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71-610: The Merritt School , also known as the Old Merritt School , is a Rosenwald School in Bullock County, Alabama , United States, that was built around 1922. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998. It is a one-story frame building, built to standard Design No. 20 and No. 20-A for a two-teacher Rosenwald school. It was modified in c.1935 and c.1946. This article about

142-405: A bank or credit union that may have a deal set up with either a full-service or discount broker. There are other ways of buying stock besides through a broker. One way is directly from the company itself. If at least one share is owned, most companies will allow the purchase of shares directly from the company through their investor relations departments. However, the initial share of stock in

213-675: A property in Alabama on the National Register of Historic Places is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Rosenwald School The need arose from the chronic underfunding of public education for African-American children in the South, as black people had been discriminated against at the turn of the century and excluded from the political system in that region. Children were required to attend segregated schools , and even those did not exist in many places. Rosenwald

284-471: A stock certificate . A stock certificate is a legal document that specifies the number of shares owned by the shareholder , and other specifics of the shares, such as the par value, if any, or the class of the shares. In the United Kingdom , Republic of Ireland , South Africa , and Australia , stock can also refer, less commonly, to all kinds of marketable securities . Stock typically takes

355-401: A stockbroker who buys and sells shares of a wide range of companies on such exchanges. A company may list its shares on an exchange by meeting and maintaining the listing requirements of a particular stock exchange. Many large non-U.S companies choose to list on a U.S. exchange as well as an exchange in their home country in order to broaden their investor base. These companies must maintain

426-472: A block of shares at a bank in the US, typically a certain percentage of their capital. On this basis, the holding bank establishes American depositary shares and issues an American depositary receipt (ADR) for each share a trader acquires. Likewise, many large U.S. companies list their shares at foreign exchanges to raise capital abroad. Small companies that do not qualify and cannot meet the listing requirements of

497-426: A buyer. Most trades are actually done through brokers listed with a stock exchange. There are many different brokerage firms from which to choose, such as full service brokers or discount brokers. The full service brokers usually charge more per trade, but give investment advice or more personal service; the discount brokers offer little or no investment advice but charge less for trades. Another type of broker would be

568-401: A company to be listed are minimal. Shares of companies in bankruptcy proceedings are usually listed by these quotation services after the stock is delisted from an exchange. There are various methods of buying and financing stocks, the most common being through a stockbroker . Brokerage firms, whether they are a full-service or discount broker, arrange the transfer of stock from a seller to

639-415: A couple of aspects. They issued shares called partes (for large cooperatives) and particulae which were small shares that acted like today's over-the-counter shares. Polybius mentions that "almost every citizen" participated in the government leases. There is also evidence that the price of stocks fluctuated. The Roman orator Cicero speaks of partes illo tempore carissimae , which means "shares that had

710-507: A few unusual cases, some courts have been willing to imply such a duty between shareholders. For example, in California , United States , majority shareholders of closely held corporations have a duty not to destroy the value of the shares held by minority shareholders. The largest shareholders (in terms of percentages of companies owned) are often mutual funds, and, especially, passively managed exchange-traded funds . The owners of

781-406: A non-equity interest in a non-profit organization . Thus it might be common to call volunteer contributors to an association stakeholders, even though they are not shareholders. Although directors and officers of a company are bound by fiduciary duties to act in the best interest of the shareholders, the shareholders themselves normally do not have such duties towards each other. However, in

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852-400: A number of different conditions are met. A stock derivative is any financial instrument for which the underlying asset is the price of an equity. Futures and options are the main types of derivatives on stocks. The underlying security may be a stock index or an individual firm's stock, e.g. single-stock futures . Stock futures are contracts where the buyer is long , i.e., takes on

923-423: A number of reasons may induce an investor to sell at a loss, e.g., to avoid further loss. As with buying a stock, there is a transaction fee for the broker's efforts in arranging the transfer of stock from a seller to a buyer. This fee can be high or low depending on which type of brokerage, full service or discount, handles the transaction. After the transaction has been made, the seller is then entitled to all of

