Financial Glossary: H
Autor: Daniel Brandão de Castro | Publicado: 2009-02-13T22:25:00-02:00

HFifth letter of a Nasdaq stock symbol specifying that the issue is the second preferred bond of the company.HABSee: House Air WaybillHEXSee: Helsinki ExchangeHKThe two-character ISO 3166 country code for HONG KONG.HKDThe ISO 4217 currency code for theHong Kong Dollar.HKFESee: Hong Kong Futures ExchangeHLTSee: Highly leveraged transactionHMThe two-character ISO 3166 country code for HEARD ISLAND AND MCDONALD ISLANDS.HNThe two-character ISO 3166 country code for HONDURAS.HNLThe ISO 4217 currency code for the Honduras Lempira.HRThe two-character ISO 3166 country code for CROATIA.HRKCroatian Kuna currency. (The ISO 4217 currency code)HTThe two-character ISO 3166 country code for HAITI.HTGThe ISO 4217 currency code for the Haiti Gourde.HUThe two-character ISO 3166 country code for HUNGARY.HUFThe ISO 4217 currency code for the Hungarian Forint.HaircutThe margin or difference between the actual market value of a security and the value assessed by the lending side of a transaction).Half-lifeThe point in the life of a mortgage-backed securityguaranteed or issued by the Government National Mortgage Association, the Federal National Mortgage Association or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation when half the principal has been repaid.Half-stockStock, common or preferred, with a $50 par value.Hammering the marketHeavy selling of stocks by speculators who think that the stock is overvalued and is about to drop.HandleThe whole-dollar price of a bid or offer is referred to as the handle (e.g., if a security is quoted at 101.10 bid and 101.11 offered, 101 is the handle). Traders are assumed to know the handle. See: Full.Hands-off investorAn investor who has a large stake in a company, but does not wish to play an active role in the management of the corporation.Hands-on investorAn investor who has a large stake in a corporation and takes an active role in its management . Antithesis of hands-off investor.Hang Seng indexThe major index in Hong Kong.Hard call protectionUsually refers to callable bonds. The period of time when a bond cannot be called, no matter what the interest rate is. That is, if the interest rate falls sharply, most callable bonds will be called (so the bond issuer can reissue at a lower interest rate). Hard call protection ensures that the holder of the bond can benefit when rates fall.Hard capital rationingA capital budget that under no circumstances can be violated.Hard currencyA freely convertible currency that is not expected to depreciate in value in the foreseeable future.Hard dollarsActual separate payments made by a customer for services, including research, provided by a brokerage firm. Antithesis of soft dollars.Harmless warrantWarrant that allows the user to purchase a bond only by surrendering an other bond with similar terms.The Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding SystemCommonly known as Harmonized System. It isa a classification system devised by the Customs Cooperation Council to provide uniformity in tariff classification, trade statistics, and transport documentation among cooperating countries.Hart-Scott-Rodino ActOften used in risk arbitrage. Antitrust act administered by U.S. Department of Justice and the FTC that requires an investor to file a form with the government before he acquires an economic interest in the lesser amount of $15 million or 15% of the capitalization of a specific security. The government has thirty days to respond to the filer.Harvey, Campbell R.Author of this glossary. Finance professor at Duke University. Author of research on international finance, asset allocation, and emerging markets.HawkishAn aggressive tone. For example, if the Federal Reserve uses hawkish language to describe the threat of inflation, one could reasonably expect stronger actions from the Fed. There is a similar application to CEO describing an important issue that a firm faces. Opposite of Dovish.Head & shouldersIn technical analysis, a pattern that results where a stock price reaches a peak and declines; rises above its former peak and again declines; and rises a third time but not to the second peak, and then again declines. The first and third peaks are shoulders, while the second peak is the formation's head. Technical analysts generally consider a head and shoulders formation to be a very bearishindication.HeavyAn equities market now dominated by sellers, or oversupply, resulting in falling prices. See: Overbought, resistance level, tired.HedgeA transaction that reduces the risk of an investment.Hedge clauseA clause in a research report or any published document, that attempts to absolve the writer of responsibility for the accuracy of information provided.Hedge fundAn investment vehicle that somewhat resembles a mutual fund, but with a number of important differences. If the fund is "off-shore", the fund does not have to adhere to any SEC regulations (and can only sell to non-U.S. investors or investment vehicles). These funds employ a number of