Definition/Explanation...

This is another way of saying: professional buying. A stock is under accumulation when volume expands on days when price moves up.

Agriculture Stocks

This is Jim's famous mantra, that Accounting irregularities equals 'sell'...   In other words, if a stock is doing well and then announces that it has found, or is restating its earnings, due to accounting irregularities, then you should sell that stock.

Growing in size by the external addition of a second company that is being acquired by the first company. Often used to refer to an acquisition which is expected to increase earnings per share.  Does not dilute the value of the stock of the first company or reduce its earnings per share.   Note:  The opposite of an accretive deal is a dilutive deal.

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A company that supplies other companies as a vendor of equipment or services that support multiple companies in a growing industry or sector.   Usage:  ADC Telecommunications Inc. (ADCT) is an arms dealer, okay?... between telecom and cable... they supply both sides. So, as long as the big boys are fighting over share, ADCT wins...

Alpha measures a stock's average monthly move over the past 12 months if the S&P 500 index is unchanged during this 12-month period. For example, a stock with a high alpha of 7 would be expected to rise 7% in a month given an unchanged S&P 500 index.

Known as ADRs, these securities are created by a U.S. bank and represent foreign securities that trade in the U.S. financial markets.

Companies send their shareholders an annual report at the end of a fiscal year. The magazine or brochure sizes up company operations and displays earnings, sales, balance sheets and financial footnotes.

Arbitrageurs make their living by seizing on price differences for a security traded on a different market or in a different form, such as an option or a futures contract. Someone who buys, say, a soybean contract on one market and sells a soybean contract on another exchange is practicing arbitrage by locking in a profit.

The practice of taking advantage of a price differential between two or more markets (or between the current share price of a stock, and the proposed buyout or acquisition price per share of a stock): a combination of matching deals are struck that capitalize upon the imbalance, the profit being the difference between those market prices.   When one company buys another, the arbitragers short the acquirer, and go long the company that's being bought.  That puts pressure on the acquirer - the buyer - and sends its stock lower.

This is the quoted ask, or the lowest price an investor will accept to sell a stock. Practically speaking, this is the quoted offer at which an investor can buy shares of stock.

Average daily volume of trading of that particular security. This is a helpful indicator when comparing volume levels for that day to its average. It could indicate that very few shares are being traded due to a holiday or other reason, and why there might be more volatility in a stock price that day.

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Definition/Explanation...

This originates in the Louisiana bayou area.  It is an expression of excitement and positive greeting from natives from that southern area.  Jim Cramer adopted this expression when a caller from New Orleans, Louisiana yelled out, "Boo-yah Cramer!"  Jim liked it so much, he adopted it into the Mad Money program.  (and, yes, Jim does give full credit to this caller)

To do a 'mon-back - indicated by Jim, when he says the stock is so good, that he would do a 'mon-back' on the stock... In other words, this is the sound someone would say to a truck driver, "Come on back... " as he is "backing up the truck" to load up on his cargo. Translation for buying stocks: This recommendation by Jim indicates that, after you do your own homework on the stock, you should feel comfortable loading up on it, as it is in a good position to be bought at this point. 

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That bad news has already been taken into consideration, and the share price is down already because of it.   Usage:  The stock got more attractive, because the decline in earnings became what we call "baked in" to the share price.

Original investment, or the average share price of several stock purchases, sometimes referred to the "average basis."   Usage:  My cost basis in that stock is $42,000, but I am up $10,000 as of today, because the quoted value is $52,000 at current prices.

This is a common phrase used by Jim Cramer on his Mad Money show, referring to the investing state of mind that you must maintain...  After you do your own homework, you can be a bull on a stock and make money, a bear on a stock and make money or, if you blindly hold onto a stock that has increased significantly, and created a lot of profit for you, you can "get slaughtered" from being too greedy.   If you make money in a stock, Jim Cramer recommends that you reduce your position either entirely, or partially, by taking some off the table.    Usage:  Here's my take on Mastercard (MA)... If you own it, you can continue to own it, but you should have sold some... you should have locked in the gain. We first started recommending it from $60, down to $40... If you haven't taken any off the table, bulls make money, bears make money, and hogs get slaughtered... (from the 2/8/08 Mad Money show)

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This is a fund that buys common stock, preferred stock and bonds.

A simple calculation that takes net income divided by shares outstanding to get per-share earnings.

