Definition of Discount curve

Discount curve

The curve of discount rates vs. maturity dates for bonds.

ADF (annuity discount factor)

the present value of a finite stream of cash flows for every beginning $1 of cash flow.

DLOC (discount for lack of control)

an amount or percentage deducted from a pro rata share of the value of 100% of an equity interest in a business, to reflect the absence of some or all of the powers of control.

DLOM (discount for lack of marketability)

an amount or percentage deducted from an equity interest to reflect lack of marketability.

discount rate

the rate of return on investment that would be required by a prudent investor to invest in an asset with a specific level risk. Also, a rate of return used to convert a monetary sum, payable or receivable in the future, into present value.

fractional interest discount

the combined discounts for lack of control and marketability. g the constant growth rate in cash flows or net income used in the ADF, Gordon model, or present value factor.

QMDM (quantitative marketability discount model)

model for calculating DLOM for minority interests r the discount rate

Accretion (of a discount)

In portfolio accounting, a straight-line accumulation of capital gains on discount
bond in anticipation of receipt of par at maturity.

Bank discount basis

A convention used for quoting bids and offers for treasury bills in terms of annualized
yield , based on a 360-day year.

Cash discount

An incentive offered to purchasers of a firm's product for payment within a specified time
period, such as ten days.

Deep-discount bond

A bond issued with a very low coupon or no coupon and selling at a price far below par
value. When the bond has no coupon, it's called a zero coupon bond.

Discount

Referring to the selling price of a bond, a price below its par value. Related: premium.

Discount bond

Debt sold for less than its principal value. If a discount bond pays no interest, it is called a
zero coupon bond.

Discount factor

Present value of $1 received at a stated future date.

Discount period

The period during which a customer can deduct the discount from the net amount of the bill
when making payment.

Discount rate

The interest rate that the Federal Reserve charges a bank to borrow funds when a bank is
temporarily short of funds. Collateral is necessary to borrow, and such borrowing is quite limited because the
Fed views it as a privilege to be used to meet short-term liquidity needs, and not a device to increase earnings.

Discount securities

Non-interest-bearing money market instruments that are issued at a discount and
redeemed at maturity for full face value, e.g. U.S. Treasury bills.

Discount window

Facility provided by the Fed enabling member banks to borrow reserves against collateral
in the form of governments or other acceptable paper.

Discounted basis

Selling something on a discounted basis is selling below what its value will be at maturity,
so that the difference makes up all or part of the interest.

Discounted cash flow (DCF)

Future cash flows multiplied by discount factors to obtain present values.

Discounted dividend model (DDM)

A formula to estimate the intrinsic value of a firm by figuring the
present value of all expected future dividends.

Discounted payback period rule

An investment decision rule in which the cash flows are discounted at an
interest rate and the payback rule is applied on these discounted cash flows.

Discounting

Calculating the present value of a future amount. The process is opposite to compounding.

Dividend discount model (DDM)

A model for valuing the common stock of a company, based on the
present value of the expected cash flows.

Documented discount notes

Commercial paper backed by normal bank lines plus a letter of credit from a
bank stating that it will pay off the paper at maturity if the borrower does not. Such paper is also referred to as
LOC (letter of credit) paper.

Flattening of the yield curve

A change in the yield curve where the spread between the yield on a long-term
and short-term Treasury has decreased. Compare steepening of the yield curve and butterfly shift.

Forward discount

A currency trades at a forward discount when its forward price is lower than its spot price.

Indifference curve

The graphical expression of a utility function, where the horizontal axis measures risk and
the vertical axis measures expected return. The curve connects all portfolios with the same utilities according
to g and s .

J-curve

Theory that says a country's trade deficit will initially worsen after its currency depreciates because
higher prices on foreign imports will more than offset the reduced volume of imports in the short-run.

Non-parallel shift in the yield curve

A shift in the yield curve in which yields do not change by the same
number of basis points for every maturity. Related: Parallel shift in the yield curve.

Original issue discount debt (OID debt)

Debt that is initially offered at a price below par.

Parallel shift in the yield curve

A shift in the yield curve in which the change in the yield on all maturities is
the same number of basis points. In other words, if the 3 month T-bill increases 100 basis points (one
percent), then the 6 month, 1 year, 5 year, 10 year, 20 year, and 30 year rates increase by 100 basis points as
well.
Related: Non-parallel shift in the yield curve.

