Learn Stocks

A stock is a unit of ownership in a real business, not a betting ticket on a price.

Companies sell ownership to raise capital without taking on debt.

Price is the last agreed transaction; over long periods it tracks business results far more closely.

Tickers identify securities, and fractional shares let you invest by dollar amount.

Market cap is share price multiplied by shares outstanding — the market's price for the whole company.

A dividend is cash paid out to shareholders from company profits.

Splits change the share count without changing value; buybacks reduce the share count.

Sectors group similar businesses; indexes measure groups of companies.

Three statements describe a business: income, balance sheet and cash flow.

P/E compares price to earnings; it is context, not a verdict.

Durability comes from competitive advantage, reinvestment quality and balance-sheet resilience.

A consistent checklist beats an inconsistent hunch.