A type of equity or capital representing shares of ownership in a corporation. May or may not receive distributions of corporate income in the form of dividends. Has a higher priority claim to corporate earnings or assets than common stock but lower priority than corporate debt. A corporation may issue more than one class of preferred stock with differing priority status such as first or second preferred. Often preferred stock issues have a defined dividend payment rate as long as there are sufficient corporate earnings to distribute. American Banker Glossary
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A security that shows ownership in a corporation and gives the holder a claim, prior to the claim of common stockholders, on earnings and also generally on assets in the event of liquidation. Most preferred stock pays a fixed dividend that is paid prior to the common stock dividend, stated in a dollar amount or as a percentage of par value. This stock does not usually carry voting rights. Preferred stock has characteristics of both common stock and debt. Bloomberg Financial Dictionary
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See preference shares. Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein financial glossary
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Shares that pay dividends at a specified or sometimes adjustable rate and have preference over ordinary shares ( common stock) in the payment of dividends and liquidation of assets. Exchange Handbook Glossary
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preferred stock UK US noun [C] (also preference stock) FINANCE, STOCK MARKET
► a share or group of shares in a company that gives the owner the right to receive a dividend (= part of the company's profit) before dividends are paid to owners of common shares, or when dividends on common shares are not paid at all
→ See also COMMON STOCK(Cf. ↑common stock), PARTICIPATING PREFERRED STOCK(Cf. ↑participating preferred stock), PREFERENCE SHARE(Cf. ↑preference share), PREFERRED SHARE(Cf. ↑preferred share)
Financial and business terms. 2012.