In the bond market, the smallest measure used for quoting yields is a basis point. One basis point is 0.01 percent of a bond's yield. Basis points also are used for interest rates. An interest rate of 5 percent is 50 basis points greater than an interest rate of 4.5 percent.

The aggressive shorting of a stock, or group of stocks, usually by hedge funds, driving stocks down in share price, in a strategic fashion, thus causing them to fluctuate dramatically; usually at the expense of the individual investor who does not know that it is an orchestrated activity, with implied forces that go beyond the normal market forces of supply and demand and typical market events.  [See Jim Cramer's comments on Bear Raids, from his 3/20/08 show here.]

The stock of a company recognized as a leader in its industry. For example, IBM is considered a bellwether stock in the computer field. Often, the fortunes of an industry are reflected in the behavior of its bellwether stocks.

This measures the volatility of a share of stock. A high beta stock, for example, will rise more in value than the stock market average on a day when shares in general are rising. And it will fall more sharply than the average on a day when shares are falling. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index of stocks, an index that represents large-company stocks, has a beta of 1.

This is the quoted bid, or the highest price an investor is willing to pay to buy a security. Practically speaking, this is the available price at which an investor can sell shares of stock.

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Bonds are debt and are issued for a period of more than one year. The U.S. government, local governments, water districts, companies and many other types of institutions sell bonds. When an investor buys bonds, he or she is lending money. The seller of the bond agrees to repay the principal amount of the loan at a specified time. Interest-bearing bonds pay interest periodically.

Book to bill is the semiconductor book to bill ratio. It reports on the amount of semiconductor chips that are booked for delivery as compared with those that companies already have billed for.

A company's book value is total assets minus intangible assets and liabilities such as debt. Book value might be more or less than the market value of the company.

This is one of those technical terms you hear in a trading room. It simply demonstrates how broadly a market is moving. When three-quarters of the stocks on the New York Stock Exchange, for example, rise during a given day, an observer might say the stock market had good breadth. Often, observers will measure the number of stocks advancing against the number declining as one way of monitoring breadth.

Enter here the price you paid for a security. If, for example, you paid 8 1/4 a share for a security, enter 8 1/4.

As in bombed with bombshells....   Usage:  We are seeing a major selloff in retail. We're seeing a major selloff in the banks. We've got a bunch of downgrades there... I don't know if I want to buy the banks, until we get the Ambac (ABK) plan hammered out, or something like that, although I think the banks are going to bounce back. But retail shouldn't be shelled nearly as hard as it's being shelled right now... (2/4/08)Growing in size by external addition. Often used to refer to an acquisition which is expected to increase earnings per share.

Incoming revenues that are expected at a company, based on signed contracts and/or orders.  Usage:   They have a great book of business that provides great future visibility, all of which make it a great stock where we should not see any earnings disappointments.

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Definition/Explanation...

This security gives investors the right to buy a security at a fixed price within a given time frame. An investor, for example, might wish to have the right to buy shares of a stock at a certain price by a certain time in order to protect, or hedge, an existing investment.

CDs, as they are called, pay interest to investors for as long as five years.

This shows the change in price of a security from the previous day's closing price. For instance, -1 1/8 means the security has fallen $1.12.

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A person who has full operational responsibilities for the day-to-day activities of an organization.

A closed-end fund sells a fixed number of shares to investors. Those shares sell on an exchange and vary in price, depending on demand for the fund. A fund's shares, for example, can trade below their net asset value or above their net asset value - depending on investors' demand for the shares. Country funds that represent shares in a specific country or region, such as Italy or France, are often closed-end funds.

This is a fee an investor pays a broker for buying or selling securities.

A commodity is food, a metal or another physical substance that investors buy or sell, usually via futures contracts.

 
These are securities that represent equity ownership in a company. Common shares let an investor vote on such matters as the election of directors. They also give the holder a share in a company's profits via dividend payments or the capital appreciation of the security.

When you evaluate a stock or a sector or industry by comparing it to similar stocks in similar industries.   Usage:  (from the 3/3/08 Opening Segment recommending Agnico-Eagle Mines Ltd. (AEM)...

The CPI, as it is called, measures the prices of consumer goods and services and is a measure of the pace of U.S. inflation. The U.S. Department of Labor publishes the CPI every month.

The stock of a company that produces consumer-oriented products like food, beverages, tobacco, pharmaceuticals.

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Original investment, or the average share price of several stock purchases, sometimes referred to the "average basis."   Usage:  My cost basis in that stock is $42,000, but I am up $10,000 as of today, because the quoted value is $52,000 at current prices.

