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.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Numeric Latest


P:E

The market price of a share divided by its most recent average annual earnings per share. This gives the reciprocal of the "earnings... read more

 
PADEFI

This index, called the "padefi" is an average of the performance of domestic equity unit trusts in South Africa. It is produced and maintained... read more

 
PAIRS TRADING
Trading in two related securities by taking advantage of excessive and unusual variations between their prices - most commonly found in derivatives.
 
PALLADIUM

A platinum group metal (PGM) which is mainly used in autocatalysts. The metal is found in South Africa, Russia, America and Canada. Recycling is a major... read more

 
PANAMA PAPERS

A massive leak (over 11 million documents) of important documents from a Panamanian legal company involved in setting up off-shore companies and trusts... read more

 
PAPER CURRENCY

All currencies were originally commodity currencies - which means that they had the value inherent in the commodity which they were made of. Thus,... read more

 
PAPER PROFITS

The difference between the purchase price of a share and its current market price. Another term for this is "market appreciation". The opposite... read more

 
PAPER TRADING

A training method which imitates the actions of the share market as closely as possible to enable investors to gain real-life experiences without... read more

 
PAR VALUE

A concept from the old Companies Act which meant the value given to shares when they were created (i.e. the price for which they were first sold).... read more

 
PARASTATALS

State Owed Enterprises (SOE) are corporations owned and controlled by the government. In South Africa there are about 200 SOE's which deal with everything... read more

 
PARENT COMPANY

A company which owns more than 50% of another company (its subsidiary). JSE listed companies are usually groups which own a number... read more

 
PARETO'S LAW

A law that states that 80% of results come from 20% of the effort, also known as the 80-20 rule. This rule says that in organisation or projects, 80% of the results... read more

 
PARITY

An option is said to be trading at parity if the premium at which it is currently trading in the market is exactly equal to its intrinsic value. Time value,... read more

 
PARTIAL FILL

When a trader has placed an order to buy or sell more than 1-lot, it is always possible that the order may be only partially filled. This happens most commonly... read more

 
PARTICIPANT

A CSDP is a person authorised to perform custodial, administrative or settlement duties. The central securities depository (CSD) in South Africa is known... read more

 
PARTICIPATING PREFERENCE SHARE

Preference shares which participate in the profits of the company in some way - usually beyond a fixed percentage. For example, they might... read more

 
PARTNERSHIP

A business which is not incorporated and which is owned and managed by more than one person. Partnerships usually have a partnership agreement which stipulates... read more

 
PASSIVE INCOME

An income which comes in regularly, usually as the result of a contractual obligation and a pre-arranged bank debit order. When analysing a share,... read more

 
PASSIVE INVESTOR

An investor who aims to maximise his profits over the long term by holding on to his investments instead of taking advantage of short term... read more

 
PATTERNS

There is an on-going debate in the investment world about whether share prices move in patterns or are simply random. Obviously, it is impossible... read more

 
PAY AS YOU EARN TAX

A system of tax which is applied to salaried tax payers. Companies are required to deduct PAYE directly from employees' salaries and pay it to SARS.... read more

 
PAY-DAY LOANS

A small, unsecured loan which must be repaid on a person's next payday. These loans are usually made at very high interest rates which border on what is... read more

 
PAYE

A system of tax which is applied to salaried tax payers. Companies are required to deduct PAYE directly from employees' salaries and pay it to SARS.... read more

 
PAYMENT DATE

One of the dates associated with the payment of a dividend by a listed company. The dates are the date of declaration when the board... read more

 
PCE

Personal consumption expenditure (PCE) measures how much consumers spend on goods and services. Goods are divided into two categories, durable goods... read more

 
PECORA COMMISSION

A commission set up in 1932 to look into the causes of the 1929 stock market crash. The commission found a wide range of abusive practices by banks... read more

 
PEF

A collective investment scheme (CIS) where the funds used are invested into equity (and sometimes debt instruments) in the hopes of generating... read more

 
PEGGED EXCHANGE RATE

Following the Bretton Woods agreement most currencies (and especially the US dollar) were fixed against gold. President Nixon abandonned Bretton... read more

 
PENNANT FORMATION

A charting formation where the price chart forms a pattern which looks something like a triangle. The difference between a pennant... read more

 
PENNY STOCK

Shares which trade for low prices per share. They may be shares of a very good company; however, they are usually not. They are attractive to speculators... read more

