List of Glossary Terms
The PDSnet Glossary of Terms contains definitions and explanations for over 2600 financial market terms. These definitions are constantly kept up-to-date with current topical examples from the markets. They are also updated for changes in legislation and current events like COVID19 and the July 2021 civil unrest.
The terms in the Glossary are directly linked to all PDSnet articles, confidential reports, lecture modules and other material. This means that a client reading one of our publications can immediately see which terms are defined in the Glossary and click through to read the definition. Terms within the definitions in the glossary are similarly linked, which gives the Glossary an enormous educational depth share market investors.
| V-BOTTOM FORMATION |
V-bottoms are a fairly rare formation in technical analysis and usually signal some sort of artificial interference in the progress of the... read more |
| V-TOP FORMATION |
Changes in the direction of market sentiment from bullish to bearish represent points or periods at which the sentiment has shifted... read more |
| VACANCIES |
This is the percentage of a property company's rentable space which is vacant. It is a key statistic in the assessment of real estate investment trusts (REIT) and property... read more |
| VACANCY RATE |
This is the percentage of a property company's rentable space which is vacant. It is a key statistic in the assessment of real estate investment trusts (REIT) and property... read more |
| VALUE ADDED TAX |
A tax which is applied to the value added by an organisation to a product. The value added is measured by the difference between what a company paid for a product and what it is able to sell... read more |
| VALUE AT RISK |
A measure of exposure within a given portfolio, which attempts to estimate how much the portfolio would be expected to lose, given the recent behaviour of the securities contained therein. |
| VALUE INVESTING |
A fundamental approach to share assessment which involves identifying shares which are undervalued in terms of their future profit and dividend potential. This approach is... read more |
| VALUE-WEIGHTED INDEX |
A market average such as Standard & Poor's 500 Index that takes into account the market value of each security's market capitalisation rather than calculating a straight price average. |
| VANGUARD |
The second largest asset management company in the world with over $7 trillion in assets under management (AUM). The company was founded by... read more |
| VAR |
A measure of exposure within a given portfolio, which attempts to estimate how much the portfolio would be expected to lose, given the recent behaviour of the securities contained therein. |
| VARIABLE COST |
A cost in the books of a company which increases and decreases with their sales level. The main variable cost (also known as a "direct cost") is cost of sales. The cost of... read more |
| VARIABLE LIMIT |
A price system that allows for larger than normal allowable price movements under certain conditions. In periods of extreme volatility, some exchanges permit trading at price levels that exceed... read more |
| VARIABLE RATE PREFERENCE SHARE |
A preference share which receives a dividend based on a variable - like the prime overdraft rate from a specific bank. These shares are relatively rare, but they do exist. They have slightly... read more |
| VARIABLE-LENGTH MOVING AVERAGE |
A moving average where the number of periods selected for smoothing is based on a volatility measurement of price. Typically, the standard deviation of price is used to measure price volatility.... read more |
| VARIANCE FUTURE |
A derivative instrument where the holder buys the variance from a future strike price at a specific future date. In South Africa these are known as "savi squared" and they allow investors to... read more |
| VARIATION MARGIN |
Additional margin required to be deposited by a clearing member firm to the clearinghouse during periods of great market volatility or in the case of high-risk accounts. |
| VAT |
A tax which is applied to the value added by an organisation to a product. The value added is measured by the difference between what a company paid for a product and what it is able to sell... read more |
| VCM |
... read more |
| VEGA |
The amount by which the price of an option changes when the volatility changes. |
| VELOCITY OF CIRCULATION |
The speed with which money circulates in the economy. In a recession, money tends to circulate more slowly than in a boom. When money is circulating more slowly, it takes longer for the inflationary... read more |
| VENTURE CAPITAL |
High-risk, start-up operations which normally raise capital by selling shares in a public unlisted company directly to the public through a team of commissioned salespeople. These are always... read more |
| VENTURE CAPITAL MARKET |
... read more |
| VERTICAL INTEGRATION |
This is where a company owns or tries to own its entire supply chain. So, it might begin by selling sauces to retailers and then buy the manufacturer that makes the sauces and then establish... read more |
| VERTICAL SHAFT |
In mining, a vertical shaft is used to take workers down to the horizontal tunnels so that they can get access to the working areas. The vertical shaft is then also used to return the... read more |
| VERTICAL SPREAD |
A stock option spread based on simultaneous purchase and sale of options on the same underlying stock with the same expiration months but different strike prices. |
| VESTING |
The rights that an employee gains for working at a firm for a specific length of time. |
| VIEW |
An investor’s perception of the market and economy as a whole. Learning to develop and accurate view of the world economy and exactly where South Africa fits in to... read more |
| VIS MAJOR |
In law this refers to an unpredictable event which prevents one party from completing its obligations in terms of a contract. Most major contracts contain a force majeure clause which allows... read more |
| VIX |
The volatility index (or "VIX" as it is known) is a measure of implied volatility maintained by the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE). The Vix is calculated by totaling the weighted put and... read more |
| VOIDABLE DISPOSITION |
A disposal which is made within six months of an estate becoming insolvent. In terms of the Insolvency Act (24 of 1936), section 29 regulates that dispositions which are made within six... read more |
| VOIDABLE PREFERENCE |
A disposal which is made within six months of an estate becoming insolvent. In terms of the Insolvency Act (24 of 1936), section 29 regulates that dispositions which are made within six... read more |
| VOLATILITY |
The degree to which a share deviates from its average. High volatility is associated with risk, both fundamental risk and technical... read more |
| VOLATILITY INDEX |
The volatility index (or "VIX" as it is known) is a measure of implied volatility maintained by the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE). The Vix is calculated by totaling the weighted put and... read more |
| VOLUME |
The number of shares changing hands during a single trading day. This figure is calculated by counting the number of shares traded in a particular... read more |
| VOLUME DECLINE INDEX |
A breadth indicator which gives a ratio of the volumes of shares with rising prices to shares with falling prices, developed... read more |
| VOLUME PRICE TREND |
In which a running sum is maintained when a day's total volume is added if the market closes positive or the day's total volume is subtracted if the market closes lower. In this calculation the... read more |
| VOLUME WEIGHTED AVERAGE PRICE |
This is the average price weighted for the volume traded each day over a defined period such as the previous 30 days. The VWAP is used to price rights issues,... read more |
| VOLUNTARY CORPORATE ACTION |
A corporate action which requires a decision from shareholders - such as a rights issue. With a rights issue, shareholders must decide whether to take up the rights or not. If they do not take... read more |
| VOLUNTARY LIQUIDATION |
Where a company decides to enter liquidation without being forced to do so by its creditors. In terms of sections 79 to 83 of the Companies Act (71 of 2008) a company... read more |
| VOTING AND NON-VOTING PREFERENCE SHARES |
Preference shares are usually non-voting, but can also be voting shares. If given the ability to vote the value of the shares is greater. Because preference shares do not participate in the... read more |
| VOTING POWER |
A class of shares (usually ordinary shares or equity shares) which can vote at shareholder's meetings. Some shares are specifically non-voting. These are usually preference... read more |
| VOTING SHARES |
A class of shares (usually ordinary shares or equity shares) which can vote at shareholder's meetings. Some shares are specifically non-voting. These are usually preference... read more |
| VWAP |
This is the average price weighted for the volume traded each day over a defined period such as the previous 30 days. The VWAP is used to price rights issues,... read more |