preferred stock

American  

noun

1. stock that has a superior claim to that of common stock with respect to dividends and often to assets in the event of liquidation.

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preferred stock British  

noun

1. Also called (in eg Britain, Australia): preference shares.  shares representing part of the capital issued by a company and entitling their holders to priority with respect to both net profit and net assets. Preferred stock usually carries a definite rate of dividend that is generally lower than that declared on common stock

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Etymology

Origin of preferred stock

An Americanism dating back to 1840–50

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

preferred stock

Shares of Strategy and its biggest dividend-paying preferred stock, Stretch, have reversed some losses since the plan was announced.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 16, 2026

The company said it used the money raised to fund payment of distributions on preferred stock, and to replenish the money used from its U.S. dollar reserves for the distributions.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 6, 2026

On June 26, when Strategy said the mNAV was just under 0.99, it would have been 0.89 using the market value for its debt and preferred stock.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026

Nick O’Neil, a crypto content creator based in Miami, said he holds about $21,000 worth of Stretch and plans to buy more if the preferred stock dips further.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026

Treasury didn’t ask for a piece of the action, or management changes, or for that matter anything at all except for a teaspoon of out-of-the-money warrants and preferred stock.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis