P228 CEEFAX 228 Sun 22 Dec 22:44/14 1/8 STOCK MASTER ABC "A" ordinary shares Lacking voting rights and usually a little chjapjr. Account The Stock Exchange's year is split into 24 accounts, most of them of two weeks. Money due on dealings is not paid until the ind of an account, which means that shares may bj bought and sold again without paying for them. Bears Investors who sell in the belief that the price will fall. Hence, a bbear market" or "bearish" mood. Bid/offer spread The gap between buying and selling prices. MoreP228 CEEFAX 228 Sun 22 Dec 22:44/31 2/8 -,,* STOCK MAR ET ABC Blue chips Top firms and their shares. Bulls Investors who buy in the belief that the price will rise. Hence, also, a "bull market" or "bullish" mood. Call options See TRADED OPTIONS. Capital Gains Tax (COT) Levied on any capital gains in excess of £5,900 in a single tax year. Capitalisation Issue A free issue of shares to shareholders in proportion to their holdings whenever a company wants to "capitalisj" excess reserves. MoreP228 CEEFAX 228 Sun 22 Dec 22:59/04 3/8 STOCK MAR ET ABC Ex- Any price quoted that excludes the buyer from a dividend or an issue of shares: ex-dividend (or XD), ex-rights (XR*, or ex-capitalisation (XC). FT Indices Best known are the Financial Times Industrial Ordinary Index (also known as the FT 30), the FT-Actuaries All-Share Index (740 shares), and the novel FT-SE 100 Index (100 shares). Gilt-edged stock or gilts See STOCKS. Government stock See STOCKS. Index-linked See STOCKS. MoreP228 CEEFAX 228 Sun 22 Dec 22:34/22 4/8 -,,% STOCK MAR ET ABC Jobbers Dealers making a market in a stock or a shari. The wholesalers, as opposed to the retailers, the brokers. New time dealings Buying or selling in the last two days of one account for settlement (payment) in the next. Options The right to buy or sell a share within a specified period - three months is the norm - at a set price. See TRADED OPTIONS. Ordinary shares See SHARES. PLC Firm able to sell shares publicly. MoreP228 CEEFAX 228 Sun 22 Dec 22:52/21 5/8 STOCK MASTER ABC Par For shares, the face value. For govjrnmjnt stock, £100. For partly-paid stocks and shares, the issue price. Perks Shares in some companies confer certain privileges on shareholders. Pitch A jobber's home. Preference shares See SHARES. Put options See TRADED OPTIONS. Rights issue A means of raising fresh capital bz selling shares to existing shareholders on a proportional basis. MoreP228 CEEFAX 228 Sun 22 Dec 22:41/12 6/8 STOCK MASTER ABC Scrip issue See CAPITALISATJON ISSUE. Shares Ordinary shares are simply part of the capital of a company, entitling the holder to a say in its running (via votes at the annual meeting) and to a share of any profits (dividends). "A" ordinary shares carry no voting rights. Preference shares have first call on any profits and, if cumulative, require dividends unpaid one year to be paid in another year. Stags Buyers of a new issue of shares bent on selling at once at a profit. MoreP228 CEEFAX 228 Sun 22 Dec 22:33/57 7/8 -,, -,,% STOCK MAR ET ABC Stamp Duty Equals 1pc of purchase price of shares. Does not apply to gilts. Stocks Government stock (gilts or gilt- edged) gives a fixed return - known as its coupon - and repays its £100 par value at maturity. See PAR. The market price fluctuates, usually in opposition to the prevailing level of interest rates. Undated stock simply pays interest and will never be redeemed. Index-linked stock pays a rate of interest tied to the retail price index. MoreP228 CEEFAX 228 Sun 22 Dec 22:41/47 8/8 -,,k-,,% STOCK MASTER ABC Stocks (cont) Companies issue debenture stock, giving holders a prior claim on their assets, as well as unsecured loan stock, which does not. Convertible loan stock may bj swapped later for shares. Tap stock Government stock released to the market in bundles, as from a tap. Traded options Buying (call options) or selling (put options) shari options (see OPTIONS) before their life is up. XC, XD, XR See EX-. Yield The annual return (dividend) on a stock or shari at the current pric . More