Issued Shares - Definition
Written by Jason Gordon
Updated at December 16th, 2020
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Back To: BUSINESS ENTITIES, CORPORATE GOVERNANCE, & OWNERSHIP
Issued Shares Definition
Issued shares refer to the totality of a companys shares that have been issued or allocated to the companys shareholders, this number of shares are recorded in the companys annual report. Issued shares are shares of a company that have been given to shareholders either as a form of compensation or during issuance of shares. Shares held by shareholders which comprises of investors, company insiders, institutional investors and the general public are issued shares. In certain cases, a company can buy back its shares issued to investors and keep as treasury shares. Shares that a company holds in its treasury stock or retired shares are not part of issued shares.
A Little More on What are Issued Shares
The number of shares that a company issues or allocates to its shareholders are recorded as capital stock or owners equity in the companys balance sheet. When calculating market capitalization or when the financial statement of a company is being compiled, issued shares are important. A companys outstanding shares are also recorded under capital in an annual report and listed when doing quarterly filings with the SEC. The holdings or portion of the ownership of a company that shareholders maintain can be determined through the number of shares they hold. All issued and authorized shares of a company are used when calculating the ownership of a company. Issued shares are important when evaluating the ownership of a company, the shareholders of a company maintain a share of the companys ownership. Investors or shareholders who were issued shares through a secondary offering or those that purchased shares when a company starts can claim a portion of the companys ownership. Using the fully diluted calculation or method, a companys ownership can be estimated.
References for Issued Shares
https://www.investopedia.com Investing Financial Analysishttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Issued_shareshttps://jamapunji.pk/knowledge-center/why-do-companies-issue-shareshttps://www.upcounsel.com/issued-shares-vs-outstanding-shareshttps://www.wallstreetmojo.com Accounting Shareholders Equityhttps://www.accountingtools.com/articles/2017/5/13/issued-shares