 
PENSION FUND

A fund which an employee contributes to during his/her working life and which is paid out, tax free, on retirement or in the event of the contributor's death,... read more

 
PER CAPITA

A Latin term which translates to "per head". It is a term often used in economic and statistical data when comparing measurement of data to a population.... read more

 
PER SHARE RATIO

Certain ratios are calculated as a number of cents per share - like the net asset value per share, the dividends per share and the... read more

 
PERCEPTION

Perceptions are very important in the stock market. They determine the overall "mood of the market" - is it bullish or bearish? They are also... read more

 
PERCEPTION

The way in which the investing public in general feel about a share, an industry or the market as a whole. In other words, do they see a share as... read more

 
PERFECT COMPETITION

A theoretical economic market in which there are many willing buyers and many willing sellers and lots of substitute products. The closest that modern... read more

 
PERMANENT CAPITAL

Capital which is tied up in the company permanently like share capital - as opposed to capital which is there temporarily - like loan capital... read more

 
PERSISTENCY RATE
The persistency rate is an insurance industry ratio which refers to the percentage of policy holders that hold their policy through to maturity. Obviously, this is very important... read more
 
PERSONAL CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURES

Personal consumption expenditure (PCE) measures how much consumers spend on goods and services. Goods are divided into two categories, durable goods... read more

 
PERSONAL LIABILITY COMPANY

A private company, used mostly by professionals such as doctors, engineers, lawyers or accountants, in which the directors and previous directors... read more

 
PESSIMISTIC RATE OF RETURN

A statistic that adjusts the usual wins/losses statistic to estimate the worst return from trading results. It reduces the number of wins by the... read more

 
PETROL PRICE

Fuel costs are a key factor in the inflation rate, both directly through increased transport costs and  indirectly through their role in production... read more

 
PGM

These are platinum itself and rhodium, palladium, iridium, osmium and ruthenium. Normally these metals are all found in the same deposits and so... read more

 
PHILIDELPHIA FEDERAL RESERVE BANK'S MANUFACTURING ACTIVITY INDEX

The Philly Fed Manufacturing Activity Index measures changes in business growth covering the Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware region. A value greater than... read more

 
PIC

The Public Investment Corporation (PIC) manages the largest fund in South Africa which is the pensions contributions of the millions of public servants in this... read more

 
PIERCING PATTERN

A bullish candlestick formation consisting of two candles at the bottom of a trend. The formation begins at the end of a downtrend... read more

 
PIGS

An acronym for the countries of Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain, often used derogatorily. It refers to the economies of these countries, that during the... read more

 
PILLAR

A mining term which refers to a body of ore which is left in place to support the roof. Normally when the mine is worked out, the last action would be to... read more

 
PIPS
Slang forex reference to digits added to or subtracted from the fourth decimal place in a quoted currency rate, i.e. 0.0001. See also Points.
 
PIT
The area on the trading floor where trading in futures or options contracts is conducted by open outcry.
 
PIVOT POINT

A technical indicator used with the purpose of identifying the overall trend over different time periods. Used as a price indicator to determine... read more

 
PLATINUM

A precious metal predominantly produced in South Africa. This metal is used primarily in auto catalysts together with other platinum group metals... read more

 
PLATINUM GROUP METALS

These are platinum itself and rhodium, palladium, iridium, osmium and ruthenium. Normally these metals are all found in the same deposits and so... read more

 
PLUS TICK
A small upward move in the price of a security over a short time period such as a few minutes or a day and sometimes called a "plus tick". An up tick is not seen as necessarily indicating an... read more
 
PMI

An economic indicator which shows the health or otherwise of the manufacturing sector.... read more

 
POINT

One hundredth of one percent. This term is often used in the debt markets to refer to slight changes in the effective yield on debt instruments... read more

 
POINT AND FIGURE CHART
A price-only chart (i.e. without a date axis) that plots up prices as Xs and down prices as Os. The minimum price recorded is called the box size which is often 100c. Typically,... read more
 
POINTS

A measurement term for market indices. An index is an aggregate of the listed companies on an exchange, for example,... read more

 
POISON PILL

A defensive tactic used by a company which is the subject of a hostile takeover to make it more difficult for the predatory company to gain control.... read more

 
POLICY UNCERTAINTY INDEX

An index, which was started in February 2023, (the PUI) to measure policy uncertainty in South Africa by surveying articles from the top 20 media publications... read more

 
POLITICAL RISK

Risk, which is political rather than economic, financial or managerial. This kind of risk is very difficult to determine and can cause tremendous... read more