994-430: A percentage of the stock has the ownership of the corporation proportional to their share. The shares form a stock; the stock of a corporation is partitioned into shares , the total of which are stated at the time of business formation. Additional shares may subsequently be authorized by the existing shareholders and issued by the company. In some jurisdictions, each share of stock has a certain declared par value , which

1065-438: A position he held until his death in 1932. Rosenwald endowed Tuskegee so that Washington could spend less time traveling to seek funding and be able to devote more time toward management of the school. As urged by Washington, Rosenwald provided funds for the construction of six small schools in rural Alabama , which were constructed and opened in 1913 and 1914 and overseen by Tuskegee. Julius Rosenwald and his family established

1136-421: A private company may want additional capital to invest in new projects within the company. They may also simply wish to reduce their holding, freeing up capital for their own private use. They can achieve these goals by selling shares in the company to the general public, through a sale on a stock exchange . This process is called an initial public offering , or IPO. By selling shares they can sell part or all of

1207-478: A privately funded nonprofit organization, published a guide to restoring Rosenwald Schools. In 2022 Congress passed a bill directing the National Park Service to study feasilibility of a national historical park preserving and explaining Rosenwald Schools. Researchers measured the effects of Rosenwald Schools on rural southern blacks based on US Census and World War II records, and found that

1278-478: A system of matching grants, requiring white school boards to commit to maintenance and black communities to aid in construction. Fulfilling the goals of the match grant program, African American communities contributed $ 4.8 million to the building of 5,338 schools throughout the South. After the Supreme Court's 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision (which declared school segregation unconstitutional),

1349-787: A very high price at that time". This implies a fluctuation of price and stock market behavior in Rome. Around 1250 in France at Toulouse , 100 shares of the Société des Moulins du Bazacle , or Bazacle Milling Company were traded at a value that depended on the profitability of the mills the society owned. In 1288, the Bishop of Västerås acquired a 12.5% interest in Great Copper Mountain (Stora Kopparberget in Swedish) which contained

1420-442: Is a nominal accounting value used to represent the equity on the balance sheet of the corporation. In other jurisdictions, however, shares of stock may be issued without associated par value. Shares represent a fraction of ownership in a business. A business may declare different types (or classes) of shares, each having distinctive ownership rules, privileges, or share values. Ownership of shares may be documented by issuance of

1491-399: Is an individual or company (including a corporation ) that legally owns one or more shares of stock in a joint stock company . Both private and public traded companies have shareholders. Shareholders are granted special privileges depending on the class of stock, including the right to vote on matters such as elections to the board of directors , the right to share in distributions of

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1562-407: Is currently in the buyer's ownership, or by buying stock on margin . Buying stock on margin means buying stock with money borrowed against the value of stocks in the same account. These stocks, or collateral , guarantee that the buyer can repay the loan ; otherwise, the stockbroker has the right to sell the stock (collateral) to repay the borrowed money. He can sell if the share price drops below

1633-407: Is divided. A single share of the stock means fractional ownership of the corporation in proportion to the total number of shares. This typically entitles the shareholder (stockholder) to that fraction of the company's earnings, proceeds from liquidation of assets (after discharge of all senior claims such as secured and unsecured debt ), or voting power , often dividing these up in proportion to

1704-454: Is important in areas such as insurance, which must be in the name of the company and not the main shareholder. In most countries, boards of directors and company managers have a fiduciary responsibility to run the company in the interests of its stockholders. Nonetheless, as Martin Whitman writes: Even though the board of directors runs the company, the shareholder has some impact on

1775-476: Is impractical to have all of them making the daily decisions required to run a company. Thus, the shareholders will use their shares as votes in the election of members of the board of directors of the company. In a typical case, each share constitutes one vote. Corporations may, however, issue different classes of shares, which may have different voting rights. Owning the majority of the shares allows other shareholders to be out-voted – effective control rests with

1846-504: Is preferred stock that includes the ability of the holder to convert the preferred shares into a fixed number of common shares, usually any time after a predetermined date. Shares of such stock are called "convertible preferred shares" (or "convertible preference shares" in the UK). New equity issue may have specific legal clauses attached that differentiate them from previous issues of the issuer. Some shares of common stock may be issued without

