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Acceptance Company Paper
Short-term negotiable debt securities issued by finance companies to fund loans to consumers for items such as cars and appliances.

Accounts Payable
Debts of a company for goods or services purchased that must be paid within one year. These debts are listed as a current liability on the company's balance sheet.

Accounts Receivable
Money owed to a company for goods and services it has sold. Payment is expected within one year. This money is listed as a current asset on the company's balance sheet.

Accrued Interest
The interest accumulated on a bond or debenture since the last interest payment date.

Affiliated Company
A company with less than 50% of its stock owned by another corporation, or one whose stock, with that of another corporation, is owned by the same controlling interests.

Agent
An investment dealer operates as an agent when it acts on behalf of a buyer or a seller, and does not itself own title to the securities at any time during the transactions.

Amortization
Gradually writing-off the value of an intangible asset over a period of time. Commonly applied to items such as goodwill, improvements to leased premises, or expenses of a new stock or bond issue.

Annual Report
The formal financial statements and report on operations issued by a company to its shareholders after its fiscal year-end.

Arbitrage
The simultaneous purchase of a security on one stock exchange and sale of the same security or an equivalent of that security on the same or another exchange which can result in a profit. The profit is the difference between the buy and sell prices and is usually a very small amount per unit. Arbitrage is a sophisticated manoeuvre executed by professional traders.

Arrears
Interest or dividends which were not paid when due and are still owed.

Ask
The lowest price at which someone is willing to sell a security.

Assets
Everything a company or person owns or is owed, such as money, securities, equipment and buildings. Assets are listed on a company's balance sheet.

Associated Company
A company owned jointly by two or more other companies.

At-The-Money Option
An option with an exercise or strike price that is equal, or almost equal, to the current market price of the underlying security.

Audit
Verifying the accuracy of accounting and financial records by a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants. In some provinces Certified General Accountants and Certified Management Accountants may also act as company auditors.

Authorized Shares
The number of shares a company is legally allowed to sell.

Averages and Indexes or Indices
Statistical tools that measure the state of the stock market or the economy, based on the performance of stocks, bonds or other components. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the TSX Composite Index are well-known examples.

Averaging Down
Buying more of a security at a lower price than the original investment. The aim of averaging down is to reduce the average cost per unit of the investment.