 
POLITICAL STABILITY

A major factor in emerging economies like South Africa which directly affects their ratings by the international ratings agencies (Fitch,... read more

 
PONZI

An illegal investment scheme which aims to steal money from members of the public by persuading them that they will make an above average return... read more

 
POOR QUALITY EARNINGS

The quality of a company's earnings is a direct function of how sustainable they are. If the profits of a company rise every year by 15% and... read more

 
POORLY RATED

Companies which have an erratic flow of profits are usually "poorly-rated" by investors. This means that their shares will trade on... read more

 
POPULATION

The population of a country and its growth rate are key long-term components of its unemployment rate and its per capita income levels. Essentially,... read more

 
POPULISM

A socio/political philosophy which ostensibly aims to do what is best for ordinary people. Unfortunately, most populist ideas ultimately result in the ordinary... read more

 
PORTFOLIO

A group of shares and other investments belonging to a single investor, group or entity. As a private investor, you should aim to have... read more

 
PORTFOLIO MANAGER

This is someone who manages portfolios on behalf of investors. He makes the investment decisions and is not usually obliged to get his clients' permission... read more

 
PORTFOLIO STRUCTURE
The percentage breakdown of a portfolio over the various market sectors.
 
POSITION

An investment or derivative contract which is currently held or owned, often known as an "open position". An open position implies that the... read more

 
POSITION LIMIT
The maximum number of speculative futures contracts one can hold as determined by the CFTC and/or the exchange where the contract is traded.
 
POSITION MANAGEMENT RATIO
The ratio of profits extracted on winning transactions versus losses suffered on trades that liquidate unprofitably.
 
POSITION TRADER
A trader who either buys or sells contracts and holds them for an extended period of time, as distinguished from a day trader.
 
POSITIVE DIRECTIONAL INDICATOR

An indicator developed by Welles Wilder and used as a component in the calcuation of his "average directional movement index". The positive directional... read more

 
PRE IPO PLACEMENT

The issue of large blocks of shares to specific investors before an initial public offer (IPO) usually at a discount to the listing... read more

 
PRE-LISTING STATEMENT

A public press announcement required by the JSE before the listing of a company, which is not accompanied by a new issue of shares... read more

 
PRE-TAX PROFIT

The company's earnings before the deduction of Companies tax. For example, Dischem in their results for the year ended 29th February 2020 disclosed... read more

 
PRECIOUS METAL

There are really three main precious metals - gold, silver and platinum. To this you could add the other platinum group metals, like... read more

 
PREFERENCE SHARE

Shares which have preferential rights in relation to another class of share in the same company. These rights consist of: the right to receive dividends... read more

 
PREFERENTIAL DIVIDEND

These are the dividends paid on preference shares. Preference dividends are paid out, usually at a fixed rate, before any ordinary share dividend.... read more

 
PREFERRED INCOME

An income which accrues to a certain class of share and is paid prior to other classes - similar to the dividends paid to preference shares.... read more

 
PREFERRED STOCKS

Shares which have preferential rights in relation to another class of share in the same company. These rights consist of: the right to receive dividends... read more

 
PREMIUM

A general term used to describe the difference between the price at which a share was first issued and the current price. Often, a successful company... read more

 
PREMIUM ARISING ON ACQUISITION
An intangible asset which arises when a holding company pays more for a subsidiary than its book value. Goodwill is also called a "premium arising on acquisition"... read more
 
PREMIUM TO PAR

A concept from the old Companies Act which meant the value given to shares when they were created (i.e. the price for which they were first sold).... read more

 
PREPAYMENT

The payment of an expense before it is incurred. For example, a company may decide to pay the rent on its factory annually resulting in there being... read more

 
PREPROCESSING

Altering data to some extent to be more accurately analysed; smoothing, reducing unwanted data, removing trends. Processing data is mathematically... read more

 
PRESCRIBED ASSET

An asset which must be held by a retirement fund in terms of the law. This idea was introduced by the National Party, to ensure that they had sufficient... read more

 
PRESCRIBED OFFICER

In terms of the Companies Act (77 of 2008) a prescribed officer is "a person who, within a company, performs any function that has been designated by... read more

 
PRESCRIPTION

This is the period of time for which a debt remains valid, after the creditor ceases to demand payment. In terms of the Prescription Act, if the... read more

 
PRESS RELEASE

An announcement made by a company, either voluntarily or to comply with legal requirements, to inform the public of some material development which will... read more

 
PRICE

The value of a share or other security on an organised exchange in the currency of the country where it is traded. In South Africa... read more

 
PRICE DISCOVERY
The process of determining the price of a commodity by trading conducted in open outcry at an exchange.
 