This shows the currency that a security trades in, such as USD for U.S. dollar.

If a security has a dividend, the yield is the price of a stock dividend. A $10 stock that pays a 50 cent dividend for the year has a 5% yield.

The stock of a company whose fortunes are closely tied to the cyclical ups and downs of the economy in general. For example, General Motors is a cyclical stock since its business of selling autos is highly dependent on a robust economy with its attendant high levels of employment, rising personal incomes, etc.

Raised in Queens, New York City, Icahn developed a reputation as a great corporate raider after his hostile takeover of TWA in 1985.[2]

Speaking before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Airline Consolidation on February 7, 2001, Representative Gregory W. Meeks spoke of, “… an [airline] industry that once-upon-a-time, not too long ago, was represented by two individuals whom I believe have the lowest of character and no integrity. Two individuals who intentionally bankrupted successful companies for their own personal gain. As many of you know, I am speaking of Carl Icahn and Frank Lorenzo.”

Icahn was educated at Princeton University (A.B., Philosophy, 1957) and New York University School of Medicine, where he dropped out before graduation.

Icahn began his career on Wall Street in 1961. In 1968, he formed Icahn & Co., a securities firm that focused on risk arbitrage and options trading. In 1978, he began taking control positions in individual companies. He has taken substantial or controlling positions in various corporations including: RJR Nabisco, TWA, Texaco, Phillips Petroleum, Western Union, Gulf & Western, Viacom, Uniroyal, Dan River, Marshall Field, E-II (Culligan and Samsonite), American Can, USX, Marvel Comics, Revlon, Imclone, Federal-Mogul, Fairmont Hotels, Kerr-McGee, and Time Warner... and most-recently, Motorola and Blockbuster.

Icahn made extensive use of financier Michael Milken's junk bonds. After the junk bond and overall market bust in the early 1990s, Icahn played a lower-profile role in the business world, preferring to be less public in his dealings.

In recent years, he has become much more of a public shareholder advocate, pushing boards of trustees to improve the value of their stocks, by buying large quantities of a stock, such that he would have a significant enough stake in the company to be able to force action by the management and boards of several companies.

 Read more about Carl Icahn >>

Certificate of Deposit.  Where a bank promises to pay you a set percentage amount of interest, over a specific period.  The downside is that you cannot cash in the CD prior to the end of that period (i.e., without a significant penalty), and with the additional risk (in earnings potential) is that the overall interest rates and earnings potential possible through other investment vehicles may change during that same period.   Example:  Banks commonly offer certificates of deposit for optional periods of 3-month, 6-month, 1-year, and 5-year CDs, where the interest rate is significantly different for each period, based on the assumed risk (from the bank's perspective) that the interest rate trend is either going up or down.

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The same or similar type of industry or business or stock type.   Usage:  That stock (i.e., Deere (DE) is in the same cohort as other agricultural giants.

Compound Annual Growth Rate (see it in annual reports)...

Comparisons.   When comparing this year's overall numbers or, as used in retail, a company's "comp store numbers", it refers to the comparison to this year's performance versus the same period, one year ago.

What Jim Cramer refers to as "Chinese Communists"... as the government that Chinese-based companies cannot completely operate autonomously from...

A stock that has pent up pressure to go up - or spring up, as if a spring that is compressed - due to pending positive news, or given that it has been unfairly sold down and, therefore, has significant upward pressure to go higher soon.

Go down.   Letting a stock come in, refers to the prediction that a stock will decline, so you should be patient and let a stock come down before buying it.    Usage:  It's interesting, Nordstrom Inc. (JWN) got upgraded... I don't want to buy that. You've got to let that come in...
(from the 2/4/08 Mad Money show)

Try to guess what to say, or recommend, with comments off the cuff...  

Used in the oil and oil refining investment sectors, the crack spread represents the theoretical refining margin. If a crack spread is a positive number then the price of the refined products is higher than that of crude oil, the raw material, and the spread is profitable. If the spread is a negative number, the products are priced at less than the cost of crude and are not profitable.
The 3-2-1 crack spread is a commonly used formula in the oil industry, expresses the theoretical margin in dollars per barrel.

A stock that depends heavily on the economy.   Usage:   Some of you are probably interested in a great, steady story...  that seems to have very little cyclicality... although, at times, there was some cyclicality... meaning, it's depending on the economy...

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Definition/Explanation...

When a company is paying down debt, or making efforts to pay off its debt.

