Back-End Load
Sales fee charged when you sell or redeem shares of a mutual fund.
Back Testing
System that uses historical data in order to demonstrate what if scenarios, Back Testing have the benefit of hindsight.
Bar Chart
Graphical display of price information. Horizontal axis represents the passage of time with the most recent time periods on the right side, the vertical axis represents the price.
Basing
Time period where a stock or the market is trending sideways, characterized by a flat trading range without any noticeable up or down trend.
Basis
Actual cost of an investment, which usually include commission and/or other fees to acquire the investment.
Bear
Perspective that prices will decline. Bear markets occur when the majority of all stocks decline over an extended period of time.
Bearish Divergence
Situation when price records a higher high and the indicator forms a lower high. The indicator does not confirm the higher high which could precede a reversal.
Bear Market
Time period when stock prices are generally declining. Often measured by a decline of more than 20 percent.
Bear Trap
Price breaking below a level which generates a sell signal, price then reverses trend which negates the sell signal, trapping the bears that shorted on the signal.
Benchmark
A market index used by individual investors, portfolio managers, and market researchers to determine how a particular market or market sector performs.
Beneficiary
Entity who receives proceed(s) of a trust, retirement plan, or life insurance policy.
Beta
Measure of a security's market risk. Most stocks move in in the same direction as the stock market, the level of the beta indicates the degree of correlation between a security and the market. The market is the benchmark and has a beta of 1.0
Bid
The price at which the market maker guarantees to fill a sell order. A sell order placed at the market will usually be filled at the current bid price. Bid price is usually less than the Ask price.
Block Trade
Purchase or sale of a large number of shares or dollar value of bonds. The term is relative albeit, 10,000 or more shares is generally considered a block.
Bond
An investment vehicle representing a loan to a corporation, government, or municipality. Generally, bonds pay a fixed interest rate and return the principal investment at maturity. Bonds issued by the U.S. government are guaranteed as to the timely payment of principal and interest if held to maturity; other bonds are not guaranteed and carry varying degrees of financial risk.
Bond Funds
Mutual funds that invest in bonds issued by municipalities, corporations, and the U.S. government and its agencies. Bond mutual funds do not mature and are not guaranteed, although some of the individual bonds they invest in may be.
Breadth
Comparison of the number of issues traded with the number of issues listed for trading. Measurement of the number of issues advancing versus the number of issues declining on a given day or as a moving average.
Breakaway Gap
Price gap that forms on the completion of a significant price pattern. Breakaway gap generally signals the beginning of significant price movement.
Breakout
Security price emerging from a previous trading pattern. The new price "breaks out" above the high or below the low trading pattern lines that enclose all other prices for that security in the preceding period.
Bull
Perspective that prices will increase. Bull markets occur when the majority of all stocks increase over an extended period of time.
Bull/Bear Ratio
Investor's Intelligence market sentiment indicator which shows the relationship between bullish and bearish advisors. This is a contrarian indicator, when it reflects extreme bullishness, the market is may be at a top.
Bullish Divergence
Situation when price records a lower low and the indicator forms a higher low. The indicator does not confirm the lower low which could precede a reversal.
Bull Market
Extended period of time when prices in the market are generally increasing.
Bull Trap
Price breaking above a level which generates a buy signal, price then reverses trend which negates the buy signal, trapping the bulls that bought (went long) on the signal.
Buyback
Company repurchasing shares of its own stock.
Buying Climax
Sudden upward movement in the market value of a security characterized by a gap in the prices between one trading session and the next.
Buying on Margin
Investor borrows money from a broker to make an investment.
Buy Long
Purchasing a stock with the intent of selling it at a higher price (buy low, sell high). Some investors “Short Sell” meaning they sell a stock with the intent of buying it back at a price lower than their purchase price (sell high, buy low).
Buy Signal
Indicator to buy a stock. Conditions of the signal will be determined by the indicator.