PRICE EQUILIBRIUM

A price region that represents a balance between demand and supply. This is a micro-economics term which suggests that in any free market... read more

 
PRICE LIMIT

The maximum advance or decline, from the previous day's settlement price, permitted for a futures contract in one trading session. Also referred... read more

 
PRICE MAKER

An entity or individual with a sufficient monopoly in a product to increase prices. When there is strong demand for a product or a good brand loyalty,... read more

 
PRICE PAGE

The page of your daily newspaper which displays the previous day's closing prices on the JSE. The price page is divided into the same sectors... read more

 
PRICE RANGE

The difference between the highest and lowest prices at which a particular share has traded over a certain time period - such as one trading... read more

 
PRICE TAKER

A company or industry that has no power over the pricing of the products which it sells. Typically, mining companies have to accept the internationally... read more

 
PRICE TO SALES RATIO
The price of a share divided by sales-per-share of the company in the most recent fiscal year.
 
PRICE:EARNINGS GROWTH RATIO

A ratio which is designed to show whether a share is cheap or expensive at the current market price, in relation to its track record... read more

 
PRICE:EARNINGS MULTIPLES

The market price of a share divided by its most recent average annual earnings per share. This gives the reciprocal of the "earnings... read more

 
PRICE:EARNINGS RATIO

The market price of a share divided by its most recent average annual earnings per share. This gives the reciprocal of the "earnings... read more

 
PRICING POWER

The ability of a company to raise the price of its products without losing significant market share. Pricing power is determined by the existence... read more

 
PRIMACY

A term used in the banking sector to describe a bank account into which a customer has his or her salary paid and which is used for making transactions.... read more

 
PRIMARY DEALER

An organisation that buys government bonds directly from the government and then on-sells them into the secondary market. Primary dealers are in... read more

 
PRIMARY INDUSTRY

An industry engaged in extracting or producing raw materials. The two best examples of primary industry are agriculture (including fishing) and mining.... read more

 
PRIMARY LISTING

A listing on the stock market of a company's origin and where it has its main business. Thus a company might have a primary listing on the... read more

 
PRIMARY MARKET

The market for shares when they are first sold by a company to raise capital. New issues and rights issues are examples of activity... read more

 
PRIMARY REBATE
In terms of the Income Tax Act (58 of 1962), individual tax payers can claim primary, secondary and tertiary rebates. The primary rebate is one which everyone can claim irrspective of their age... read more
 
PRIMARY TREND

The overall long-term trend of the share market as a whole. The primary trend is either bullish (up) or bearish (down) separated by... read more

 
PRIME OVERDRAFT RATE

The rate of interest which commercial banks charges to its most credit-worthy clients. This rate is usually 3,5% above the repo rate. The difference... read more

 
PRINCIPAL

The initial amount of an investment or loan. The principal amount of a loan (or mortgage bond) is the amount intially borrowed. That must be paid... read more

 
PRINT
 
PRIOR YEAR ADJUSTMENT

An adjustment which is made for an error in the financial statements of a previous accounting period. Occasionally, the accountants make a mistake... read more

 
PRIVATE COMPANY

A company defined by the Companies Act which may not make an offer of shares to the public - as opposed to a public company which may.... read more

 
PRIVATE CREDIT EXTENSION

The amount of money borrowed by companies, private individuals and other non-government organisations. This figure is made up of private individuals borrowing... read more

 
PRIVATE ENTERPRISE

That part of a country's economy which is run and organised by individuals and private companies, with no direct control from government. This sector... read more

 
PRIVATE EQUITY FUND

A collective investment scheme (CIS) where the funds used are invested into equity (and sometimes debt instruments) in the hopes of generating... read more

 
PRIVATE INVESTOR

A natural person (rather than a corporate entity) who invests on the stock market either directly or indirectly. Private investors make up... read more

 
PRIVATE PLACING

An offer of shares to specific investors chosen by the board of directors. Usually, a private placing is offered to staff members,... read more

 
PRIVATE SECTOR

That part of a country's economy which is run and organised by individuals and private companies, with no direct control from government. This sector... read more

 
PRIVATE SECTOR CREDIT EXTENSION

An economic indicator which measures changes in bank lending to the domestic private sector year-on-year. This is a key indicator of how consumers... read more

