Stock (business)

Stock (business), in business and finance, a specific type of negotiable instrument or security, although the term does have other meanings. In everyday usage, stocks are treated as being identical with securities and shares of ownership in a company or corporation, but, properly speaking, stocks are securities with specific characteristics. Their value is quoted in monetary amounts, and they bear a fixed rate of interest, while shares are quoted in proportions of the total capital of a company and may have variable rates of interest. Stocks are frequently issued by local or central governments to raise revenue, and government stocks are regarded as a solid and low-risk form of investment because they are backed by the credit of the government. Also, the total accumulated goods held by a company, whether already made or in the process of manufacture, may be termed its stock. The capital stock of a company or country is its total quantity of material capital.