DECA Finance Cluster(ICDC Level)

Alpha

Return on an investment that is higher or lower than what you expect based on risk and market performance.

Annual Report

Yearly audited record of a corporation’s and mutual fund’s condition and performance that is distributed among it’s shareholders

Alternative Minimum Tax

A specialized tax system that ensures high income earners pay some amount of tax regardless of deductions and credits made on their accounts.

Annualized

The process of projecting or extending a period less than a year to a period of 12 months

Annualized Rate of Return

Rate of return from an investment of a period of years taking into account the effect of compounding.

Appreciation

The value increase of a specific financial asset

Asset Allocation

Partition of investments among cash, income and growth buckets to ensure an appropriate balance between risk and reward based on investment needs

Asset Class

Securities with similar features. Most common ones are stocks and bonds

Average Maturity

Weighted average time all debt instruments under a financial obligation such as bonds and loans reach their final due payment

Bear Market

A prolonged period of declining stock prices mostly due to pessimism, rising unemployment, and recessions