Uptick

A stock is said to be on an uptick when the last trade occurred at a higher price than the one before it.

Value Stocks

Companies currently out of favor with investors. These companies usually have low valuation ratios (price/earnings less than the S&P 500, price/sales ratio less than 2, price/book ratio less than 2). 

Venture Capitalist

An investor involved in financing a company’s operations before going public in exchange for an ownership percentage.

Volatile

When the market or security tends to vary often and wildly in prices, it is said to be volatile.

Volatility

The measurement of how much an underlying security fluctuates over a period of time.

Volume

Volume is the daily number of shares of a security that are traded. Volume is one of the most important indicators we watch. Its relation with price movements tells us 90% of the story behind a stock?s movement and future movements. At its simplest, increased volume on increasing prices shows accumulation. Increased volume on lower prices shows distribution. There are many variations on this theme, and we spend a great deal of time poring over price/volume relations to determine which way a stock will move.

When-Issued Trading

Occurs when the security has been listed and posted for trading, but the certificate representing the security itself is not yet issued and available for settlement. The exchange bulletin issued on listing of the security indicates if the trading will be done on a when-issued basis. In this case, the issuance of the security is guaranteed and the delay in issuance is often due to factors relating to the printing and distribution of the security. The period for when-issued trading is usually less than one week.