Outline of asset classes

The following outline is provided as a topical overview of asset classes:

The three main asset classes are stocks, bonds, and cash.

Stocks
A stock share (also known as an equity share) represents ownership in a corporation.

Stock basics

 * Stock basics
 * Market capitalization
 * Dividend
 * Foreign tax credit
 * Preferred stock
 * Mid caps
 * Small caps
 * Business development company
 * Real estate investment trust
 * Domestic/international
 * International small cap
 * Emerging market stocks
 * Frontier market stocks
 * International REITs

Valuation models

 * CAPM - Capital Asset Pricing Model
 * Dividend discount model
 * Fama and French three-factor model

Investment strategies

 * Approximating total stock market
 * Approximating total international stock market
 * Slice and dice
 * Slice and dice international
 * Value tilting - stock
 * Stock asset allocation for non-US investors

Vanguard stock funds

 * FAQ small cap funds
 * Compare Vanguard international funds
 * FAQ on Vanguard international funds
 * Percentages of REITs present in Vanguard index funds
 * Vanguard US sector ETFs
 * Vanguard US stock ETFs
 * Vanguard international stock ETFs
 * Vanguard large cap index fund tracking error
 * Vanguard mid cap index fund tracking error
 * Vanguard small cap index funds tracking error
 * Vanguard tax-managed fund tracking error

Bonds
A bond is a debt investment. Investors loan money to corporations or governments for a set term and interest rate. The initial face value of most bonds is $1,000. After issuance bonds trade on the over-the-counter market where their principal value fluctuates according to changes in interest rates and any changes in the bond's credit quality. Newly issued corporate bonds are syndicated by consortiums of investment banks who initially buy an offering for resale to investors. Government bonds are offered by auction, where investors tender bids for the issue. Bonds are typically used by investors to stabilize the value of a portfolio and/or produce a stream of income.

Bond fundamentals

 * Bond basics
 * Bond pricing
 * Bond yield
 * Bonds: advanced topics
 * Duration - math definitions
 * Barclays US Aggregate Bond Index
 * Video: Learn Bond Basics in Minutes
 * Video: Why bother with bonds?

US government bonds

 * United States Treasury security
 * Treasury bond
 * Treasury Inflation Protected Security
 * GNMA
 * Government agency bonds
 * EE savings bonds
 * I savings bonds
 * Zero-coupon bond

US corporate bonds

 * Asset-backed securities
 * Certificate of deposit
 * Convertible bonds
 * Corporate bonds
 * Floating rate bonds
 * High yield bonds
 * Mortgage-backed security
 * Stable value fund

US municipal bonds

 * Municipal bond fund regulation
 * Municipal bonds

Non-US bonds

 * Developed market bonds
 * Emerging market bonds
 * Eurobond

Bond strategies

 * Asking bond questions
 * CDs vs bonds
 * I Bonds vs TIPS
 * Individual bonds vs a bond fund
 * Laddering bonds or CDs
 * Rolling ladders versus bond funds

Bond funds

 * IShares municipal bond fund tracking error
 * SPDR municipal bond fund tracking error
 * Vanguard bond ETFs
 * Vanguard bond index fund tracking error
 * Vanguard investment grade bond fund tracking error
 * Vanguard municipal bond fund tracking error
 * Vanguard US government bond fund tracking error

Cash
In the investment world, we speak of cash as a collection of short-term investment instruments that are highly liquid and easily converted into ready cash. These investments make up the money markets. The short-term nature of all money market instruments means that they rapidly adjust to changes in short term interest rates. Cash includes familiar bank instruments such as transaction and savings accounts, as well as short term bank certificates of deposit (CDs). Cash also includes a number of marketable liquid securities bought and sold on the money markets. These securities include treasury bills, institutional large bank CDs, commercial paper, bankers acceptances, and repos. Short term municipal securities are held by tax-exempt money funds. Cash investments are held by investors for a number of reasons, primarily as liquid emergency reserves and for funding obligations due in the short to intermediate term.

Money markets

 * Money markets
 * Bankers acceptance
 * Certificate of deposit
 * Commercial paper
 * Comparing CDs
 * Market-linked CD
 * Treasury bill