
5 The Stock Market
Learning Objectives • How firms raise capital • The difference between primary and secondary stock markets. • The workings of the New York Stock Exchange. • How NASDAQ operates. • How to calculate index returns. • How to read and understand the stock market information reported in the financial press.
How do firms raise capital? • Private Funding • Private equity • Venture capital • “First Stage” or “Ground Floor” • “Second Stage” or “Mezzanine” • Public Funding • Primary versus Secondary markets • Investment banking firms
Private Equity and Venture Capital • Private Equity = equity financing for nonpublic companies. • Target firms typically: • Have no assets other than an idea • Are run by fledgling entrepreneurs with no track record. • Venture capital (VC) = important part of the private equity market
Venture Capital, I • Venture Capital = financing new, often high-risk, start-ups. • Individual venture capitalists invest their own money. • Venture capital firms pool funds from various sources, like • Individuals • Pension funds • Insurance companies • Start-ups that succeed can provide enormous profits. • Large corporations • University endowments
Venture Capital, II • To limit their risk: • Venture capitalists generally provide financing in stages. • Venture capitalists actively help run the company. • At each stage, enough money is invested to reach the next stage. • Ground-floor financing • Mezzanine Level financing
Venture Capital, II • At each stage of financing: • The value of the founder’s stake grows • The probability of success rises • If goals are not met, the venture capitalists withhold further financing. • If a start-up succeeds: • Big payoff = sale or IPO • Either way, investment bankers often involved.
Public Funding • Equity Offerings • IPOs • Seasoned Equity Offerings • Investment banking firms • Underwriting • Dutch Auction Underwriting
The Primary and Secondary Stock Markets • Primary market • Where investors purchase newly issued securities • Initial public offering (IPO): • When a company offers stock for sale to the public for the first time • Secondary market • Where investors trade previously issued securities. An investor can trade: • Directly with other investors. • Indirectly through a broker • Directly with a dealer
Initial Public Offering
Dutch or Uniform Price Auction • Buyers: • Bid a price and number of shares • Seller: • Work down the list of bidders • Determine the highest price at which • they can sell the desired number of • shares • All successful bidders pay the same • price per share.
Dutch Price Auction Example The company wants to sell 1,500 shares of stock. The firm will sell 1,500 shares at $15 per share. Bidders A, B, C, and D will get shares.
The Secondary Market for Common Stock Organized Exchanges & Markets • NYSE (1792) • NASDAQ (1971) • The Regional Exchanges • American Stock Exchange (1842; NYSE-Euronext, 2008) • Boston Stock Exchange (1834; Nasdaq, 2007) • Chicago Stock Exchange (1882) • Cincinnati Stock Exchange (1885; NSX, 2003) • Pacific Stock Exchange (1882; Arca, 2005; NYSE,2006) • Philadelphia Stock Exchange(1790; Nasdaq acquired 2008) • Electronic Communications Networks (ECNs)
Brokers vs. Dealers • Broker • Brings buyers and sellers together to trade • Does not hold inventory • Think “Real Estate Broker” • Dealer • Maintains an inventory • Stands ready to buy or sell based on published quotes • Think “Used Car Dealer”
Bid and Ask Quotes • Bid price: • The price a dealer is willing to pay investors for a security • Ask price: • The price at which a dealer is willing to sell a security • Bid-ask spread, or spread: • Difference between the bid and ask prices • Inside Quotes: • Highest Bid, Lowest Ask
The New York Stock Exchange • NYSE = The “Big Board” • Physical location exchange • History: • Founded in 1792 as a not-for-profit corporation • In current Wall Street building since early 1900’s • For-profit, public NY state corporation in 2006 • Merged with Euronext N.V. in 2007 • Launched NYSE Euronext, the largest stock exchange in the world
NYSE Seats and Trading Licenses • Historically, the NYSE had 1,366 exchange members. These members: • Were said to own “seats” on the exchange. • Collectively owned the exchange • Professionals managed the exchange. • Regularly bought and sold seats • Record seat price: $3 million in 2005 • Seat holders could buy and sell securities on the exchange floor without paying commissions.
NYSE Seats and Trading Licenses • In 2006, NYSE went public • Instead of purchasing seats, exchange members purchase trading licenses: • Number limited to 1,500 • In 2007, a license would set you back a cool $55,000—per year. • Having a license entitles the holder to buy and sell securities on the floor of the exchange.
