{"items": [{"author": "Ron", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/651376234682?comment_id=651376893362", "anchor": "fb-651376893362", "service": "fb", "text": "... and whether preferred or common.", "timestamp": "1394505364"}, {"author": "opted out", "source_link": "#", "anchor": "unknown", "service": "unknown", "text": "this user has requested that their comments not be shown here", "timestamp": "1394506010"}, {"author": "Ron", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/651376234682?comment_id=651378016112", "anchor": "fb-651378016112", "service": "fb", "text": "Sure, but it's still better than common, regardless, no?", "timestamp": "1394506220"}, {"author": "Ron", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/651376234682?comment_id=651378036072", "anchor": "fb-651378036072", "service": "fb", "text": "(These points emphasize Jeff's original point, I think. Heh.)", "timestamp": "1394506233"}, {"author": "opted out", "source_link": "#", "anchor": "unknown", "service": "unknown", "text": "this user has requested that their comments not be shown here", "timestamp": "1394506456"}, {"author": "opted out", "source_link": "#", "anchor": "unknown", "service": "unknown", "text": "this user has requested that their comments not be shown here", "timestamp": "1394506752"}, {"author": "Matt", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/113951350991359002027", "anchor": "gp-1394539856952", "service": "gp", "text": "Very true that it's meaningless in that context, but it's meaningful in others, say when you're looking at dividend yield or anything that is priced at $/share (say, I want to fund my retirement and need to know how many MSFT shares I need to buy to generate the requisite cash flow, obviously ignoring the risks and variability).", "timestamp": 1394539856}, {"author": "Phillip", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/651376234682?comment_id=651416104782", "anchor": "fb-651416104782", "service": "fb", "text": "Preferred stock in publicly traded companies is usually somewhere between bonds (High security and low upside) and common stock (High upside and and downside). In private companies it tends to be different. In venture back start-ups (or at least the 6 I have done, which is a small sample). the money guys get preferred which gives them downside protection and the rights to get common upside if the start-up is successful. The money guys tend ot have a lot of power in start-ups, so they get to write the terms of ownership the way they like. I expect that the same is true for family owned businesses. They will issue shares with limited rights to reward employees, but have share classes reserved to themselves particularly around issues of control.", "timestamp": "1394553975"}, {"author": "Phillip", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/651376234682?comment_id=651416294402", "anchor": "fb-651416294402", "service": "fb", "text": "You might also exercise options, again in a privately held company, to manage your tax risk.", "timestamp": "1394554142"}, {"author": "opted out", "source_link": "#", "anchor": "unknown", "service": "unknown", "text": "this user has requested that their comments not be shown here", "timestamp": "1394555518"}, {"author": "opted out", "source_link": "#", "anchor": "unknown", "service": "unknown", "text": "this user has requested that their comments not be shown here", "timestamp": "1394555971"}, {"author": "Jeff Kaufman", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/103013777355236494008", "anchor": "gp-1394558189435", "service": "gp", "text": "@Matt\n\u00a0Right; I'm mostly thinking about shares in companies that aren't publicly traded but would like to become so.", "timestamp": 1394558189}, {"author": "Charvak", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/651376234682?comment_id=717361609462", "anchor": "fb-717361609462", "service": "fb", "text": "It reminds me of the time when a company included 70,000 stock options as part of a job offer.  I searched the MA Corporations Division to find that there were 38 million outstanding shares and another 55 million authorized.  Then I asked around about how to value the options.  I don't think the CFO liked it when I brought that to the attention of employees who had probably never really thought about it that way.", "timestamp": "1428459477"}]}