 
PRIVATE SHAREHOLDER

Anyone who is not a public shareholder of a company listed on the main board of the JSE. In terms of the JSE's listing requirements... read more

 
PRIVATISATION

The sale of government assets to the private sector. The union movement in South Africa has been implacably opposed to privatisation since 1994 because... read more

 
PROBABILITY

The chances that a certain event or outcome will occur. It has been well said that investment is not about certainty. It is about probability. When you... read more

 
PROCUREMENT

This is the buying of goods and services by the government from the private sector. In South Africa procurement has been highly controversial with many... read more

 
PRODUCER GOODS

An economics term which refers to manufactured goods which will be used in the futher manufacture of other goods. Thus producer goods ultimately become... read more

 
PRODUCER PRICE INDEX

The inflation rate measured at the producer level. This is the average price of goods sold by manufacturers to wholesalers. If the PPI is rising... read more

 
PRODUCER PRICE INFLATION

The inflation rate measured at the producer level. This is the average price of goods sold by manufacturers to wholesalers. If the PPI is rising... read more

 
PRODUCT DIFFERENTIATION

The incorporation into a product of characteristics that vary from those of competitive products. All manufacturing and retailing companies... read more

 
PRODUCTION

The act of producing a product. This can take many forms such as harvesting, mining or manufacturing. Th efficiency with which goods and services... read more

 
PRODUCTIVITY

The efficiency with which a product is produced. Prodcutivity is a key metric in any economy because it determines that country's ability to compete with... read more

 
PROFESSIONAL INVESTOR

A private person who makes his/her living out of buying and selling shares on the JSE. These people generally keep a very low profile and are hard... read more

 
PROFILES ALL DOMESTIC EQUITY FUND INDEX

This index, called the "padefi" is an average of the performance of domestic equity unit trusts in South Africa. It is produced and maintained... read more

 
PROFIT

The earnings of a company are its profits. They are calculated by deducting the expenses of a period from the incomes of the same period.... read more

 
PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT

The profit and loss account (P&L) subtracts indirect expenses from gross profit to arrive at net profit. The P&L itself is not disclosable... read more

 
PROFIT CALCULATION

The subtracting of a business's costs from its turnover in order to arrive at its profit/earnings in the financial period. Typically,... read more

 
PROFIT HISTORY

The past earnings of a company going back over many years. Examining a company's profit history should be a key part of a private investor's... read more

 
PROFIT MARGIN

1. In share trading, an account in which a purchase of shares may be financed with borrowed money; in futures trading, the deposit placed with the... read more

 
PROFIT MARGIN EXPANSION

In long-term reference, this is a measure of a company's net profit margin in the latest reported quarter divided by profit margin in the... read more

 
PROFIT SHIFTING
A method of moving profits out of a high-tax regime into a low tax regime, used by multinational companies with subsidiaries or business interests in a variety of countries. By selling product... read more
 
PROFIT TAKING
Selling tradeables that have appreciated since the initial purchase in order to take advantage of the appreciation.
 
PROFITABILITY

The ability of a company to generate profits in relation to its turnover, operating costs, capital employed or shareholders' equity.... read more

 
PROGRAM TRADING
Trades based on signals from computer programs, usually entered directly from the trader's computer to the market's computer system.
 
PROHIBITED PRACTISE

An action or activity which is illegal. In the context of the JSE this usually means some form of market abuse or insider trading. The JSE has published... read more

 
PROMISSORY NOTE

A written agreement by one party (the payor) to pay another (the payee) a specific sum of money on a specific date or on demand. A promissory note is thus a debt... read more

 
PROPERTY

A fixed asset, being land with or without improvements, owned by both private individuals and companies. Property is unique among assets in... read more

 
PROPRIETARY TRADING

The buying and selling of shares by a stockbroking firm or commercial bank for its own account, rather than as an agent for other parties.... read more

 
PROSPECTING

In the context of the share market, this means searching for shares which have the potential to yield a good return. Prospecting begins with... read more

 
PROSPECTUS

This is a requirement of the Companies Act (71 of 2008) for every offer of shares made to the public. Section 108 of the Act requires that a company... read more

 
PROTECTED DISCLOSURES ACT

The Protected Disclosures Act (26 of 2000), also called the "Whistle Blowers Act" aims to protect employees, either in the private sector or government... read more

 
PROTECTIONISM

The economic policy of protecting certain industries within an economy from outside competition, usually by the imposition of tariffs. In... read more

