Yield (finance)

Yield (finance)

In finance, the term yield describes the amount in cash that returns to the owners of a security. Normally it does not include the price variations, at the difference of the total return. Yield applies to various stated rates of return on stocks (common and preferred, and convertible), fixed income instruments (bonds, notes, bills, strips, zero coupon), and some other investment type insurance products (e.g. annuities).

The term is used in different situations to mean different things. It can be calculated as a ratio or as an internal rate of return (IRR). It may be used to state the owner's total return, or just a portion of income, or exceed the income.

Because of these differences, the yields from different uses should never be compared as if they were equal. This page is mainly a series of links to other pages with increased details.