Established by a public company, this is a special quarterly distribution of cash back to shareholders for each share of stock that they own.  A dividend is a portion of a company's profit paid to common and preferred shareholders. A stock selling for $20 a share with an annual dividend of $1 a share yields the investor 5 percent.    This can also be announced and distributed to shareholders as a special one-time "special dividend" set at a usually higher flat amount per share.   Usage:   Although it had a quarterly dividend set at less than 10 cents per share, TD AMERITRADE (AMTD) announced that it would award a special dividend of $6.00 per share owned, on 1/25/06.

This is the highest price that a security has traded at during the day.

This is the lowest price that a security has traded at during the day.

A lowering of a country's currency relative to gold and/or currencies of other nations. The opposite is revaluation.

 
The common type of bond issued by large, well-established organizations. Holders of debentures representing corporate indebtedness are creditors of the corporation and entitled to payment before shareholders upon dissolution of the corporation.

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Corporate securities (preferred shares or bonds) that are exchangeable for a set number of another form at a prestated price.

A debt that is junior in claim on assets to other debt, repayable only after other debts with a higher claim have been satisfied.

 
A calculation that includes stock options, warrants and convertible securities to get per-share earnings.

This is the interest rate charged by the U.S. Federal Reserve, the nation's central bank, for loans to member banks. The Fed, as it is called, alters rates to increase or decrease the growth of the nation's economic output.

This is another way of saying: professional selling. A stock is under distribution when volume expands on days when price moves down.

 
This is the best known U.S. index of stocks. It contains 30 stocks that trade on the New York Stock Exchange. The Dow, as it is called, is a barometer of how shares of the largest U.S. companies are performing. There are thousands of investment indexes around the world for stocks, bonds, currencies and commodities.

A measure of a bond price's sensitivity to a 100-basis point change in interest rates. A duration of 8 would mean that, given a 100-basis point change up/down in rates, a bond's price would move up/down by 8%.

If the debt-to-capitalization ratio is 15%, this means that the company's total debt is 15% of its total market capitalization.

Yield is commonly used to describe the dividend yield of a stock.  This is calculated by determining a stock's stated dividend amount per share, and then taking the current share price, and dividing that price by the stated dividend, therefore determining the resulting percentage amount that the dividend represents - as a percentage of the current share price - or, the current "dividend yield."   As the share price fluctuates, so does the calculated dividend yield, because it is always in direct relation (i.e., relative to) that share price.    Therefore, there is an inverse relationship of share price to dividend yield.  As the share price goes up, the dividend yield (i.e., percentage) will always go down, and vice-versa.    Example:   If the stock,  Weyerhaeuser Co. (WY) has a current dividend of $2.40 per share, and its current share price is $62.43, then its resulting dividend yield is 3.84%.  If the share price were to shoot up to $100, and the dividend amount of $2.40 stayed the same, then that dividend yield would go down to just 2.40%.

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Definition/Explanation...

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.

Earnings per share, known as a stock's EPS for short, as it is reported by the company.  This is used to determine a stock's P/E.

EPS, as it is called, is a company's profit divided by its number of shares. If a company earned $2 million in one year had 2 million shares of stock outstanding, its EPS would be $1 per share.

This is an American dollar that has been deposited in a European bank. It got there as a result of payments made to overseas companies for merchandise.

This literally means "without dividend." The buyer of shares when they are quoted ex-dividend is not entitled to receive a declared dividend.

The Securities & Exchange Commission uses Electronic Data Gathering and Retrieval to transmit company documents to investors. Those documents, which are available via DBC's Smart Edgar service, include 10-Qs (quarterly reports), 8-Ks (significant developments such as the sale of a company unit) and 13-Ds (disclosures by parties who own 5% or more of a company's shares).

Market capitalization minus cash, plus debt.

 
There are three main U.S. stock exchanges on which securities are traded. AMEX is the American Stock Exchange. NASDAQ is the National Association of Securities Dealers. NYSE is the New York Stock Exchange.

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Definition/Explanation...

Five stocks related to agriculture... We call them the Fab Five on this show... Mosaic (MOS), Potash (POT), and Agrium (AGU) on fertilizer...  Monsanto (MON) on the seed side...   And I think, best of all, Deere (DE), which I have to say may be the single best manufacturer in America... not of farm equipment, but of all equipment, selling into the single best market in the world... agriculture.

This is the highest price that a security has traded at during the last 52 weeks.

This is the lowest price that a security has traded at during the last 52 weeks.

