treasury stock

Definition

Shares that a company has issued and later repurchased, sitting in corporate limbo—not quite cancelled but no longer outstanding. The equity equivalent of taking back your gift because the recipient didn't appreciate it enough.

Example Usage

The board authorized $1 billion for share buybacks, which will be held as treasury stock and reduce our outstanding share count.

Origin

Corporate finance terminology distinguishing repurchased shares from issued or authorized shares.

Fun Fact

Treasury stock has no voting rights and receives no dividends, yet companies hold it rather than retiring it to maintain flexibility for future stock-based compensation.

Source: Corporate finance and accounting

Related Terms

Beginner

book-keeping

The meticulous art of recording every financial transaction in a systematic way, traditionally done by people who enjoy spreadsheets more than human interaction. It's the foundation of accounting, involving ledgers, journals, and an obsessive attention to making sure debits equal credits. The only profession where 'excitement' means finding a balanced account.

💰 Finance / Accounting

Intermediate

clawback provision

A contractual clause allowing a company to demand return of previously paid compensation, typically when executives are caught cooking the books or performance metrics turn out to be fiction. It's the corporate equivalent of 'give me back my money.'

💰 Finance / Accounting

Intermediate

Depreciation

The accounting practice of acknowledging that everything you own is slowly becoming worthless, which is depressing when applied to assets and relatable when applied to your car. It's basically writing a slow obituary for office furniture.

💰 Finance / Accounting

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perpetual inventory

An inventory tracking system that continuously updates quantities with each transaction in real-time, as opposed to counting everything periodically and hoping nothing walked away. It requires technology, discipline, and faith that employees actually scan items.

💰 Finance / Accounting

Beginner

payoff

The moment when someone finally gets their money—whether it's a legitimate payment, a well-earned reward, or an envelope full of cash to look the other way. In finance, it's the return on investment; in real life, it's what makes sitting through terrible meetings almost worthwhile. The term conveniently covers everything from dividends to bribes.

💰 Finance / Accounting

Advanced

operating leverage

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💰 Finance / Accounting

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