Convertible Preferred Stock

  

Categories: Bonds, Stocks, Trading, Investing

If you’re an ordinary retail investor, you probably just have access to common stock. Congratulations, pleb. The world will now go back to crushing you under a boot.

But when you’re a VIP investor, you get better options. Much better options. In the case of stock buying, that wealthy investor might get access to convertible preferred stock. This is preferred stock that can be converted into a set number of common stock in the future.

Why, you ask? Because there's an option for the investor to do so.

If the common stock price rallies higher, that option may allow the holder of the preferred stock to make more money by converting those shares.

Related or Semi-related Video

Finance: What are Convertible Bonds?9 Views

00:00

Finance a la shmoop what are convertible bonds? okay there's a joke about the

00:08

Inquisition in here somewhere or maybe something about Cossacks and 17th

00:13

century Russia what do you think animated musical or maybe a King Henry [King Henry VIII appears]

00:17

thing but yeah all that's different kind of conversion way more pedantically a

00:23

company might be having a hard time selling or issuing its bonds to Wall [Man with company briefcase for head meets man with Wall Street briefcase for a head]

00:29

Street in order for them to close the deal with their stock trading today at

00:33

25 bucks a share they might say well these bonds are convertible into 20 [Man with company for a head discussing bonds]

00:38

shares of our stock that is they would have a single thousand dollar unit of

00:43

that bond and it would convert into 20 shares which would then value the shares

00:48

at 50 bucks either thousand divided by 20 there's 50 it's an advanced calculus

00:53

sorry if you didn't have it which would sort of be you know the over/under price

00:56

at which bondholders would start to seriously look at converting their nice

01:01

safe bonds into those risky pesky equities well why would a company offer

01:06

convertible bonds instead of you know just vanilla bonds well if they were [Man discussing convertible bonds]

01:12

stuck paying 6% interest on just bonds but really could only afford to pay 4%

01:18

well they might get the interest rate discount by throwing in that equity

01:23

kicker in the bonds having that convertibility feature yes they would

01:27

suffer dilution at 50 bucks a share but that price is double and change where

01:32

the stocks out here so the company is probably thinking that it wouldn't mind

01:36

some dilution from these bonds being converted up there in stock price right [Arrow points to stock value mark on graph]

01:42

and remember the bonds pay the 4% interest along the way until they are

01:47

converted the moment those bonds are converted into equity well then the debt

01:51

on the balance sheet of the company and its obligation to pay that 4% yearly [Company balance sheet and interest highlighted]

01:56

interest goes mercifully away they print 20 more shares for each bond converted

02:02

and yes those shares may pay a dividend but as far as the convertible bonds go

02:07

they are thereafter converted and saved and remember Jesus Saves but Moses

02:15

invests

Up Next

Finance: What is Convertible Debt?
43 Views

What is convertible debt? Convertible debt is a type of bond that’s issued by a corporation. Ownership of these bonds means that the holder has t...

Finance: What is Busted Convertible?
14 Views

What is a Busted Convertible? A busted convertible is a convertible bond that will never be converted to stock because the underlying stock price i...

Find other enlightening terms in Shmoop Finance Genius Bar(f)