1917-424: Is significantly correlated to the market value of a stock. Stock price may be influenced by analysts' business forecast for the company and outlooks for the company's general market segment. Stocks can also fluctuate greatly due to pump and dump scams (also see List of S&P 600 companies ) . At any given moment, an equity's price is strictly a result of supply and demand. The supply, commonly referred to as

1988-438: The float , is the number of shares offered for sale at any one moment. The demand is the number of shares investors wish to buy at exactly that same time. The price of the stock moves in order to achieve and maintain equilibrium . The product of this instantaneous price and the float at any one time is the market capitalization of the entity offering the equity at that point in time. When prospective buyers outnumber sellers,

2059-602: The Falun Mine . The Swedish mining and forestry products company Stora has documented a stock transfer, in 1288 in exchange for an estate. The earliest recognized joint-stock company in modern times was the English (later British) East India Company . It was granted an English Royal Charter by Elizabeth I on 31 December 1600, with the intention of favouring trade privileges in India . The Royal Charter effectively gave

2130-953: The National Register of Historic Places . In 2015, the National Trust classified the Rosenwald Schools as National Treasures. In Georgia, several Rosenwald School sites have been commemorated through the Georgia Historical Marker Program, currently administered by the Georgia Historical Society . In partnership with community organizations, markers have been erected for the Hiram Rosenwald School (2006, Paulding County), Macon County Training School (2016, Macon County), Barney Colored Elementary School (2013, Brooks County), and Noble Hill Rosenwald School (1995 by

2201-545: The Rosenwald Fund in 1917 for "the well-being of mankind". Unlike other endowed foundations, which were designed to fund themselves in perpetuity, the Rosenwald Fund was intended to use all of its funds for philanthropic purposes. It donated more than $ 70 million (equivalent to $ 887,701,000 in 2023) to public schools , colleges , universities , museums , Jewish charities , and black institutions before

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2272-435: The margin requirement , at least 50% of the value of the stocks in the account. Buying on margin works the same way as borrowing money to buy a car or a house, using a car or house as collateral. Moreover, borrowing is not free; the broker usually charges 8–10% interest. Selling stock is procedurally similar to buying stock. Generally, the investor wants to buy low and sell high, if not in that order ( short selling ); although

2343-726: The Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Bartow County). Some schools have been adapted for new uses. Walnut Cove Colored School in Stokes County, North Carolina , won a National Preservation Honor Award for its rehabilitation for use as a senior citizen community center. The Hope Rosenwald School in Pomaria , South Carolina , also will be used as a community center. The Highland Park School in Prince George's County, Maryland , had been in continuous use by

2414-592: The Sears company as a public stock corporation by the financial services firm of Goldman Sachs , one of the senior partners, Paul Sachs , often stayed with the Rosenwald family at their home during his many trips to Chicago. Julius Rosenwald and Sachs often would discuss America's social situation, agreeing that the plight of African Americans was the most serious problem in the United States. The millions in

2485-443: The South had been disenfranchised at the turn of the century and suffered second-class status in a system of Jim Crow segregation. Black public schools and other facilities were chronically underfunded. Sachs introduced Rosenwald to Booker T. Washington (1856–1915), the famed educator who in 1881 started as the first principal of the normal school that he developed as Tuskegee University in Alabama. Washington, who had gained

2556-467: The board of the directors themselves, and a considerable amount of stock is held or voted by insiders. Owning shares does not mean responsibility for liabilities. If a company goes broke and has to default on loans, the shareholders are not liable in any way. However, all money obtained by converting assets into cash will be used to repay loans and other debts first, so that shareholders cannot receive any money unless and until creditors have been paid (often

2627-653: The buildings were frequently abandoned or dismantled. In some communities, surviving structures have been preserved because of the deep meaning they had for African Americans as symbols of the dedication of their leaders and communities to education. Others were threatened by lack of funds in rural areas, urbanization, changes in demographics, changing styles of education to consolidated and integrated schools, and other social changes. Former Rosenwald students have led some efforts to preserve Rosenwald Schools. For example, in Georgia, three former Rosenwald Schools were preserved by