Pure-discount bond

A bond that will make only one payment of principal and interest. Also called a zerocoupon
bond or a single-payment bond.

Riding the yield curve

Buying long-term bonds in anticipation of capital gains as yields fall with the
declining maturity of the bonds.

Spot rate curve

The graphical depiction of the relationship between the spot rates and maturity.

Steepening of the yield curve

A change in the yield curve where the spread between the yield on a long-term
and short-term Treasury has increased. Compare flattening of the yield curve and butterfly shift.

Stopping curve

A curve showing the refunding rates for different points in time at which the expected value
of refunding immediately equals the expected value of waiting to refund.

Stopping curve refunding rate

A refunding rate that falls on the stopping curve.

Theoretical spot rate curve

A curve derived from theoretical considerations as applied to the yields of
actually traded Treasury debt securities because there are no zero-coupon Treasury debt issues with a maturity
greater than one year. Like the yield curve, this is a graphical depiction of the term structure of interest rates.

Yield curve

The graphical depiction of the relationship between the yield on bonds of the same credit quality
but different maturities. Related: Term structure of interest rates. Harvey (1991) finds that the inversions of
the yield curve (short-term rates greater than long term rates) have preceded the last five U.S. recessions. The
yield curve can accurately forecast the turning points of the business cycle.

Yield curve option-pricing models

Models that can incorporate different volatility assumptions along the
yield curve, such as the Black-Derman-Toy model. Also called arbitrage-free option-pricing models.

Yield curve strategies

Positioning a portfolio to capitalize on expected changes in the shape of the Treasury yield curve.

Discounted cash flow (DCF)

A method of investment appraisal that discounts future cash flows to present value using a discount rate, which is the risk-adjusted cost of capital.

Purchase discounts

A contra account that reduces purchases by the amount of the discounts taken for early payment.

Sales discounts

A contra account that offsets revenue. It represents the amount of the discounts for early payment allowed on sales.

discounted cash flow (DCF)

Refers to a capital investment analysis technique
that discounts, or scales down, the future cash returns from an
investment based on the cost-of-capital rate for the business. In essence,
each future return is downsized to take into account the cost of capital
from the start of the investment until the future point in time when the
return is received. Present value (PV) is the amount resulting from discounting
the future returns. Present value is subtracted from the entry
cost of the investment to determine net present value (NPV). The net
present value is positive if the present value is more than the entry cost,
which signals that the investment would earn more than the cost-ofcapital
rate. If the entry cost is more than the present value, the net
present value is negative, which means that the investment would earn
less than the business’s cost-of-capital rate.

Continuous Discounting

The process of calculating the present value of a stream of future
cash flows by discounting over a continuous period of time

Discount Rate

The rate of interest used to calculate the present value of a stream
of future cash flows

Discounting

The process of calculating the present value of a stream of future
cash flows

Yield Curve

A graphical representation of the level of interest rates for
securities of differing maturities at a specific point of time

ad hoc discount

a price concession made under competitive pressure (real or imagined) that does not relate to quantity purchased

discounting

the process of reducing future cash flows to present value amounts

discount rate

the rate of return used to discount future cash
flows to their present value amounts; it should equal or
exceed an organization’s weighted average cost of capital

learning curve

a model that helps predict how labor time
will decrease as people become more experienced at performing
a task and eliminate the inefficiencies associated
with unfamiliarity

risk-adjusted discount rate method

a formal method of adjusting for risk in which the decision maker increases the rate used for discounting the future cash flows to compensate for increased risk

Par yield curve

The yield curve of bonds selling at par, or face, value.

Spot curve, spot yield curve

See Zero curve.

Yield curve

Graph of yields (vertical axis) of a particular type of security
versus the time to maturity (horizontal axis). This curve usually slopes
upward, indicating that investors usually expect to receive a premium for
securities that have a longer time to maturity. The benchmark yield curve is
for U.S. Treasury securities with maturities ranging from three months to 30
years. See Term structure.

Zero curve, zero-coupon yield curve

A yield curve for zero-coupon bonds;
zero rates versus maturity dates. Since the maturity and duration (Macaulay
duration) are identical for zeros, the zero curve is a pure depiction of supply/
demand conditions for loanable funds across a continuum of durations and
maturities. Also known as spot curve or spot yield curve.

