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It's time to let you in on a dirty little secret: You may not own the stock you own. That's right, if you invest with a brokerage firm, the shares you bought are almost certainly not held in your name. Technically, they're held in the name of the Wall Street firm you do business with, hence the term "street name."
No, you haven't been robbed. Ultimately, the decision to hold shares on the books under a different name doesn't affect the economic ramifications for you. You¿re listed as the "beneficial owner," even though the firm is the official owner of the shares. But, you are giving up some rights, and investors concerned about good corporate governance might want to get that stock back in their own names.
Here's the problem: If your stock is technically owned by, say, Merrill Lynch, then Merrill Lynch gets to do things with it that might work against your wishes. Take short selling. Investors who want to sell shares short need to first borrow those shares. The lenders are often the big Wall Street firms that are handing out Street-name shares. So, if you feel that a company you own is a victim of aggressive short selling, chances are your own shares are being used to fuel the shorting.
Also, your brokerage firm can cast ballots on some corporate matters affecting a company without getting your input. Technically, this can only happen in votes considered ¿routine¿ by securities regulators. But, there's a big catch: some big events, like board elections, are considered "routine" under law.
The good news is that you can easily fix the Street name problem: Just request that your brokerage firm makes you the listed owner of the shares. If they refuse, find a new firm.
Home / Personal Finance / Financial Planning
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Four Reasons to Forget Oil Drilling and Start Barbecue Grilling
Jennifer Openshaw
MarketWatch
NEW YORK--Gas prices are turning summer travel into an unaffordable treat and the price of groceries is causing strain at the dinner table. Everyone knows it. The question is how deal with it.
Regardless of how you feel about offshore drilling, expensive gas is here to stay. And -- look out -- beef prices may be artificially low today, as ranchers unable to afford feed move cattle to market. Your "staple" beefsteak barbecue may get a lot more expensive.
What's fun -- as prices rise and budgets shrink -- is finding clever ways to cope. Ways to enjoy yourself without straining the budget.
I decided to set my sights on the backyard barbecue. I travel a lot on business, but really love being home with my husband Randy more than anything. A summer evening in our backyard with goodies from the grill is tops.
So here are four cool things to try on the grill to enjoy a cookout on a warm, splurge-free summer evening. Naturally, popular food Web sites are following the trend and there are lots of new ideas and recipes out there -- so a few of these sites are included too.
Sausage shop. Bruce Aidell has been making amazing sausages for more than 20 years now, and tossing a few of these on the grill won't disappoint. Readily available in grocery stores, for around $2 a serving you can enjoy grilled andouille sausage, or special Aidells blends like chicken and apple or portobello mushroom. See the Web site. Pizza, anyone? Grilled pizza? You bet! It really isn't that hard and your guests will be amazed. Check out the Grilled Pizza Margarita recipe at the Food Network Web site to learn how. You can put all of your family and guests together to make this work, from mixing up your own dough to rolling out the crust to slathering on the toppings. A gourmet group effort all will enjoy. Check out the site. Kabobbin' along. Like to stick with grilling meat but not with the enormous cuts? Then cut up the meat and add veggies. A good cut of beef or lamb can easily be stretched to feed a crowd if you add cut up onions, mushrooms and some of your gardens zucchini or squash. There's a nice assortment of grilled kabob recipes at Cooks.com. See the Web site. Gourmet burgers. There's been a lot of press on the rise of gourmet burgers on the restaurant scene, and I like that trend, both from a financial and culinary perspective. Not surprisingly, you can do some pretty good stuff yourself. Mix in a little blue cheese for something special. Or for more adventure, check out the "10 Great Burger Recipes" (and other recipes, too) on Food & Wine's Grilling Page. As they say, the possibilities are endless. Visit the site.
So put a shrimp (well, a shrimp-and-veggie kabob) on the barbie, and try to forget about all the bad stuff happening out there.
Jennifer Openshaw is co-founder and president of the soon-to-launch WeSeed and author of "The Millionaire Zone" You can reach her at jopenshaw@themillionairezone.com
Copyright © 2008 MarketWatch, Inc.
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