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.
| WAGE GAP |
This is the difference between the average earnings between two different groups of people, for example, those people in a company who have lower-skill jobs and the executives in... read more |
| WAGES |
The regular remuneration of unskilled or semi-skilled, usually blue-collar workers in exchnage for their labour. Wages are often paid weekly or bi-weekly.... read more |
| WAITER |
A messenger at the London Stock Exchange who takes messages between stockbrokers and their clients. The term originates in the 17th century when people wishing to buy and sell shares... read more |
| WALL STREET |
The largest stock exchange in the world, located in New York City on Wall Street. Wall Street is a nick name for the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)... read more |
| WALL STREET JOURNAL |
A daily business newspaper which is published six days a week in America (from New York City) and in Asia (in Chinese and Japanese). The Journal is one of the most widely read and highly respected... read more |
| WALLFLOWER |
A share which has not attracted the attention of institutional fund managers. This generally means that its volume traded is low and it does not attract much research... read more |
| WAR CHEST |
A collection of cash and near cash held by a company together with pre-arranged borrowing facilities which enable it to seek out acquisitions.... read more |
| WAREHOUSE RECEIPT |
A document guaranteeing the existence and availability of a given quantity and quality of a commodity in storage; commonly used as the instrument of transfer of ownership in both cash and futures... read more |
| WARRANT |
Warrants are securities traded on the JSE. They are derivatives that closely resemble options and include the right but not obligation to buy (call), sell (put) or participate in the performance... read more |
| WASHINGTON CONSENSUS |
This is a set of ten principals which are thought by many economists throughout the western world to encompass economic reform and best practice for achieving... read more |
| WASTING |
A term depicting how an option's value decreases over time; as each day after acquisition passes a portion of the option's time value is lost or wasted.
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| WASTING ASSET |
An asset which is steadily losing value. Almost all assets, with the exception of land, are slowly losing value and have to be depreciated in the books of account. Another... read more |
| WATCHLIST |
A list of shares of different listed companies which is being watched by an investor. As a private investor you should always... read more |
| WAVE |
In Elliott wave theory, a sustained move by a market's price in one direction as determined by the reversal points that initiated and terminated it. |
| WAVE AND CYCLE THEORY |
Technical analysis or charting can be broken down into formations, line charts and wave and cycle theories. Over the decades since investors started charting... read more |
| WAVE CYCLE |
An impulse wave followed by a correction wave, the impulse wave being made up of five smaller, numbered waves of alternating direction designated 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, and the correction wave being... read more |
| WEAK HANDS |
Ignorant and generally inactive investors who make trades on the JSE for personal reasons (like they need the money to buy a house) which are entirely unrelated to the reality of the share. Weak... read more |
| WEDGE FORMATION |
A pattern in which two converging trend lines connect a group of price peaks and troughs. Very similar to the triangle formation, the wedge is considered to be a longer term signal occurring... read more |
| WEIGHT OF FUNDS |
The substantial sums of money which large institutional investors have to invest. In South Africa there are three types of institutions - pension funds, unit trusts and insurance... read more |
| WEIGHTED AVERAGE |
An average calculated by giving some variables within the data more value than others. In other words, each number within the data set is given a certain... read more |
| WEIGHTED AVERAGE PURCHASE PRICE |
Multiply each purchase order bought by the associated purchase price, add them together and divide the total by the number of blocks. The result is the weighted average purchase price. |
| WEIGHTED INDEX |
Indexes are usually weighted for the market capitalisation of the shares which it includes. Thus a share with a massive market capitalisation like Naspers which is worth... read more |
| WEIGHTED MOVING AVERAGE |
A moving average that puts more weight on recent prices. A three-day weighted moving average would apply a multiple of 1 to the price of the first date, 2 to the second date and 3 to the third... read more |
| WEIGHTING |
The adjustment of figures within a data stream to change their relative emphasis in a calculation. Thus, for example, in an exponentially weighted moving average... read more |
| WHIP LASH |