different strategies that are not usually found in mutual funds. The term "hedge" can actually be misleading. The traditional hedge fund is actually hedged. For example, a fund employing a long-short strategy would try to select the best securities for purchase and the worst for short sale. The combination of longs and short provides a natural hedge to market-wide shocks. However, much more common are funds that are not hedged. There are funds that are long-biased and short-biased. There are funds that undertake high frequency futures strategies, sometimes called managed futures. There are funds that take long-term macroeconomic bets, sometimes called global macro. There are funds that try to capitalize on merger and acquisitions. Another distinguishing feature of hedge funds is the way that managers are rewarded. There are two fees: fixed and variable. The fixed fee is a percentage of asset under management. The variable or performance fee is a percentage of the profit of the fund. There are also funds of funds which invest in a portfolio of hedge funds. Another important difference with hedge funds is that the minimum required investment is usually quite large and, as a result, minimizes the participation of retail investors.Hedge qualityMeasured by the R-square in a regression of spot rate changes on futures price changes.Hedge ratio (delta)For options, ratio between the change in an option's theoretical value and the change in price of the underlyingstock at a given point in time. For convertibles, percentage of a convertible bond representing the number of underlying common shares sold against the shares into which bonds are convertible. If a preferred is convertible into 2000 common shares, a 75% hedge ratio would be short (long) 1500 common for every 1000 preferred long (short). See: Delta.Hedge wrapperAn optionsstrategy in which an investor with a long position in an underlyingstock buys an out-of-the-moneyput and sells an out-of-the-moneycall. The hedge wrapper defines a range where the stock will be sold at expiration of the option, which way the stock moves.Hedged portfolioA portfolio consisting of a long position in the stock and a long position in the put option on the stock, so as to be riskless and produce a return that equals the risk-free interest rate.Hedged tenderAn investor sells a portion of a stock holding short a tender offer in the event all shares tendered are not accepted. For example, investor Q has 5000 shares of XYZ. An acquiringcompany makes a tender offer of $100 a share when the shares are currently worth $80. Investor Q short-sells 2500 shares after the announcement and the price of the stock has approached $100. Company XYZ purchases only 2500 of the original shares at $100. Investor Q has sold all shares at $100 even as the price of the stock drops on a post-news dip.HedgieSlang for a hedge fund.HedgingA strategy designed to reduce investment risk using call options, put options, short-selling, or futures contracts. A hedge can help lock in profits. Its purpose is to reduce the volatility of a portfolio by reducing the risk of loss.Hedging demandsDemands for securities to hedge particular sources of consumption risk, beyond the usual mean-variance diversification motivation.Held at the openingUsed for listed equity securities. Not open for trading because specialists or regulators are not allowing trading to occur until imbalances dissipate or news is disseminated.Held orderOrder that must be executed without hesitation (Hit the bid or take the offer in line) or if the stock can be bought or sold at that price (held limit order) in sufficient quantity.Hell-or-high-water contractA contract that obligates a purchaser of a project's output to make cash payments to the project in all events, even if no product is offered for sale.Helsinki Exchanges (HEX)The Helsinki Exchanges (HEX Ltd., Helsinki Securities and Derivatives Exchange and Clearing House) was formed at the beginning of 1998 following the merger of the Helsinki Stock Exchange Ltd. and SOM Ltd., the Securities and Derivatives Exchange, and the Clearing House.Hemline theoryA theory that stock prices move in the same direction as the hemlines of women's dresses. For example, short skirts (1920s and 1960s) are symbolic of bullishmarkets and long skirts (1930s and 1940s) are symbolic of bearishmarkets.HermesThe tradefinanceagency for Germany.Herstatt riskThe risk of loss in foreign exchange trading that one party will deliver foreign exchange but the counterpartyfinancial_institution will fail to complete its end of the contract. This is also referred to as settlement risk.H-H pageQuotron display page that shows new listed inquiries/orders received after the block call.HIBORHong Kong Interbank Offer Rate, the annualized offer rate banks pay to attain Hong Kong three-month deposits in denominated dollars.Hidden loadA sales charge that is not explicitly disclosed or is buried in the fine print of a mutual fundprospectus or life insurance policy and therefore is not immediately apparent.Hidden valuesValuable assets