 
PROVEN RESERVES

The quantity of a mineral which can be economically and legally extracted from a company's mining area. Reserves are usually proven by drilling exploratory... read more

 
PROVISION

An item on the balance sheet that falls under liabilities. A provision is "raised" when the company has an expense or potential expense... read more

 
PROVISIONAL TAX

A method of paying income tax whereby the taxpayer estimates their tax liability and pays it in advance before the final assessment. Provisional tax payers are... read more

 
PROXY

A document, signed by a shareholder of a company, which entitles a person (who is not necessarily a shareholder of that company) to attend shareholders'... read more

 
PRUDENTIAL AUTHORITY

A juristic person within the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) responsible for the regulation of the banking sector, the insurance industry, cooperative... read more

 
PSBR

This is the total claim which the government, state owned enterprises and other government or quasi-government entities like municipalities has on... read more

 
PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT

An announcement made by a listed company about an event within the company which may have an impact on its shareholders or the price... read more

 
PUBLIC COMPANY

A company as defined by the Companies Act may issue shares to the public, has no restrictions concerning the number of shareholders,... read more

 
PUBLIC FINANCE MANAGEMENT ACT

An Act which governs the management of public funds in the hands of government departments, provinces and municipalities. It establishes procedures for... read more

 
PUBLIC INTEREST SCORE

A public interest score is a requirement of the Companies Act (71 of 2008) in order to determine the type of annual financial statements the company... read more

 
PUBLIC INVESTMENT CORPORATION

The Public Investment Corporation (PIC) manages the largest fund in South Africa which is the pensions contributions of the millions of public servants in this... read more

 
PUBLIC LISTED COMPANY

A company which has obtained the right to have its shares traded on an organised exchange. The JSE has stringent requirements for companies... read more

 
PUBLIC OFFER

An offer of shares made to the public. The public is invited to apply for the shares by completing an application form and submitting it with their payment.... read more

 
PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP

A partnership between the government and the private sector in terms of the Public Finance Management Act. The Gauteng freeway project and toll roads undertaken... read more

 
PUBLIC SECTOR

That part of the economy which is controlled by the government. This includes government departments, state-owned enterprises (SOE) and municipalities.... read more

 
PUBLIC SECTOR BORROWING REQUIREMENT

This is the total claim which the government, state owned enterprises and other government or quasi-government entities like municipalities has on... read more

 
PUBLIC SHAREHOLDER

A shareholder who is not directly associated with the company itself, but rather is a member of the public at large. The JSE is intent in... read more

 
PUBLIC UNLISTED COMPANIES

A company which may offer shares to the public but which is not listed on any stock exchange. The Companies Act (71 of 2008)... read more

 
PUBLIC UNLISTED COMPANY

A company which may offer shares to the public but which is not listed on any stock exchange. The Companies Act (71 of 2008)... read more

 
PUBLISHED ACCOUNTS

Sometimes known as an Annual Report or just the "financial statements", this is a document required by the Companies Act (71 of 2008) to be... read more

 
PUBLISHED RESULTS

Sometimes known as an Annual Report or just the "financial statements", this is a document required by the Companies Act (71 of 2008) to be... read more

 
PUI

An index, which was started in February 2023, (the PUI) to measure policy uncertainty in South Africa by surveying articles from the top 20 media publications... read more

 
PURCHASES

In financial accounts, that part of the ledger where the company's purchases of goods are recorded. Purchases of assets like consumables,... read more

 
PURCHASING MANAGERS INDEX

An economic indicator which shows the health or otherwise of the manufacturing sector.... read more

 
PURCHASING POWER

The ability of a currency to be exchanged for goods and services. The purchasing power of most paper currencies decreases because of inflation... read more

 
PURCHASING POWER PARITY

A point of equilibrium where a basket of goods costs the same in two countries after considering the exchange rate between their currencies. Obviously... read more

 
PUT OPTION

The purchased right to sell (put) specified securities at a specified price (strike price) within a specified period (American) or a specified date... read more

 
PUT UP OR SHUT UP

A rule of certain stock exchanges which requires an acquiring company to make a formal offer or to publicly abandon its take over attempt.... read more

 
PYRAMID

A holding company that holds subsidiaries that in turn holds other subsidiaries and so on. In this way the company at the top of the pyramid can... read more

 
PYRAMID SCHEME

A scheme whereby people are promised a percentage return for getting other people to invest in the scheme. Participants are encouraged to enrol as... read more