The increased tax burden for married couples compared to when they were filing seperate tax returns as singles. Progressive tax rate structures in the United States led to a situation where higher income individuals and couples pay higher taxes than their lower income counterparts. The marriage penalty has been at the center of many political debates and the United States governement has taken steps to resolve the taxation discrepency. The fact that married couples tend to pay more in taxes than single filers is debatable. However, some believe that the marriage penalty has led to greater consideration by couples to avoid marriage.
A ratio used to determine the value of a company. The enterprise multiple looks at a firm as a potential acquirer would, because it takes debt into account - an item which other multiples like the P/E ratio do not include. Enterprise multiple is calculated as: Also known as the EBITDA Multiple. Taobiz explains Enterprise Multiple A low ratio indicates that a company might be undervalued. The enterprise multiple is used for several reasons: 1) It's useful for transnational comparisons because it ignores the distorting effects of individual countries' taxation policies. 2) It's used to find attractive takeover candidates. Enterprise value is a better metric than market cap for takeovers. It takes into account the debt which the acquirer will have to assume. Therefore, a company with a low enterprise multiple can be viewed as a good takeover candidate. Keep in mind that enterprise multiples can vary depending on the industry. Therefore, it's important to compare the multiple to other companies or to the industry in general. Expect higher enterprise multiples in high growth industries (like biotech) and lower multiples in industries with slow growth (like railways).
The cash or securities an investor must deposit in his account as collateral before writing options. Margin requirements vary by option type. Margin requirements are established by the Federal Reserve Board in Regulation T; individual brokers may impose additional requirements. Brokers require investors to deposit margin funds because they may be needed to buy or sell underlying stocks if the options are exercised. They may also be needed to close losing positions. Margin requirements for options trading are different from margin requirements for trading stocks or futures. Also, some options trading strategies have no margin requirement. This is because the underlying stock can be used as collateral. Neither covered calls nor covered puts have a margin requirement, for example.
A tax deduction that allows an individual to transfer some assets to his or her spouse tax free, creating a reduction in taxable income. A marital deduction is mainly used for the purposes of estates and gifts. The Internal Revenue Service has strict guidelines for allowable deductions, so it is important to make sure that you or your accountant adheres to them when making deductions.
An investment philosophy that attempts to amplify the returns of an underlying portfolio or index fund while also minimizing the effects of tracking error. This type of investing is considered a hybrid between active and passive management and is used to describe any strategy that is used in conjunction with index funds for the purpose of outperforming a specific benchmark. Taobiz explains Enhanced Indexing For example, an investor can short sell poor performing stocks from an index and then use the funds to purchase shares of companies they expect will have high returns. Investors can substantially outperform a benchmark over long time horizons by consistently eliminating their exposure to poor performing stocks and by using the proceeds to invest in other securities.
A type of mutual fund with the goal to generate current income for its investors from the premium it earns by selling option contracts. The profits investors earn on the options are taxed as ordinary income, not as dividends, so option income funds are best held in tax-advantaged accounts. This income generating strategy is much riskier than investing in dividend paying stocks, although the returns can be much higher. In his 2005 report to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) stating that Madoff’s hedge fund was a fraud, Harry Markopolos compared the Gateway Option Income Fund (GATEX) and other option income funds to Madoff's fund. This comparison showed that Madoff's returns were not realistic. These were just two of the 29 red flags Markopolos reported to the SEC in his 19-page memo.
The amount of tax paid on an additional dollar of income. As income rises, so does the tax rate. Many believe this discourages business investment by removing the incentive to work harder.
An additional dividend paid to eligible stockholders when their divided income is reduced due to a change the board of directors makes to the dividend payment schedule. Taobiz explains Equalizing Dividend Equalizing dividends are paid to shareholders to compensate them for any dividend income lost from the change.