owned by a company, that are not accurately reflected in its stock price at a particular time.High-coupon bond refundingReplace a high-coupon bond with a new, lower-coupon bond.High creditThe maximum amount of outstandingloans for a particular customer on a bank's record.High current income mutual fundA mutual fund whose primary goal is to produce a high level of income by making higher-riskinvestments in instruments such as junk bonds.High flyerHigh-priced and highly speculative stock that moves up and down sharply over a short period. Generally glamorous in nature due to the capital gains potential associated with them; also used to describe any high-priced stock. Antithesis of sleeper.High-gradeCredit quality of AAA or AA.High-grade bondA bond with Triple-A or Double-A rating in Standard & Poor's, or Moody's rating system.High priceThe highest (intraday) price of a stock over the past 52 weeks, adjusted for any stock splits.High-premium convertible debentureA bond with a long-term, high-premium, common stock conversion feature. It also offers a competitive interest rate. This type of investment vehicle is aimed at bondinvestors who want to be able to convert into stock to hedge against inflation.High-tech stockStocks of companies operating in high-technology fields.High withholding tax interest incomeInterest income that is subject to a foreign gross withholding tax of 5% or more. Specified in US tax code.High yieldIn the context of hedge funds, a style of management that focuses on low rated fixed income securities.High-yield bondSee: Junk bondHighjackingJapanese term for a takeover.Highly confident letterAn investment bankingfirm's letter indicating that the firm is highly confident it will be able to arrange financing for a securities deal.Highly leveraged transaction (HLT)Bank loan to a highly leveragedfirm.HighsStocks that have hit an all-time high for the current 52-week time period.Hire PurchaseThe right to purchase an asset by the user of the asset according to a pre-agreed method. The user may be the owner for tax purposes.Historical costDescribes the accounting cost carried in the books for a current cost of the item.Historical Cost Accounting ConventionAn accounting technique that values an asset for balance sheet purposes at the price paid for the asset at the time of its acquisition.Historical exchange rateAn accounting term that refers to the exchange rate in effect at the time an asset or liability is acquired.Historical trading rangeThe range of price over which a security or a commodity has traded since listing on a exchange.Historical volatilityFluctuations estimated from a historical time series.Historical yieldA measure of a mutual fund'syield over a specific period of time, e.g., 1 year, 2 year, 5 year, or year to date.Hit the bidA dealer who agrees to sell at the bid price quoted by another dealer is said to "hit" that bid. Antithesis of take the offer.Hit the ribbonUsed in the context of general equities. See: Print.HoldTo maintain ownership of a security over a long period of time. "Hold" is also a recommendation of an analyst who is not positive enough on a stock to recommend a buy, but not negative enough on the stock to recommend a sell.HolderThe purchaser of an option.Holder of record dateThe date on which holders of record in a firm'sstockledger are designated as the recipients of either dividends or stock rights. Also called date of record.Holding companyA corporation that owns enough votingstock in another firm to control management and operations by influencing or electing its Board of Directors.Holding the marketThe illegal practice of maintaining and/or placing a sufficient number of buy orders to create price support for a security or commodity in an amount to of stabilize a downward trend.Holding periodLength of time a security is held.Holding-period returnRate of return on an investment over a given period.Holding-Period Yield (HPY)The annual rate of return actually realized on an investment in a bond.Home asset biasThe tendency of investors to over invest in their own county's assets.Home runLarge capital gain in a stock in a short period of time.Homemade dividendSale of some shares of stock to get cash in an amount similar to that of a cash dividend.Homemade leverageIdea that as long as individuals borrow (or lend) on the same terms as the firm, they can duplicate the effects of corporate leverage on their own. Thus, if levered firms are priced too high, rational investors will simply borrow on personal accounts to buyshares in unlevered firms.Homeowner's equity accountA credit line offered bymortgagelenders allowing a homeowner a second mortgage that uses the equity present in the customer's account as collateral.Homeowner's insurance policyAn insurance policy protecting a homeowner against damage or loss to property.HomogeneityThe degree to which items are similar.HomogeneousExhibiting a high degree of homogeneity.Homogeneous expectations assumptionAn assumption of Markowitzportfolio construction that investors have the same expectations with respect to the inputs