Common Stock
Also called: ordinary shares, common shares, equity shares
Common stock is ordinary ownership in a company: a vote, a claim on profits after everyone else is paid, and unlimited upside. The phrase that matters is 'after everyone else' — in a liquidation, common shareholders rank behind bondholders, suppliers, tax authorities and preferred shareholders, which is why recoveries are usually zero. That last-in-line position is exactly why common stock earns the highest long-run return of the major asset classes.