NYSE-Listed Stocks • 2006 Listings: • Global market value = $25 trillion • Minimum Listing Requirements • Number of shareholders • Trading activity • Number and value of shares held in public hands • Annual earnings • Listing Fees: • Initial listing fee and annual listing fees • Based on the number of shares
Operation of the NYSE • The fundamental business of the NYSE is to attract and process order flow. • In 2007, the average trading volume on the NYSE was over 2 billion shares a day. • Volume breakdown: • About one-third from individual investors. • Almost half from institutional investors. • The remainder represents NYSE-member trading, mostly from specialists acting as market makers.
Types of NYSE Members • Specialists, or market makers: • Obligated to maintain a “fair and orderly market” • “The Crowd” • Commission brokers: • Execute customer orders to buy and sell stocks • Floor brokers, or Two-dollar brokers • Execute orders when commission brokers busy • Less important due to SuperDOT system (designated order turnaround) • Floor traders • Independently trade for their own accounts
NYSE Floor Activity • There are a number of specialist’s posts, each with a roughly figure-eight shape, on the floor of the exchange. • At the telephone booths, commission brokers: • Receive customer orders. • Walk out to specialist’s posts where the orders can be executed, • Return to confirm order executions, and receive new customer orders. • Coat colors indicate the person’s job or position.
NASDAQ • “National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations” • 2nd largest stock market in U.S. in terms of $ volume • More companies listed than the NYSE. • Volume usually exceeds NYSE volume • Computer network • Disseminates price quotes to subscribers • No trading floor or physical location
NASDAQ • An Over-the-counter (OTC) market: • Dealers = “market makers” • Multiple dealers per stock • Competing market makers • Buy and sell from inventory • Three separate markets: • The Global Select Market • The Global Market • The Capital Market
The NASDAQ System • The NASDAQ network provides bid and ask prices as well as recent transaction information. • The bid and ask prices for the NASDAQ represent inside quotes. • The highest bid • The lowest ask • For a small fee, you can have access to “Level II” quotes. • Displays all bids and asks • Frequently displays the market maker identity
Other Market Venues • The “Third Market” • Off-exchange trading of exchange-listed securities • The “Fourth Market” • Direct trading of both NYSE and NASDAQ stocks among investors. • ECNs provide an avenue for fourth market trading. • ECNs • Electronic Communications Networks • The Regional Exchanges • Chicago, Cincinnati (NSX) • Dually-listed stocks
NASDAQ, II. • In the late 1990s, the NASDAQ system opened to electronic communications networks (ECNs) • ECNs are basically websites that allow investors to trade directly with one another.
Market and Limit Orders Market Order: “Buy 100 shares of IBM at the market” “Sell 200 shares of GE at the market” Limit Order: “Buy 100 shares of IBM at $100 or better” “Sell 200 shares of GE at $35 or better”
Stock Market Information • The most widely followed barometer of day-to-day stock market activity is the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), or “Dow” for short. • The DJIA is an index of the stock prices of 30 large companies representative of American industry.
Stock Market Indexes • Distinguishing features: • Market covered • Types of stocks included • Number of stocks included • Index calculation technique • Price-weighted • Value-weighted
Index Weighting • Price-Weighted • Stocks held in proportion to their share price • Higher priced stock = higher weight • DJIA (3/08/2008: DJIA divisor = 0.122834016) • Adjusted for stock splits • Value-Weighted • Stocks held in proportion to their total company market values • Company with larger market value = higher weight • S&P 500
Price- vs. Value-Weighted The Price-Weighted Index = Average share price The Value-Weighted Index = Total Market Value (# shares x Price)
Adjusting a Price-Weighted Divisor • Initial divisor = number of stocks in index • Divisor Adjusted: • For stock splits • For changes in the composition of the index • Closing on Day 1 must = Day 2 opening
Adjusting for a Stock Split Closing on Day 1 must = Day 2 opening
Useful Internet Sites • www.hoovers.com (information on Initial Public Offerings, or IPOs) • www.nyse.com (website for the New York Stock Exchange) • www.nasdaq.com (website for the NASDAQ) • averages.dowjones.com (The Dow Jones Industrial Average) • www.russell.com (the Russell Indexes) • www.barra.com (reference for “value” and “growth” indexes) • www.djindexes.com (reference for current divisor for the DIJA) • www.standardpoors.com (website for S&P 500) • www.nni.nikkei.co.jp (website for Japan’s Nikkei 225 index)