Super Finance Glossary

Over 10,000 financial glossary terms...

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Browsing by the letter "U"

Displaying next 40 results of 153
Uncovered Call
Definition: A short call option position in which the writer does not own shares of underlying stock represented by the option contracts. Uncovered calls are much riskier for the writer than a covered call, where the writer of the uncovered call owns the underlying stock. If the buyer of a call exercises the option to call, the writer would be forced to buy the asset at the current market price. Also called a "naked" asset.
Uncovered Call Writing
Definition: A short call option position in which the writer does not own an equivalent position in the underlying security represented by his option contracts.
Uncovered Put
Definition: A short put option position in which the writer does not have a corresponding short stock position or has not deposited, in a cash account, cash or cash equivalents equal to the exercise value of the put. The writer has pledged to buy the asset at a certain price if the buyer of the option chooses to exercise it. Uncovered put options limit the writer's risk to the value of the stock (adjusted for premium received.) Also called "naked" puts.
Uncovered Put Writing
Definition: A short put option position in which the writer does not have a corresponding short position in the underlying security or has not deposited, in a cash account,
Under The Belt
Definition: Long position in a stock.
Underbanked
Definition: When an originating investment banker cannot find enough firms to underwrite a new issue.
Underbooked
Definition: Describes limited interest by prospective buyers in a new issue of a security during the preoffering registration period.
Undercapitalized
Definition: A business has insufficient capital to carry out its normal functions.
Underfunded Pension Plan
Definition: A pension plan that has a negative surplus (i.e., liabilities exceed assets).
Underground Economy
Definition: Money-making activities that people don't report to the government, including both illegal and legal activities.
Underinvestment Problem
Definition: The mirror image of the asset substitution problem, in that stockholders refuse to invest in low-risk assets to avoid shifting wealth from themselves to debtholders.
Underlying
Definition: What supports the security or instrument that parties agree to exchange in a derivative contract.
Underlying Asset
Definition: The security or property or loan agreement that an option gives the option holder the right to buy or to sell.
Underlying Commodity
Definition: The cash commodity underlying a futures contract. Also, the commodity or futures contract on which a commodity option is based, and which must be accepted or delivered if the option is exercised.
Underlying Debt
Definition: Municipal bonds issued by government entities but under the control of larger government entities and for which the larger entity shares the credit responsibility.
Underlying Futures Contract
Definition: A futures contract that supports an option on that future, which is executed if the option is exercised .
Underlying Mortgage
Definition: Refers to the first mortgage when there is a wraparound mortgage. See "wraparound mortgage."
Underlying Security
Definition: For options, the security that is subject to purchase or sold upon exercise of an option contract. For example, IBM stock is the underlying security for IBM options. For Depository receipts, the class, series, and number of the foreign shares represented by the depository receipt.
Undermargined Account
Definition: A margin account that no longer meets minimum maintenance requirements, requiring a margin call on the investor.
Underperform
Definition: In general, this means to do worse than some particular benchmark. Mutual Fund XYZ is said to underperform the S&P500 if its return falls short of the S&P500 return. However, this language does not take risk into account. That is, one might have a lower return than the benchmark in a particular year because of lower risk exposure. Underperform is also a term used by analysts to describe the prospects of a particular company. Usually, this means that the company will do worse than its industry average. Related: outperform.
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