A

Amortization — The process of spreading out a loan into a series of fixed payments over time, covering both principal and interest.

Asset — Any resource owned by an individual or business that is expected to provide future economic benefit.

Audit — A formal examination of an organization's financial records to ensure accuracy and compliance with regulations.

B

Balance Sheet — A financial statement that summarizes a company's assets, liabilities, and shareholders' equity at a given point in time.

Benchmark — A standard or point of reference used to evaluate performance or make comparisons.

Bond — A fixed-income instrument representing a loan made by an investor to a borrower, typically corporate or governmental.

C

Capital — Financial assets or the financial value of assets, such as cash or goods, used to generate income or make investments.

Cash Flow — The net amount of cash being transferred in and out of a business over a given period.

Compound Interest — Interest calculated on both the initial principal and the accumulated interest from previous periods.

D

Depreciation — The reduction in value of an asset over time due to wear and tear, age, or obsolescence.

Dividend — A portion of a company's earnings distributed to shareholders, usually on a regular basis.

Due Diligence — The investigation or audit of a potential investment or product to confirm all material facts before a transaction.

E

Earnings Per Share (EPS) — A company's net profit divided by the number of outstanding shares of its common stock.

Equity — The value of an owner's interest in a company after all liabilities have been subtracted from total assets.

Exchange Rate — The value at which one currency can be exchanged for another.

F

Fixed Cost — A cost that does not change with the level of output or business activity, such as rent or salaries.

Forecast — An estimate of future financial outcomes based on historical data and current trends.

Fund — A pool of money set aside for a specific purpose, often managed by a financial institution or investment manager.

G

GDP (Gross Domestic Product) — The total monetary value of all goods and services produced within a country in a given period.

Gross Margin — The difference between revenue and the cost of goods sold, expressed as a percentage of revenue.

Growth Rate — The rate at which a variable, such as revenue or GDP, increases over a specific period of time.

H

Hedge — An investment made to reduce the risk of adverse price movements in an asset.

Holding Company — A parent corporation that owns enough voting stock in another company to control its policies and management.

I

Inflation — The rate at which the general level of prices for goods and services rises, eroding purchasing power.

Interest Rate — The proportion of a loan charged as interest to the borrower, typically expressed as an annual percentage.

IPO (Initial Public Offering) — The first sale of a company's shares to the public on a stock exchange.

J

Joint Venture — A business arrangement where two or more parties agree to pool resources for the purpose of accomplishing a specific task.

K

Key Performance Indicator (KPI) — A measurable value that demonstrates how effectively a company is achieving key business objectives.

L

Liability — A company's legal financial debts or obligations that arise during the course of business operations.

Liquidity — The degree to which an asset can be quickly bought or sold in the market without affecting its price.

Loss — The amount by which a business's expenses exceed its revenues in a given period.

M

Market Capitalization — The total market value of a company's outstanding shares of stock.

Merger — The combination of two companies into a single new entity, typically to increase competitive advantage.

Mutual Fund — An investment vehicle made up of a pool of money collected from many investors to invest in securities.

N

Net Income — A company's total earnings after all expenses, taxes, and costs have been deducted from revenue.

Net Worth — The total assets minus total liabilities of an individual or company.

O

Operating Cost — The expenses associated with running a business's core operations on a day-to-day basis.

Overhead — Ongoing business expenses not directly attributed to creating a product or service.

P

Portfolio — A collection of financial investments such as stocks, bonds, and cash equivalents held by an investor.

Profit Margin — A measure of profitability calculated as net income divided by revenue, expressed as a percentage.

Principal — The original sum of money borrowed in a loan, or put into an investment, separate from interest or earnings.

Q

Quantitative Analysis — The use of mathematical and statistical methods to evaluate investments and financial instruments.

R

Return on Investment (ROI) — A performance measure used to evaluate the efficiency or profitability of an investment.

Revenue — The total income generated by a business from its normal business operations.

Risk Management — The process of identifying, assessing, and controlling financial, legal, and strategic risks to an organization.

S

Shareholder — An individual or institution that owns shares in a company and has a claim on part of the company's assets and earnings.

Stock — A type of security that signifies ownership in a corporation and represents a claim on part of the corporation's assets and earnings.

Solvency — The ability of a company to meet its long-term financial obligations.

T

Takeover — The acquisition of one company by another, either through purchase of shares or assets.

Tax Liability — The total amount of tax debt owed by an individual or corporation to a taxing authority.

Treasury Stock — Shares that were issued and repurchased by the issuing company, reducing the amount of outstanding stock.

U

Underwriting — The process by which an individual or institution takes on financial risk for a fee, typically in insurance or investment banking.

V

Valuation — The analytical process of determining the current or projected worth of an asset or company.

Variable Cost — A cost that changes in proportion to the level of output or business activity.

W

Working Capital — The difference between a company's current assets and current liabilities, used to fund day-to-day operations.

Write-off — A reduction in the value of an asset or an amount owed, recorded as an expense or loss.

X

X-Efficiency — The degree of efficiency maintained by firms under conditions of imperfect competition.

Y

Yield — The earnings generated and realized on an investment over a particular period, expressed as a percentage.

Z

Zero-Based Budgeting — A method of budgeting where all expenses must be justified for each new period, starting from a "zero base."