Discounted cash flow

A technique that determines the present value of future cash
flows by applying a rate to each periodic cash flow that is derived from the cost of
capital. Multiplying this discount by each future cash flow results in an amount that
is the present value of all the future cash flows.

Sales discount

A reduction in the price of a product or service that is offered by the
seller in exchange for early payment by the buyer.

constant-growth dividend discount model

Version of the dividend discount model in which dividends grow at a constant rate.

discount factor

Present value of a $1 future payment.

discount rate

Interest rate used to compute present values of future cash flows.

dividend discount model

Computation of today’s stock price which states that share value equals the present value of all expected future dividends.

yield curve

Graph of the relationship between time to maturity and yield to maturity.

Aggregate Demand Curve

Combinations of the price level and income for which the goods and services market is in equilibrium, or for which both the goods and services market and the money market are in equilibrium.

Aggregate Expenditure Curve

Aggregate demand for goods and services drawn as a function of the level of national income.

Aggregate Supply Curve

Combinations of price level and income for which the labor market is in equilibrium. The short-run aggregate supply curve incorporates information and price/wage inflexibilities in the labor market, whereas the long-run aggregate supply curve does not.

Discount

The percentage amount at which bonds sell below their par value. Also the percentage amount at which a currency sells on the forward market below its current rate on the spot market.

Discount Bond

A bond with no coupons, priced below its face value; the return on this bond comes from the difference between its face value and its current price.

Discounting

Calculating the present value of a future payment.

Discount Rate

The interest rate at which the Fed is prepared to loan reserves to commercial banks.

Discount Window

The Federal Reserve facility at which reserves are loaned to banks at the discount rate.

Laffer Curve

curve showing how tax receipts vary with the tax rate.

Phillips Curve

Relationship between inflation and unemployment.

Yield curve

A graph showing how the yield on bonds varies with time to maturity.

Non-Smoker Discount

In October 1996 it was announced in the international news that scientists had finally located the link between cigarette smoking and lung cancer. In the early 1980's, some Canadian Life Insurance Companies had already started recognizing that non-smokers had a better life expectancy than smokers so commenced offering premium discounts for life insurance to new applicants who have been non-smokers for at least 12 months before applying for coverage. Today, most life insurance companies offer these discounts.
Savings to non-smokers can be up to 50% of regular premium depending on age and insurance company. Most life insurance companies offering non-smoker rates insist that the person applying for coverage have abstained from any form of tobacco or marijuana for at least twelve months, some companies insist on longer periods, up to 15 years.
Tobacco use is generally considered to be cigarettes, cigarillos, cigars, pipes, chewing tobacco, nicorette gum, snuff, marijuana and nicotine patches. In addition to these, if anyone tests positive to cotinine, a by-product of nicotine, they are also considered a smoker. There are some insurance companies which allow moderate or occasional use of cigars, cigarillos or pipes as acceptable for non-smoker status. Experienced brokers are aware of how to locate these insurance companies and save you money.
Special care should be taken by applicants for coverage who qualify for non-smoker rates by virtue of having ceased a smoking habit for the required period before application, but for some reason, fall back into the smoking habit some time after obtaining coverage. While contractually, the insurance company is still bound to a non-smoking rate, the facts of the applicant's smoking hiatus may become vague over the subsequent years of the resumed habit and at time of death claim, the insurance company may decide to contest the original non-smoking declaration. The consequence is not simply a need to back pay the difference between non-smoker and smoker rates but in reality the possibility of denial of death claim. It is therefore, important to advise the servicing broker as well as the insurance company of the change in smoking habits to make certain that sufficient evidence is documented to track the non-smoking period.

Discount Rate

A rate of return used to convert a monetary sum, payable or receivable in the future, into present value.

Discounted Cash Flow

Techniques for establishing the relative worth of a future investment by discounting (at a required rate of return) the expected net cash flows from the project.

Discounting

The process of finding the present value of a series of future cash flows. discounting is the reverse of compounding.

Discounting of Accounts Receivable

Short-term financing in which accounts receivable are used as collateral to secure a loan. The lender does not buy the accounts receivable but simply uses them as collateral for the loan. Also called pledging of accounts receivable.

Supplier Discount

An amount deducted from an invoice by a supplier in exchange for quick payment (a typical example might be a 2% discount if paid in 10 days or the full amount of the invoice in 30 days).

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