The term revenue often is misunderstood by investors. Revenue is money coming into a company. Yet even high-revenue companies can be poor investments. Think of revenue like your paycheck every … Read more →

There’s an old saying, “May you live in interesting times.” Some might find that a positive sentiment, but it’s easy to see it as a curse. The drumbeat of headlines … Read more →

A no-load mutual fund is a fund that does not charge a fee to investors for buying the fund. While mutual funds have a variety of fees, a load is … Read more →

You see the sign at nearly every bank teller window and ATM screen — “FDIC insured.” But what is the FDIC and is it important to know a bank has … Read more →

A bond maturity is the date upon which all of the initial investment plus interest will have been paid out. That can be as short as a few months and … Read more →

A limit order is any kind of investment purchase that is set with specific conditions. The “limit” requires those conditions to be met before the order is executed. Short-term stock … Read more →

Market risk is any kind of investment risk that is not related directly to the management and performance of an underlying company. For instance, if a recession were to start … Read more →

Economists and market historians often talk about the decades since the early 1980s as the “Great Moderation.” In simple terms, it marked a long stretch of lower than usual volatility … Read more →

Stock investors are generally after one thing — a rising stock price. The P/E ratio of a stock doesn’t guarantee a higher price, but it can be a way to … Read more →

The Russell 2000 is an index of small-company stocks, associated with the ticker symbol RUT. An index is a list of stocks or other investments that are similar in size … Read more →