date The date used in determining who is entitled to a dividend or other entitlement associated with a security. Those on the register on the record date are eligible for the entitlement. To allow for settlement of trades, ex-dividend dates and other ex-entitlement dates are usually set to one business day prior to the record date. Reference Price The price of a security which is used as a reference for certain trading rules (such as price limits), typically the closing price of the previous trading day. Related company Company which controls or is controlled by another company via ownership of subsidiaries. Renounceable rights Issue of rights where the offeree can choose to take up the rights offered, let them lapse, or trade them on the market. See also rights issue. Reset date In relation to Rolling Instalments, the Reset Date is the date upon which the Final Payment for the Loan Amount is reset for the next period. Return on investment Earnings from investments over a given period - usually expressed as a percentage per year of the amount invested. Reverse Merger A merger in which an index constituent is acquired or merged with a private, non-publicly traded company or OTC-traded company resulting in a publicly traded entity which is potentially eligble for index inclusion. Rights issue Privilege granted to shareholders to buy new shares in the same company. Risk Chance or probability that an investment will result in a loss to an investor. Can also be referred to as the level of volatility returns attached to a particular investment. Risk margin Margin for futures and exchange traded options required to cover the likely one or two day probable worst case movement against the position. Secondary market Trading on market after the primary issue. Securities Includes all instruments in the relevant equity securities market, such as ordinary shares, units in property trusts and warrants. Security Type The class of instrument, determined by its most salient features. Settlement day The day in which cash settlement or delivery resulting from expired futures or options contracts is conducted. Share indices Measure of movement in the price of a nominated group of shares. Share registry Organisation which, on behalf of a company, records changes in share ownership, issues share holding statements and makes adjustments for dividend payments, bonus and rights issues. Shares Issued Total quantity of equity securities currently on issue. Short Trader who has sold or who holds a position that will benefit from falling prices. Short selling Where an investor or fund manager borrows a security and subsequently sells the security with an obligation to purchase back the security and return it at a later date. SSM Special Shareholder Meeting - Companies may need to call special meetings from time to time to vote on specific issues. For example, they could call a special meeting to decide on proposed changes to a company's constitution or to alter shareholders' rights. Shareholders and directors can attend these meetings. Stock split Share split or stock split involves the increase of the total number of shares outstanding, accompanied by a proportionate decrease in the price of each share. The aggregate value of the shares on issue remains the same. STIR Short term interest rate. Stop loss Predetermined sell (buy) order at a price below (above) the current price intended to minimise losses in event of further falls (rises). Structured Debt Bonds Are subordinated, include rate reset mechanisms, have a fixed or floating rate, with either a maturity date or perpetual tenors. This category includes senior bonds that could be repaid in equity. Subscription A choice of receiving either cash or stock in a corporate restructing event when a choice is offered. Subsidiary Company controlled by another company. The subsidiary company is an entity in its own right and pays its own tax. Substantial Shareholder Person/company holding more than 5% of a company's voting rights. Supplementary Amount (Supp) The amount payable, in cents per security held, for any supplementary dividend payable on the same date as the normal dividend. Synthetic Price A synthetic price for an index constituent is used when the constituent has ceased to trade, or has yet to commence to trade, but where its value can be determined through its relationship to some other index constituent. Takeover Acquisition of a controlling interest in a company through the purchase of shares. Technical analysis Method used to identify investment opportunities through the study of price action. A chart representing past price movements is the principle tool used to identify trends on which analysts can base their future predictions. Tick Smallest allowed movement in price. Trade Volume The number of individual units of an instrument traded today. Trades (trade count) The number of trades today for the security. Trading halt Defined in the Listing Rules as an interruption to trading at the request of an entity that is not a suspension from quotation. Trading Status Real time information on whether a security is halted or suspended. Trust Deed Lays down the rules for a Trust, its investment guidelines and how benefits will accrue to beneficiaries and account holders. Trustee An individual who holds or manages assets for the benefit of another. Uncalled capital Total amount of capital that as yet has not been called up on the shares which are currently issued. Underlying instrument/security Asset that the holder of a derivative has the right to buy or sell, or against which a cash payment is made on exercise of an option or warrant. The underlying instrument may be a security (such as shares in a company), a share price index, a commodity or a currency. Underwriting/underwriter Party that agrees, for a fee, to purchase any unsold shares in an issue of shares. Unsecured notes Loan made to a company for a fixed period of time at a fixed rate of interest. They are issued mainly, but not only, by finance companies for between three months and three years. They offer a higher rate of interest than a debenture of the same maturity, but do not have the same security as a debenture. Upcoming Listings Listings are listed here, and are entered manually based on the best understanding of NZX. Upcoming Meetings Meeting dates and location are updated manually as per issuer releases. Upcoming Results Issuer reporting release dates are included here as released by the issuer. It is not a listing rule requirement for the issuer to provide this information. Value The number of the security traded today multiplied by the price of each trade. Vanilla Corporate Debt Bonds that are senior, secured or unsecured, unsubordinated, with either fixed or floating rates through to a maturity date. Variation margin Call made by the clearing house for additional funds or eligible security to be lodged to cover an unfavourable movement in the price of futures, options or exchange traded CFDs. Volatility Measure of the amount of fluctuation in price. Volume The number of the security traded today. VWAP Volume weighted average price. Warrants A security that gives the holder the right to buy a security at a fixed price (called an exercise price) until the expiry date. Warrants are similar to options, except warrants are issued by the company itself. Writer Seller of an option contract. Yield 20 minutes delayed expected return based on expected coupons to maturity. Yield to maturity (YTM) A total return measure for bonds which takes account of both capital gain (or loss) and income earned. YTM is calculated using purchase price (not face value) and assumes the instrument is then held to maturity. Top of the page © Copyright 2021 NZX Limited Website Terms of Use Privacy Policy Note: Market data delayed by 20 minutes, and page information may be cached and is current per the timestamp provided.