A financial performance report to know about — A 10-K report is a comprehensive report filed annually by publicly traded companies in the U.S. about their financial performance. The report is required by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Some key information in a 10-K report includes a company’s business, organizational structure, risk factors, management analyses, and financial…

An important rate that has a significant impact on your FICO Score — Credit utilization rate is the amount of revolving credit one has used divided by the total amount of revolving credit one has available. It is essentially the current amount you owe divided by your credit limit. Credit utilization rate is generally expressed as a percentage. For example, if your total…

Gain exposure to the entire U.S. stock market — In the United States, there are over 4,000 companies listed on stock exchanges. When it comes to getting exposure to all those companies, there is an exchange-traded fund (ETF) for that. The ETF of focus is the Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (VTI). VTI is an ETF that seeks to…

Unique series of letters assigned to a security — A stock symbol is a unique series of letters assigned to a security that trades on a stock exchange. Stock symbols are essentially a shorthand way of describing a company’s stock. Stocks listed on the New York Stock Exchange can be up to five characters, while on the Nasdaq, stocks…

Total dollar market value of a company — What is market capitalization, also referred to as market cap for short? Market cap is the total dollar market value of a company’s outstanding shares of stock. It is typically used to determine the size of a publicly-traded company instead of a figure like sales or total assets. The following…

Make finding your next credit card simple — Finding your next credit card does not have to be complicated. Whether you are looking for a cashback credit card or a travel credit card, there are resources that you can use to help simplify the process. The following are three credit card research resources to consider: 1. r/CreditCards 2…

A leading semiconductor ETF — A semiconductor is a material product usually made of silicon that conducts electricity more than an insulator but less than a pure conductor. Semiconductors are found in thousands of electronics such as appliances, laptops, and phones. Semiconductors are considered the brains of modern electronics because our favorite products would not…

How small startups raise money at their earliest stage — An angel investor is a high-net-worth individual that provides financial backing to startups at their earliest stages in exchange for ownership equity in the company. The financial backing an angel investor provides typically helps a startup get its business off the ground from the idea stage to something that can…

Make understanding your finances easier for yourself — Financial literacy is the knowledge and application of financial skills such as budgeting, using credit, and investing. Becoming understanding of your finances can feel daunting, but I promise you that it is manageable. There are many different free resources you can use to become more financially literate and in control…