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Margin of safety |
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Margin of safetyThe term given by Benjamin Graham, 'the father of value investing', to the idea that if you buy shares for less than two thirds of their net asset value, you automatically have a cushion against any deterioration in the company's trading position in the future. Put another way, 'buy cheap'.Graham's view was that it is extremely difficult to accurately predict a company's future earnings. For an investment to be 'safe', therefore, he liked to see a margin between the value of its net current assets and its share price. If the share price was below the net current assets divided by the number of shares in issue, he would consider buying it.One of the problems with Graham's approach is that in bull markets it is very difficult to find companies that fulfil his criteria. A second problem is that many of the fastest growing companies in modern economies are those whose assets are intangible - for instance, the value of their intellectual property. Under the Graham rubric, these sorts of assets would be excluded.Margin of safetyWith respect to working capital management, the difference between (1) the amount of long-term financing and (2) the sum of fixed assets and the permanent component of current assets.Margin of safety Similar MatchesInitial marginInitial marginThe payment which investors have to pay to a broker to trade on margin, commonly used in trading futures and contracts for difference. Initial margin is usually set at a percentage of the value of the contracts being traded. For example, a trader who buys long CFDs with a contract value of £12,000 might be required to deposit £2,400 (20%) with the broker as initial margin.The attraction of margin trading for traders is that they are effectively using the broker's money to speculate, and if successful can get a higher return on investment than by only using their own money. Put another way, their £2,400 of cash buys them exposure to £12,000 of shares, whereas if they were trading the shares themselves it would give them exposure only to £2,400 of shares.The flip side is that margin trading magnifies losses as well as profits, so if the trader is unsuccessful it can be very risky. MarginalMarginalIncremental. Margin securityMargin securityA security that may be bought or sold in a margin account as defined in Regulation T. Margin tradingMargin tradingBuying securities, in part, with borrowed money. Marginal tax rateMarginal tax rateThe additional tax which someone pays on each £1 increase of his or her taxable income. In the UK the tax bands for 2003-2004 tax year are:10 per cent on the first slice of earnings22 per cent on next slice40 per cent on top sliceUnder the 'progressive' tax system, once someone's earnings take him into the top tax bracket, any extra earnings will be taxed at the top rate. So someone who is in the 40 per cent bracket has a marginal tax rate of 40 per cent. Further SuggestionsDumping marginMarginal revenue product Net profit margin Maintenance margin margin call margin securities Marginal propensity to save Profit margin Value marginal product Marginal rate of substitution Undermargined account Marginal product Contribution margin Margin Margin requirement operating margin Marginal utility Effective margin (EM) Gross profit margin Marginal tax rate Margin Marginal rate of transformation OTC margin stock Original margin Initial margin |
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