Ulcer Index (UI)
What is 'Ulcer Index - UI' A technical indicator that measures downside risk, in terms of both depth and duration of price declines. The Ulcer Index (UI) increases in value as the price moves farther away from a recent high, and falls as the price rises to new highs. The indicator is usually calculated over 14 days,...
Economic Cycle
DefinitionThe business cycle, also known as the economic cycle or trade cycle, is the downward and upward movement of gross domestic product around its long-term growth trend. The length of a business cycle is the period of time containing a single boom and contraction in sequence. These fluctuations typically involve shifts over time between periods of relatively rapid economic...
Outstanding Shares
DefinitionShares outstanding are all the shares of a corporation or financial asset that have been authorized, issued and purchased by investors and are held by them. They have rights and represent ownership in the corporation by the person who holds the shares. They are distinguished from treasury shares, which are shares held by the corporation itself and have no...
Target Cash Balance
What is 'Target Cash Balance' The ideal amount of cash that a company wishes to hold in reserve at any given point in time. This figure hopes to strike a balance between the investment opportunity costs of holding too much cash and the balance sheet costs of holding too little. Companies with excess cash on hand may...
Naked Trust
Definition A naked trust is a trust in which the beneficiary has a right to both income and capital and has the ability to request that both be transferred into his own name, as opposed to a remainder trust. Assets in a bare trust are kept in the name of the trustee, but the beneficiary has the right to receive...
Underinvestment Problem
What is an 'Underinvestment Problem' When a corporation refuses to invest in low-risk assets in order to increase its wealth at the expense of debt holders, this is referred to as an agency dilemma. Low-risk initiatives give more security for the firm's loan holders since they may create a consistent stream of income that can be used to repay the...
Natural Gas Storage Indicator (EIA Report)
What is 'Natural Gas Storage Indicator - EIA Report' The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) weekly estimate of working natural gas volumes held in underground storage facilities at the national and regional levels. Changes in these gas inventories on a weekly basis primarily reflect net withdrawals or injections. The report is generally reported every Thursday at 10:30am...
Earnings
The amount of money that a company generates during a specific time period is called as ‘earnings’. This amount of money, to put it simply is the profits it has made in a certain amount of time which is usually defined as a quarter or a year. Earnings: Simple to calculate or complex? To elaborate this further, consider you have a...
Keiretsu
Definition Keiretsu is a group of companies that are intertwined in terms of business relationships and stock ownership. An example of an informal business group is the entrepreneur's association. During the second half of the twentieth century, the keiretsu retained its grip on the Japanese economy. What is 'Keiretsu' A loose agglomeration of businesses that share one or more common denominators is...
Depreciation
What is depreciation and how does it work Depreciation is an accounting method used to spread the cost of a long-term asset over its useful life. depreciation is used to account for declines in value due to obsolescence, wear and tear, or depletion. The depreciation expense is reported on the income statement as a reduction of revenue. For tax purposes,...