This is the range of prices - the lowest to the highest price - that a security has traded at during the last 52 weeks.

As in,   Usage:  Buying that stock would be like trying to catch a falling knife.   It would cut you if you try to catch it, as it's going down...

Literal translation from Spanish, meaning "on fire"... indicates that a stock is really doing well, really hot right now.   Usage:  That stock has been en fuego!  It's been up 8 straight points in the last two weeks.

Shares outstanding.   Usage:  And, now that the bad news seems to be in the past for Black & Decker (BDK*), it's stock is benefiting from the huge reduction in shares that BDK's mammoth buyback has made, and made happen over the last four years...  They've basically almost cut the float by a third!... There's just not that much supply out there. So, when everyone's trying to buy this one, it just shoots up!... (From the 2/1/08 Mad Money show)

This is the interest rate that banks with excess reserves at a Federal Reserve district bank charge other banks that need overnight loans. The Fed Funds rate, as it is called, often points to the direction of U.S. interest rates.

The so-called float is the number of shares of a security that are outstanding and available for trading by the public.

An estimated bottom point for a company's share price.   Usage:    I think the guidance was sandbagged... I think the stock has got a floor here. I want to buy Riverbed Technology, Inc. (RVBD). I like their technology... (from the 2/7/08 Mad Money show).  The opposite is a projected "ceiling" for a stock - the estimated "top" point for a company's share price.

This is an agreement that allows an investor to buy or sell a commodity, like gold or wheat, or a financial instrument, like a currency, at some time in future. A future is part of a class of securities called derivatives, so named because such securities derive their value from the worth of an underlying investment.

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Conventions, rules and procedures that define general accounting practice, including broad guidelines as well as detailed procedures.

The stock of a company whose business is considered recession-resistant and also possesses an above-average growth rate.

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Definition/Explanation...

This is Jim's assessment that, given the market conditions surrounding/circa March 2008, that these four stocks cannot be allowed to fail, as they are perilously similar in problems to Bear Stearns (BSC), before it was bailed out - albeit via a fire sale at $2 a share (initially) - by JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM).   They include:  UBS (UBS), Merrill Lynch (MER), Citigroup (C), and Washington Mutual (WM).

Negative implications or take-aways which can be applied to a company's quarterly earnings report.   When a company reports a quarter that's full of great looking numbers, but
the quarter isn't clean... it's full of one-time gains, or it's not sustainable...   Usage:    That company's earnings report had way too much hair on it.    I am telling you that Exxon Mobil (XOM) had hair on it, meaning not everything was perfect... XOM is a great example of what a quarter with too much hair looks like... (from the 2/4/08 Mad Money show)

In the "House of Pain" with a stock... Very simply, your stock is doing poorly, causing you pain.   Usage:  "I am really in the house of pain in that stock."

In the "House of Pleasure" with a stock... Very simply, your stock is doing poorly, causing you pleasure.   Usage:  "I am really in the house of pleasure in that stock."

Individual stock traders/investors who watch Mad Money, and need to know stock symbols and other more basic information about a stock, to be able to do your own homework; beyond what the pros may take for granted.   Usage:  "For all you homegamers, that stock symbol is G-O-O-G for Google (GOOG)"

Taken from a sailing term... The form hand over fist, instead of the original hand over hand, is an obvious and natural variant (close your hand around a rope and you do, indeed, make a fist), to 'speedily; increasingly', the sense in "making money hand over fist"...   Usage:  That company is making money hand over fist...

This is the day's highest price of a security that has changed hands between a buyer and seller.

Taken from a casino term, this is the money remaining over and above your initial investment (or bet), or your base.   

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Definition/Explanation...

A passively-managed mutual fund that is structured - with its individual stock holdings - to mirror the performance of a specific index, such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (i.e., the Dow), the S&P 500, or the Nasdaq.

The initial public offering (i.e., IPO) of stock is the set number of shares of stock and the price that is fixed as the IPO price for that initial offering, on their IPO date.   For example - especially incredible given its performance to date -  Google (GOOG)'s IPO was set at $85 per share in April of 2004.   Google now trades at this price.

(Pig Latin usage)...Nix...   Usage:   "I like (one stock), but ix-nay on (that stock)..."

An IPO is stock in a company that is being traded on an exchange for the first time. Investors first read a prospectus that describes the potential of the company and the risks of investing in it.

 
These are directors and senior officers of a corporation -- in effect those who have access to inside information about a company. An insider also is someone who owns more than 10 percent of the voting shares of a company.

