What Is a Specialist Firm? A specialist firm is a company that hires specialists to represent stocks listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Specialists on the NYSE are the market makers who facilitate trade of a certain stock by buying and selling to and from investors and holding shares of that stock when
What Is the Specialist Short Sale Ratio? The specialist short sell ratio is a measure of specialists’ short-selling activity on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Specialists facilitate trading in certain stocks and make a market in the stock they trade by displaying their best bid and asking prices to the market during trading hours. The short sell
What Is a Special Item? In corporate accounting, a special item is a large, one-time expense or source of income that a company does not expect to recur in future years. Special items are reported on the income statement and are separated out from other categories of income and expenses so investors can more accurately
What Is Specialization? Specialization is a method of production whereby an entity focuses on the production of a limited scope of goods to gain a greater degree of efficiency. Many countries, for example, specialize in producing the goods and services that are native to their part of the world, and they trade them for other
What Is a Special Needs Trust? A special needs trust is a legal arrangement and fiduciary relationship that allows a physically or mentally disabled or chronically ill person to receive income without reducing their eligibility for the public assistance disability benefits provided by Social Security, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), or Medicaid. A grantor creates a
What Is a Special Power of Attorney? A special power of attorney is a legal document that authorizes one person, called an agent or an attorney in fact, to act on behalf of another person, known as the principal, under specific, clearly laid-out circumstances. Also known as a limited power of attorney (LPOA), a special
What Is a Special Revenue Fund? A special revenue fund is an account established by a government to collect money that must be used for a specific project. Special revenue funds provide an extra level of accountability and transparency to taxpayers that their tax dollars will go toward an intended purpose. Key Takeaways • Special
What Is a Special Warranty Deed? A special warranty deed is a deed to real estate where the seller of the property—known as the grantor—warrants only against anything that occurred during their physical ownership. In other words, the grantor doesn’t guarantee against any defects in clear title that existed before they took possession of the
What Is Specific Risk? To an investor, specific risk is a hazard that applies only to a particular company, industry, or sector. It is the opposite of overall market risk or systematic risk. Specific risk is also referred to as unsystematic risk or diversifiable risk. Understanding Specific Risk When considering whether to buy, hold, or sell
What Is the Sortino Ratio? The Sortino ratio is a variation of the Sharpe ratio that differentiates harmful volatility from total overall volatility by using the asset’s standard deviation of negative portfolio returns—downside deviation—instead of the total standard deviation of portfolio returns. The Sortino ratio takes an asset or portfolio’s return and subtracts the risk-free
