Glossary

Stock market words, explained so everyone understands

All the difficult words from the world of stocks — explained in plain English, with an example and the mistake most beginners make. No jargon, no recommendations.

Basics

Stock (share)A small ownership share of a company.ETFOne basket of many stocks — bought in a single trade.Index fundA fund that simply tracks an index instead of trying to beat it.TER (yearly costs)The fund's yearly price, as a percentage of your savings.Accumulating / distributingDoes the fund reinvest dividends, or pay them out?DividendYour share of the company's profit, paid directly to you.Share priceThe price of one share right now.PortfolioAll your investments together — your team.Comparing ETFsSix things to check before choosing between two funds on the same theme.BondA loan you give to a government or a company — for a fixed interest.Mutual fund (investeringsforening)A fund where many people save together — often dearer than an ETF.Securities account (depot)The account your stocks sit in — at a bank or broker.Stock exchangeThe marketplace where stocks are traded — in Denmark, Nasdaq Copenhagen.Index (stock index)One number showing how a whole group of stocks is doing — e.g. the S&P 500.BenchmarkThe index you compare your return with — to see whether you beat the market.DiversificationSpreading the money so one company cannot sink the whole thing.VolatilityHow much the price swings — up and down. Not the same as losing.Currency riskOwn stocks in dollars and you also win or lose on the dollar.Bull and bear marketBull = the market rises for a long time. Bear = it falls 20% or more.Dollar-cost averaging (monthly saving)A fixed amount every month, whatever the price. You never put it all in at the top.RebalancingPutting the mix back the way you planned when one part has grown too big.Compound interestReturn on your return. That is why time beats amount.ReturnWhat you earned — price gain plus dividend, as a percentage of what you put in.Time horizonWhen you need the money. It decides how much it may swing.Ticker and ISINTwo codes for the same security: the short one (AAPL) and the unique one (US03…).InflationPrices rise, so your money buys less. That is why people invest.Share issue (emission)When a company issues new shares to raise money — and your slice gets smaller.

Key figures

P/E ratioHow many years of profit you pay for the stock.P/B ratioThe share price relative to the company's book value.P/S ratioThe share price relative to the company's sales.PEG ratioP/E adjusted for growth — around 1 is considered fair.Dividend yieldYearly dividend as a percentage of the share price.Market cap (market value)What the whole company costs on the exchange: price times number of shares.Average cost (GAK)What you paid per share on average — and the figure tax is calculated from.Net asset value (NAV)For a fund: what the basket is worth per unit. For a stock: equity per share.EPS (earnings per share)The company's profit divided by the number of shares. The number behind P/E.

Technical analysis

RSIA speedometer needle for sentiment: above 70 too hot, below 30 too cold.Moving averageThe average price over e.g. 20 or 50 days — so the trend becomes visible.SupportA price level where the price has stopped on the way down before — a floor.ResistanceA price level where the price has stopped on the way up before — a ceiling.MomentumThe speed of the price move — can continue, can overheat.52-week rangeThe year's lowest and highest price — and where the price sits between them.

Trading

Insider trading (legal)When management buys or sells shares in their own company — publicly.SpreadThe gap between the buy and sell price — your invisible cost.CommissionThe fee your bank or broker charges per trade.Real-time vs. delayed priceFree prices are typically 15 minutes behind. That only matters for day traders.LiquidityHow easily a stock can be traded without moving the price — and whether you have cash.Leverage (gearing)Investing with borrowed money — gains and losses are multiplied. Not for beginners.Limit order and market orderLimit: you set the price. Market: you get the trade now — at whatever price there is.Stop-lossAn order that sells automatically if the price falls to a level you have chosen.Short selling (shorting)Profiting from a fall: borrow the stock, sell it, buy it back cheaper.

Tax — the principles, with Denmark as the example

Tax is national. These pages explain the principles and use Denmark as the worked example. Tap a country below to see its own tax terms — the app shows them automatically for the country you use it in.

Aktiesparekonto (Danish share savings account)Danish account with 17% tax up to a cap — often the first place to start.Mark-to-market taxation (lagerbeskatning)Tax on the year's gain every year — even without selling.Realisation taxation (realisationsbeskatning)Tax only when you sell and the gain is "realised".Withholding tax on foreign dividendsThe tax a foreign country takes off your dividend before it reaches you.The Danish "positive list" (Skat's list)The Danish list that decides whether an ETF gain is share income or capital income.Share income (aktieindkomst)Danish tax box for gains and dividends from shares: 27% up to 79,400 kr. (2026), 42% above.Capital income (kapitalindkomst)Danish tax box for interest, bonds and ETFs outside the positive list — typically 37–42%.Dividend tax27% is withheld before a Danish dividend reaches your account. The rest is settled on the tax statement.

Crypto

Crypto is not stocks: there is no business behind it, and prices swing far more. These words explain what it is and where the risk lies — without recommendations.

CryptocurrencyDigital value with no bank or state behind it — and no business earning money.BitcoinThe first cryptocurrency, from 2009. There can never be more than 21 million.BlockchainA shared ledger kept by many computers — that nobody can edit afterwards.AltcoinEvery cryptocurrency that is not bitcoin — from ethereum to thousands of small projects.StablecoinA coin meant to hold a fixed value — usually 1 dollar. It does not always hold.Crypto walletThe thing that holds the keys to your coins — not the coins themselves.Private key and seed phraseThe code that gives access to your coins. Lose it, and the money is gone.Crypto exchangeA company where you buy and sell crypto — and that often stores it for you too.Bitcoin halvingRoughly every four years the number of new bitcoin is halved. Last time: April 2024.

Written by Claus Frisch, founder of Kiggo. Not an adviser, not a bank — Kiggo explains, you decide.