that are used to derive efficient portfolios: assetreturns, variances, and covariances.Hong Kong Futures Exchange (HKFE)Established in 1976, the Hong Kong Futures Exchange (H.K.F.E.) operates futures and options markets in index, stock, interest rate, and foreign exchange products.Horizon analysisAn analysis of returns using total return to assess performance over some investment horizon.Horizon matching strategyAn income immunization strategy that cash-matches over the next few years and duration-matches the rest.Horizon returnTotal return over a given horizon.Horizontal acquisitionMerger between two companies producing similar goods or services.Horizontal analysisThe process of dividing each expense item of a given year by the same expense item in the base year. It allows assessment of changes in the relative importance of expense items over time and the behavior of expense items as sales change.Horizontal mergerA merger involving two or more firms in the same industry that are both at the same stage in the production cycle; that is, two or more competitors.Horizontal price movementStock price movement within a narrow price range over an extended period of time which creates the appearance of a relatively straight line on a graph of the stock's price.Horizontal spreadThe simultaneous purchase and sale of two options that differ only in their expiration dates.Hospital revenue bondA bondissued to finance construction of a hospital by a municipal or state agency.Host securityThe security to which a warrant is attached.Hostile takeoverA takeover of a company (usually made by an open tender offer to shareholders) against the wishes of the current management and the Board of Directors by an acquiring company or raider.HotUsed in the context of general equities. Active, usually with positive price implications.Hot moneyMoney that moves across country borders in response to interest rate differences and that moves away when the interest rate differential disappears.HouseFirms that conduct business as broker-dealers in securities or in the investment banking field are characterized as houses.House accountA type of account at a brokerage firm that is given a high level of priority and is handled by the main office or an executive, rather than a traditional salesperson.House Air Waybill (AWB)An air waybill issued by an air freight consolidator.House callNotification by a brokerage house that a customer's margin account is below the minimum maintenance level. The client must provide more cash or equity, or the account will be liquidated.House of issueAn investment banking firm whose business it is to underwritestock or bondissues and offer the securities to the public.House maintenance requirementThe internal rules of a brokerage house that govern the minimum amount of equity that must be present in a customer's margin account.House poorPeople who are short on cash because most of their money is tied up in their homes are "house poor."House rulesInternal rules of broker-dealerfirm that govern the handling of its customers' accounts.Housing bondBondsissued by a local housing authority to finance housing projects."How are you making XXX?""What is your market in a particular stock?" See: Quotation.HubrisAn arrogance due to excessive pride and an insolence toward others. A classic character flaw of a trader or investor.Hulbert ratingA rating by Hulbert Financial Digest, a service of CBS MarketWatch, of how well the recommendations of various investmentadvisory newsletters have performed.Human capitalThe unique capabilities and expertise of individuals.Humphrey-Hawkins ActInformal name for the Full Employment and Balanced Growth Act of 1978, from the names of the act's original sponsors.Hung upUsed to describe the position of an investor whose stocks or bonds have dropped in value below their original purchase price.Hunkering downA term used to describe a trader selling off a big position in a stock.Hurdle rateThe required return in capital budgeting. For example, if a project has an expected rate of return higher than the hurdle rate, the project may be accepted.HybridA package of two or more different kinds of riskmanagementinstruments that are usually interactive.Hybrid annuityA type of insurance company investment that combines the benefits of both a fixed annuity and a variable annuity.Hybrid securityA convertible security whose optioned common stock is trading in a middle range, causing the convertible security to trade with the characteristics of both a fixed income security and a common stock instrument.HyperinflationSee: InflationHypothecationIn banking, refers to the commitment of property to secure a loan.In securities, refers to the commitment of securities to serve as collateral for marginloans at the broker-dealer firm.HysteresisUsed to characterize a lagging effect. Firms may fail to enter markets that appear attractive, or firms that are once invested in a market may persist in operating at a loss. The effect is characteristic of investments with high entry and exit costs along with high uncertainty.