Difference Between Stock And Share

	Stock	Share
Definition	A unit of ownership in a publicly traded company	A unit of ownership in a company, which may or may not be publicly traded
Ownership	Publicly traded, owned by shareholders who can buy and sell on stock exchanges	Private or public, owned by individuals or entities who may not be able to easily sell or trade
Marketability	Highly marketable, traded on stock exchanges with readily available market prices	May not be marketable or have a readily available market price
Value	Determined by the company’s performance and various market factors	Determined by the company’s performance and growth prospects
Voting Rights	Typically carries voting rights which allow shareholders to have a say in company management	May have limited or no voting rights, depending on the type of share and company structure

Stocks and shares are two commonly used terms in the world of finance and investing. Many use them interchangeably without realizing that they have slightly different meanings.

A stock represents ownership in a publicly traded company, while a share represents a unit of ownership in a company.

Relationship between Stock and Share

When a company wants to raise capital, it can do so by issuing stocks to the public, and investors can purchase these stocks in exchange for a share of ownership in the company.

Stocks are traded on stock exchanges, and their prices can fluctuate based on various factors such as company performance, market trends, and economic conditions.

Shares can be privately held by individuals or entities, and they do not have to be publicly traded on a stock exchange. Private companies often issue shares to raise capital from investors, but these shares are not listed on public stock exchanges and are not easily tradable like publicly traded stocks.

Shares can also be issued to employees as part of their compensation packages, allowing them to own a stake in the company where they work. In these cases, the shares are not available for public trading, and their value is typically determined by the company’s performance and growth prospects.