In finance a share is a unit of account for various financial instruments including stocks, mutual funds, limited partnerships, and REIT's. In British English, the usage of the word share alone to refer solely to stocks is so common that it almost replaces the word stock itself.
A share is one of a finite number of equal portions in the capital of a company, entitling the owner to a proportion of distributed (not reinvested) profits (dividends) and to a portion of the value of the company in case of liquidation. Shares can be voting or non-voting, meaning they either do or do not carry the right to vote on the board or directors and corporate policy.
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Last updated: 05-07-2005 07:27:48
