The term "bid" refers to the highest price a buyer will pay to buy a specified number of shares of a stock at any given time.  The term "ask"  refers to the lowest price at which a seller will sell the stock.

The bid price will almost always be lower than the ask or “offer,” price.  The difference between the bid price and the ask price is called the "spread." 

Analyst recommendations can have a significant effect on a company’s stock price, especially when the recommendations are widely disseminated through television appearances or other electronic and print media.  The SEC receives a number of complaints about analysts who recommend buying a stock in a company from investors who believe the analyst has a financial stake in the company or some other conflict of interest.

The stocks of most foreign companies that trade in the U.S. markets are traded as American Depositary Receipts (ADRs). U.S. depositary banks issue these stocks. Each ADR represents one or more shares of foreign stock or a fraction of a share. If you own an ADR, you have the right to obtain the foreign stock it represents, but U.S. investors usually find it more convenient to own the ADR. The price of an ADR corresponds to the price of the foreign stock in its home market, adjusted to the ratio of the ADRs to foreign company shares.

A wash sale occurs when you sell or trade securities at a loss and within 30 days before or after the sale you:

Buy substantially identical securities,

Acquire substantially identical securities in a fully taxable trade, or

Acquire a contract or option to buy substantially identical securities.

You will likely pay a commission when you buy or sell a stock through a financial professional.  The commission compensates the financial professional and his or her firm when it is acting as agent for you in your securities transaction.

Congress directed the establishment of the Lost and Stolen Securities Program (LSSP) to curtail trafficking in lost, stolen, missing, and counterfeit securities certificates.  Rule 17f-1 under the Exchange Act governs LSSP operations.  The LSSP consists mainly of a database for securities that have been reported lost, stolen, missing, or counterfeit.

Terms used to describe a company’s size and market value (market capitalization).

Listings of prices to buy and sell a specific stock. During trading, quotes show bids, the prices buyers are willing to pay, and offers, the prices sellers are willing to accept. Historical data provides the opening and closing price for each day of trading, and the daily high and low price for a stock, along with trading volume.

Each publicly traded common stock in the U.S. receives a short abbreviation that identifies it, known as its stock symbol or stock ticker symbol. Some stocks have single-letter ticker symbols while others may have up to five. Letters that appear after a ticker provide additional information. For instance, the letter "Q" after a ticker signifies that the company is in bankruptcy.