2698-520: The buy-in of African American communities as well as the support of white governing bodies. Black communities raised more than $ 4.7 million to aid in construction, plus often donating land and labor. Research has found that the Rosenwald program accounts for a sizable portion of the educational gains of rural Southern black persons during this period. This research also found significant effects on school attendance, literacy, years of schooling, cognitive test scores, and Northern migration, with gains highest in

2769-531: The children of formerly enslaved people. In the segregated schools of the South, African American children were sent to woefully underfunded schools. The collaboration of Rosenwald and Washington led to the construction of almost 5,000 schools for black children in the eleven states of the former Confederacy as well as Oklahoma, Missouri, Kentucky, and Maryland. As a result of their collaboration, approximately one-third of African American children were educated in these schools. The Rosenwald-Washington model required

2840-726: The company drops the "A" creating ticker OODH for its "Common" shares only designation. This extra letter does not mean that any exclusive rights exist for the shareholders but it does let investors know that the shares are considered for such, however, these rights or privileges may change based on the decisions made by the underlying company. " Rule 144 Stock" is an American term given to shares of stock subject to SEC Rule 144: Selling Restricted and Control Securities. Under Rule 144, restricted and controlled securities are acquired in unregistered form. Investors either purchase or take ownership of these securities through private sales (or other means such as via ESOPs or in exchange for seed money) from

2911-432: The company to many part-owners. The purchase of one share entitles the owner of that share to literally share in the ownership of the company, a fraction of the decision-making power, and potentially a fraction of the profits, which the company may issue as dividends . The owner may also inherit debt and even litigation . In the common case of a publicly traded corporation, where there may be thousands of shareholders, it

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2982-444: The company will have to be obtained through a regular stock broker. Another way to buy stock in companies is through Direct Public Offerings which are usually sold by the company itself. A direct public offering is an initial public offering in which the stock is purchased directly from the company, usually without the aid of brokers. When it comes to financing a purchase of stocks there are two ways: purchasing stock with money that

3053-418: The company's income, the right to purchase new shares issued by the company, and the right to a company's assets during a liquidation of the company. However, shareholder's rights to a company's assets are subordinate to the rights of the company's creditors. Shareholders are one type of stakeholders , who may include anyone who has a direct or indirect equity interest in the business entity or someone with

3124-470: The company's policy, as the shareholders elect the board of directors. Each shareholder typically has a percentage of votes equal to the percentage of shares he or she owns. So as long as the shareholders agree that the management (agent) are performing poorly they can select a new board of directors which can then hire a new management team. In practice, however, genuinely contested board elections are rare. Board candidates are usually nominated by insiders or by

3195-498: The effect on literacy levels and cognitive scores was large. A 2021 study also found that attending the Rosenwald schools increased the life expectancy of the students, as well as increased their propensity to migrate to the Northern United States . Stock Stocks (also capital stock , or sometimes interchangeably, shares ) consist of all the shares by which ownership of a corporation or company

3266-481: The efforts of former students and Georgia's Historic Preservation Division, leading to their being listed on the National Register of Historic Places by 2001. In 2001, the National Trust for Historic Preservation named Rosenwald Schools near the top of the country's most endangered places and created a campaign to raise awareness and money for preservation. At least 60 former Rosenwald Schools are listed on

3337-439: The form of shares of either common stock or preferred stock . As a unit of ownership, common stock typically carries voting rights that can be exercised in corporate decisions. Preferred stock differs from common stock in that it typically does not carry voting rights but is legally entitled to receive a certain level of dividend payments before any dividends can be issued to other shareholders. Convertible preferred stock

3408-409: The funds were depleted in 1948. The school building program was one of the largest programs administered by the Rosenwald Fund. Using state-of-the-art architectural plans designed by professors at Tuskegee Institute, the fund spent more than $ 4 million to build 5,388 schools, 217 teacher homes, and 163 shop buildings in 883 counties in 15 states, from Maryland to Texas. The Rosenwald Fund was based on

