The Motley Fool

According to the Institute of Business & Finance, there were recently about 6,800 mutual funds in the U.S. — down from a peak of about 8,000.

Poison pill plans can successfully fend off takeovers. But they're not without risks.

If the market rises or falls by 10%, so will the stock (roughly). A beta below 1.0 reflects lower volatility, and a beta above 1.0 reflects higher volatility.

Remember that long-term investors aim to stay invested in promising stocks for years, riding out temporary downturns.

Shareholders can lose out when a company's capital is not allocated effectively.

If you're interested in a company that cut its payout, research it to see whether you have confidence in an upcoming turnaround.

It's one way to measure a company's worth. You might think that a company's market capitalization reflects its total value, as it's the value of all outstanding shares.

Overenthusiastic investors may have bid the price up into overvalued territory.

Your survivors are generally not on the hook to pay off your debts unless they co-signed a loan or are a joint owner of a credit card account.

Stock market indexes can also be measured in "points" rather than dollars to avoid confusion