Wholesale quote sheet for corporate bonds used by dealers.

The rate of return on an investment. There are as many computations as there are different yields, such as current yield and yield to maturity. For example, bonds provide income in the form of interest, and stocks in the form of dividends.

The additional income an investor will receive on purchasing a convertible security instead of the ordinary share of the same company assuming that the security can be converted into those same ordinary shares. For the calculation to be meaningful, allowance must be made for the conversion costs, reflected in the differential between the conversion price and the current market price.

A graph depicting yield as it relates to maturity. If short-term rates are lower than long-term rates, it is called a positive yield curve. If short-term rates are higher, it is called a negative, or inverted, yield curve. If there is little difference, it is called a flat yield curve.

The point on the yield curve that indicates the year at which the economy's highest interest rates occur.

The percentage a bond will yield to the date at which it is eligible to be redeemed by its issuer.

The effective annual rate of return earned by a bond if held to maturity. This rate takes into account the amount paid for the bond, the length of time to maturity, and assumes coupon payments can be reinvested at the yield to maturity.