In technical analysis when a share's price cuts up and down through its moving average giving a series of buy signals and sell... read more |
| WHIPSAW |
Losing money on both sides of a price swing. |
| WHISPER NUMBER |
A currency amount which fund managers and others in the investment management business talk about for a particular company's key statistics (like its profit) before they are announced. For example,... read more |
| WHISTLE BLOWER |
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 |
| WHISTLE BLOWERS 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 |
| WHITE COLLAR |
A term used to describe office workers and management, as opposed to workers who are in line functions in factories. White collar workers (especially management) are normally salaried... read more |
| WHITE GOODS |
Large domestic appliances like, fridges, washing machines, dryers, stoves and microwave ovens. These types of big-ticket purchases are very influenced by the state of the economy. During a recession... read more |
| WHITE KNIGHT |
A person or company who rescues a business from a hostile takeover usually by buying a large block of their shares which makes the hostile takeover impossible. A person or... read more |
| WICK |
A candlestick charting term which refers to the extent to which a share's price trades below its open, in a green candle or... read more |
| WICK |
The wick or tail, at one end or both, designating the high and/or low prices for the period upon which a candle is based. In order... read more |
| WIDOWS AND ORPHANS FUND |
An institutional term referring to a fund which is dominated by the need to generate income rather than rapid capital growth. |
| WILDER WELLES |
John Welles Wilder was an American engineer who invented the relative strength index (RSI) and various other technical indicators. The RSI is a momentum... read more |
| WILLIAM'S PERCENTAGE R |
Overbought and oversold indicator that is used to determine market entry and exit points. |
| WILTSHIRE 5000 TOTAL MARKET INDEX |
A market capitalisation weighted index of all actively traded shares which have their headquarters in America. The index now includes less than 3500 shares. Most of the shares... read more |
| WINDOW |
Set period of time such as a look-back period for market indicator in question.
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| WINDOW DRESSING |
A practice, over the December period when trade on the JSE is relatively thin because of the holidays, when institutions drive the prices... read more |
| WINNING SHARES LIST |
The Winning Shares List (WSL) is a list of JSE-listed companies which, in the opinion of the staff at PDSnet, have a good chance of going... read more |
| WORK IN PROGRESS |
That part of a company's stock which has been partly manufactured. It lies between raw materials and finished goods. Most manufacturers... read more |
| WORKING CAPITAL |
Money which is tied up in the workings of the company. It is usually calculated by adding the company's debtors and inventory (stock) and... read more |
| WORLD BANK |
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of poorer countries, for the purpose of pursuing capital... read more |
| WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM |
A non-profit organisation that strives to improve the world by engaging with various societal leaders, mainly in business. It meets once a year in Davos, Switzerland and attracts about 2000 businessmen... read more |
| WORLD ECONOMY |
The combined economies of all the countries of the world also called the global economic system. It is important for the private investor... read more |
| WORLD GOLD COUNCIL |
A marketing organisation of the 28 largest gold mining companies in the world operating in 45 countries. The organisations objective is to promote the purchase and use of gold.... read more |
| WORLD INFLATION |
An average inflation rate for the world economy - which is an aggregate of all the economies of the world. World inflation is found by calculating... read more |
| WRITE DOWNS |
Assets whose book value has been reduced by the board in order to reflect their true market value more accurately. Impairments result... read more |
| WRITE OFF |
Assets whose book value has been reduced by the board in order to reflect their true market value more accurately. Impairments result... read more |
| WRITTEN DOWNS |
Assets whose book value has been reduced by the board in order to reflect their true market value more accurately. Impairments result... read more |
| WRITTEN OFF |
Assets whose book value has been reduced by the board in order to reflect their true market value more accurately. Impairments result... read more |
| WROTE OFF |
Assets whose book value has been reduced by the board in order to reflect their true market value more accurately. Impairments result... read more |
| WSL |
The Winning Shares List (WSL) is a list of JSE-listed companies which, in the opinion of the staff at PDSnet, have a good chance of going... read more |