3479-737: The future at a fixed price. Thus, the value of a stock option changes in reaction to the underlying stock of which it is a derivative . The most popular method of valuing stock options is the Black–Scholes model . Apart from call options granted to employees , most stock options are transferable. During the Roman Republic , the state contracted (leased) out many of its services to private companies. These government contractors were called publicani , or societas publicanorum as individual companies. These companies were similar to modern corporations, or joint-stock companies more specifically, in

3550-465: The issuing company (as in the case with Restricted Securities) or from an affiliate of the issuer (as in the case with Control Securities). Investors wishing to sell these securities are subject to different rules than those selling traditional common or preferred stock. These individuals will only be allowed to liquidate their securities after meeting the specific conditions set forth by SEC Rule 144. Rule 144 allows public re-sale of restricted securities if

3621-443: The larger economy. As new shares are issued by a company, the ownership and rights of existing shareholders are diluted in return for cash to sustain or grow the business. Companies can also buy back stock , which often lets investors recoup the initial investment plus capital gains from subsequent rises in stock price. Stock options issued by many companies as part of employee compensation do not represent ownership, but represent

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3692-487: The major exchanges may be traded over-the-counter (OTC) by an off-exchange mechanism in which trading occurs directly between parties. The major OTC markets in the United States are the electronic quotation systems OTC Bulletin Board (OTCBB) and OTC Markets Group (formerly known as Pink OTC Markets Inc.) where individual retail investors are also represented by a brokerage firm and the quotation service's requirements for

3763-442: The majority shareholder (or shareholders acting in concert). In this way the original owners of the company often still have control of the company. Although ownership of 50% of shares does result in 50% ownership of a company, it does not give the shareholder the right to use a company's building, equipment, materials, or other property. This is because the company is considered a legal person, thus it owns all its assets itself. This

3834-512: The market, the price of a stock is sensitive to demand. However, there are many factors that influence the demand for a particular stock. The fields of fundamental analysis and technical analysis attempt to understand market conditions that lead to price changes, or even predict future price levels. A recent study shows that customer satisfaction, as measured by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI),

3905-454: The money. An important part of selling is keeping track of the earnings. Importantly, on selling the stock, in jurisdictions that have them, capital gains taxes will have to be paid on the additional proceeds, if any, that are in excess of the cost basis. Short selling consists of an investor immediately selling borrowed shares and then buying them back when their price has gone down (called "covering"). Essentially, such an investor bets that

3976-595: The most disadvantaged counties. Julius Rosenwald (1862–1932) was born to a Jewish - German immigrant family. He became a clothier by trade after learning the business from relatives in New York City . His first business went bankrupt, but another he began in Chicago, Illinois , became a leading supplier to the growing business of Richard Warren Sears , Sears, Roebuck, and Company, a mail-order business that served many rural Americans. Anticipating demand by using

4047-685: The newly created Honourable East India Company (HEIC) a 15-year monopoly on all trade in the East Indies . Soon afterwards, in 1602, the Dutch East India Company issued the first shares that were made tradeable on the Amsterdam Stock Exchange . Between 1602 and 1796 it traded 2.5 million tons of cargo with Asia on 4,785 ships and sent a million Europeans to work in Asia. A shareholder (or stockholder )

4118-511: The number of like shares each stockholder owns. Not all stock is necessarily equal, as certain classes of stock may be issued, for example, without voting rights, with enhanced voting rights, or with a certain priority to receive profits or liquidation proceeds before or after other classes of shareholders. Stock can be bought and sold privately or on stock exchanges . Transactions of the former are closely overseen by governments and regulatory bodies to prevent fraud, protect investors, and benefit

4189-399: The obligation to buy on the contract maturity date, and the seller is short , i.e., takes on the obligation to sell. Stock index futures are generally delivered by cash settlement. A stock option is a class of option. Specifically, a call option is the right ( not obligation) to buy stock in the future at a fixed price and a put option is the right ( not obligation) to sell stock in

