Tech-stock glossary
Plain-language definitions of the terms used across Tech Presswire — from market-data basics to the technology categories we cover.
- Market capitalization (market cap)
- A company’s total share value: share price × shares outstanding. Large-cap ≈ >$10B, mid-cap $2–10B, small-cap <$2B.
- P/E ratio (price-to-earnings)
- Share price divided by earnings per share — a snapshot of how the market values each dollar of earnings.
- EPS (earnings per share)
- Company profit divided by outstanding shares — the per-share profit used in the P/E ratio.
- Dividend
- A cash payment to shareholders, usually quarterly. Not all tech companies pay one.
- Dividend yield
- Annual dividend ÷ share price, expressed as a percentage.
- Beta
- A measure of a stock’s volatility relative to the market. Above 1 = more volatile; below 1 = less.
- 52-week high / low
- The highest and lowest prices over the past year — range context for the current price.
- Volume
- The number of shares traded in a period. Higher volume often signals stronger conviction behind a move.
- Float
- Shares available for public trading (excludes closely-held / restricted shares).
- NASDAQ
- A US stock exchange heavy with technology companies (e.g., AAPL, MSFT, NVDA).
- NYSE
- The New York Stock Exchange — the larger US exchange by total market cap.
- Bull / bear market
- A sustained rise (bull) or decline (bear) in prices, typically ~20% from recent highs / lows.
- Blue-chip
- A large, well-established, financially sound company.
- Index
- A basket of stocks tracked as a benchmark (e.g., the Nasdaq-100, S&P 500).
- ETF (exchange-traded fund)
- A fund that trades like a stock, often tracking an index or sector.
- Sector
- A broad industry grouping — here, technology sub-sectors like semiconductors or software.
- Semiconductor
- A chip that powers computing; the companies that design or manufacture chips.
- Foundry
- A chip manufacturer that fabricates chips to other companies’ designs.
- SaaS (software-as-a-service)
- Software delivered via subscription over the internet rather than installed locally.
- Cloud computing
- On-demand computing power and storage delivered over the internet (e.g., AWS, Azure, GCP).
- Artificial intelligence (AI) / machine learning
- Software that learns from data to perform tasks — a major tech-investment theme.
- Cybersecurity
- Products and services that protect systems and data from digital threats.
- Fintech
- Technology applied to financial services — payments, lending, trading infrastructure.
- Market order
- An order to buy or sell immediately at the best available price.
- Limit order
- An order to buy or sell only at a specified price or better.