A bond with a speculative credit rating of BB or lower is a junk bond. Such bonds offer investors higher yields than bonds of financially sound companies. Two agencies, Standard & Poor's and Moody's Investor Services, provide the rating systems for companies' credit.

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Definition/Explanation...

This indicates the most recent trade of a security.  Also indicated as the "Last Trade" or last price paid for the stock that is trading between 9:30am and 4:00pm on normal trading days, Monday through Friday.  If outside of those normal business hours, this Last Trade price is also the closing price from the most recent trading session.

A LEAP is a long-term option contract for a company's stock. They usually run for one year or more and are available on several U.S. exchanges.

Jim Cramer uses this phrase frequently on his Mad Money show, when he refers to "taking profits off the table, and letting the rest run."  This indicates that, after selling stock to lock in your profits, you then hold onto the remaining stock, and let it work for you. 

Investors can place an order to buy or sell securities at a set price. The trade can take place only at that price or a lower one.

Investors who go "long" simply own stock or another security. It is a term that means the opposite of "short," in which investors are short a stock or security because they have borrowed it and sold it to someone else.

This is the day's lowest price of a security that has changed hands between a buyer and a seller.

Buy a stock in steps, or legs, where you do not buy your total position all at once, but buy the stock incrementally, over a period of time.   An example would be to have the goal of buying 100 shares, and buying the stock 20 shares at a time, for a total of five transactions, or legs, of buying that stock.    An example, taken from the 3/20/08 Lightning Round, which refers to AGU, where Jim Cramer said:  Agrium (AGU)...  you buy a little...  That's my advice... buy some at $62, and then wait until $57... use a 5-point scale...  to be able to buy some AGU... not more aggressive than that...   In this example, Jim is recommending that, for AGU, he suggests buying that stock by legging into it, at $5 increments in its share price... at $62, near the current price, and then waiting to see if it goes back down $5, to $57, and then buying the next leg of your goal amount for your total position...  

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Holding a stock as a longer-term investment, or have already held a stock and continue to hold it.

See sandbagged.

When a company borrows money.

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Definition/Explanation...

To Back up the truck - indicated by Jim, when he says the stock is so good, that he would do a 'mon-back' on the stock... In other words, this is the sound someone would say to a truck driver, "Come on back... " as he is "backing up the truck" to load up on his cargo. Translation for buying stocks: This recommendation by Jim indicates that, after you do your own homework on the stock, you should feel comfortable loading up on it, as it is in a good position to be bought at this point.

This allows investors to buy securities by borrowing money from a broker. The margin is the difference between the market value of a stock and the loan a broker makes.

Also called, "market capitalization"...  Refers to the total stock value, derived by multiplying the number of shares outstanding by the price per share.   Usage:  That stock has 3 million shares outstanding, and its current price per share is $10.  Therefore its "market cap" is currently $30 million.

Mergers and Acquisitions.

Multiple contraction means the market will start paying a lot less for a stock, for the same amount of earnings. In other words, the market has decided that, even though the earnings estimates aren’t coming down, they are just going to pay less for them.  Usage:  On Jim Cramer's 3/6/08 Mad Money show, he gave an example of multiple contraction, among defense stocks, where their prices actually went up since July of 2007 to March of 2008, because their stock prices had actually gone down, but had not kept pace with the relative rise in their earnings... "here's a great situation, where the multiples have gotten undeservedly smaller, while their earnings are going up..." 

(M)ultiple = (P)rice divided by (E)arnings or the price-to-earnings ratio that is shown on so many stock reports as their P/E's.   Usage:  The multiple, or P/E, of Google (GOOG) is roughly half that of its biggest competitor, Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO)...  therefore, it could be considered a much greater value as an investment.  

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This is an order to buy or sell a security at the current trading price.

A slimy practice done by some mutual fund money managers, where they actually pay more for a stock to bid it up - or mark it up - in price at the end of a quarter or year-end, so that they can report the final (higher) stock price in their portfolio, which will then reflect better overall performance in that particular stock.  This is one of those slimy practices that a lot of people like to pretend doesn't exist... but it's not technically... Well, the SEC (i.e., U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission) will prosecute for it... It moves stocks, and a lot of fund managers do it...  See a complete reference to this practice - and how Jim Cramer said you may be able to make money off of it - in this segment of MadMoneyRecap.com from 12/21/07, here...

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Refers to Microsoft (MSFT)