4260-437: The payment of dividends over common stock and also have been given preference at the time of liquidation over common stock. They have other features of accumulation in dividend. In addition, preferred stock usually comes with a letter designation at the end of the security; for example, Berkshire-Hathaway Class "B" shares sell under stock ticker BRK.B, whereas Class "A" shares of ORION DHC, Inc will sell under ticker OODHA until

4331-444: The price of the shares will drop so that they can be bought back at the lower price and thus returned to the lender at a profit. The risks of short selling stock are usually higher than those of buying stock. This is because the loss can theoretically be unlimited since the stock's value can theoretically go up indefinitely. The price of a stock fluctuates fundamentally due to the theory of supply and demand . Like all commodities in

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4402-416: The program, millions of dollars were raised by African-American rural communities across the South to fund better education for their children, and white school boards had to agree to operate and maintain the schools. Despite this program, by the mid-1930s, white schools in the South were worth more than five times per student, what black schools were worth per student (in majority-black Mississippi, this ratio

4473-414: The respect of many American leaders including U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt , also had obtained financial support from wealthy philanthropists such as Andrew Carnegie , George Eastman , and Henry Huttleston Rogers . He encouraged Rosenwald, as he had others, to address the poor state of African-American education in the U.S. In 1912, Rosenwald was asked to serve on the board of directors of Tuskegee,

4544-401: The right to buy ownership at a future time at a specified price. This would represent a windfall to the employees if the option were exercised when the market price is higher than the promised price, since if they immediately sold the stock they would keep the difference (minus taxes). Stock bought and sold in private markets fall within the private equity realm of finance. A person who owns

4615-543: The school system. It was recently renovated for use as a Headstart Center. The Canetuck Rosenwald School in Currie, North Carolina , has been renovated by the local Black community and is used as a busy community center. The Beauregard Parish Training School in DeRidder, Louisiana , was renovated with a federal grant in 2007 and opened in 2009 as BeauCare Head Start . In 2012, the National Trust for Historic Preservation ,

4686-420: The shareholders end up with nothing). Financing a company through the sale of stock in a company is known as equity financing. Alternatively, debt financing (for example issuing bonds ) can be done to avoid giving up shares of ownership of the company. Unofficial financing known as trade financing usually provides the major part of a company's working capital (day-to-day operational needs). In general,

4757-524: The shares of a company may be transferred from shareholders to other parties by sale or other mechanisms, unless prohibited. Most jurisdictions have established laws and regulations governing such transfers, particularly if the issuer is a publicly traded entity. The desire of stockholders to trade their shares has led to the establishment of stock exchanges , organizations which provide marketplaces for trading shares and other derivatives and financial products. Today, stock traders are usually represented by

4828-417: The typical voting rights, for instance, or some shares may have special rights unique to them and issued only to certain parties. Often, new issues that have not been registered with a securities governing body may be restricted from resale for certain periods of time. Preferred stock may be hybrid by having the qualities of bonds of fixed returns and common stock voting rights. They also have preference in

4899-531: The variations of sizes in American men and their clothing, determined during the American Civil War , Rosenwald helped plan the growth in what many years later marketers would call "the softer side of Sears": clothing. In 1895, he became one of its investors, eventually serving as the president of Sears from 1908 to 1922. He was its chairman until his death in 1932. After the 1906 reorganization of

4970-476: Was more than 13 to one). After the Civil War, Republicans established public schools and funded colleges and universities as part of their Reconstruction era efforts to rebuild the South. The Freedmen's Bureau partnered with church groups to establish school for African Americans. Disputes over funding ensued. The Rosenwald-Washington collaboration developed to address the needs of rural students, especially

5041-527: Was the founder of the Rosenwald Fund . He contributed seed money for many schools and other philanthropic causes. To encourage local commitment to these projects, he conditioned the Fund's support on the local communities' raising of matching funds. To promote collaboration between black and white people, Rosenwald required communities to also commit public funds and/or labor to the schools, as well as to contribute additional cash donations after construction. With

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