Equity Markets vs. Fixed-Income Markets: An Overview
The major differences between equity and fixed-income markets are the types of securities traded, the accessibility of the markets, the levels of risk, the expected returns, the goals of investors, and the strategies used by market participants. Stock trading dominates equity markets, while bonds are the most common securities in fixed-income markets. Individual investors often have better access to equity markets than fixed-income markets. Equity markets offer higher expected returns than fixed-income markets, but they also carry higher risk. Equity market investors are typically more interested in capital appreciation and pursue more aggressive strategies than fixed-income market investors.
Key Takeaways
- The major differences between equity and fixed-income markets are the types of securities traded, the accessibility of the markets, the levels of risk, the expected returns, the goals of investors, and the strategies used by market participants.
- All equity markets, no matter the type, can be volatile and experience significant price highs and lows.
- Due to the lower risks and rewards, strategies are often far less varied in fixed-income markets than equity markets.
- The growth of exchange traded funds (ETFs) has transformed equity and fixed-income markets while blurring the lines between them.
Equity Markets
Equity markets involve the purchases and sales of stocks, conducted on regular trading exchanges. Investors obtain partial ownership of corporations in equity markets, while bonds are solely interest-earning investments. The Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) are among the best-known equity markets. All stock markets, no matter the type, can be volatile and experience significant price highs and lows.
In equity markets, the shares of individual companies are sold to the public in initial public offerings (IPOs) and continue to trade on exchanges after that. Most retail investors are comfortable buying and selling stocks in equity markets. Furthermore, many brokerages charge low or no fees for trading them. They also offer ways to trade fractional shares, so high-priced stocks are available to small investors. Equity markets are generally very accessible.
The high risks and sometimes spectacular profits in equity markets led to the development of multiple strategies, such as growth investing and value investing. A high degree of success in equity markets usually requires greater amounts of research and follow-up on investments than is necessary for fixed-income investments. There are also widely divergent approaches to trading in equity markets, from high-frequency trading to buy and hold. Some traders in equity markets try to enhance gains by using leverage, while others try to reduce risks by hedging.
Beating equity markets is hard rather than easy, so many investors are better off with index funds.
Fixed-Income Markets
The fixed-income market is more commonly referred to as the debt securities market or the bond market. It consists of bond securities issued by the federal government, corporate bonds, municipal bonds, and mortgage debt instruments. The bond market is referred to as a capital market since it provides capital financing for long-term investments.
Debt security investments are generally seen as less risky than equity investments. As such, they typically offer lower potential returns. Debt security investments were traditionally traded over the counter (OTC) instead of being centrally traded on exchanges. Fixed income securities are often issued at auctions, such as the U.S. Treasury department's bill auctions.
TreasuryDirect is the only way that most investors directly access the fixed-income market. Mutual funds are a far more common way to access corporate bonds in fixed-income markets than participating in the over-the-counter market,
Due to the lower risks and rewards, strategies are often far less varied in fixed-income markets than equity markets. The goal is usually to assure the safety of the principal by purchasing only bonds with an investment-grade credit rating. Within those narrow limits, fund managers and investors often look for higher yields. However, capital appreciation is also possible under specific scenarios. The prices of zero-coupon U.S. Treasury bonds can move up substantially as interest rates fall. When distressed credit markets clear up, fallen angels sometimes return to investment-grade status and experience significant price gains in the process.
Special Considerations
The growth of exchange traded funds (ETFs) has transformed equity and fixed-income markets while blurring the lines between them. ETFs may hold any combination of stocks or bonds, but they trade on stock exchanges. ETFs often have reasonable prices, below $100 per share, so they are accessible to all investors. That is more important for bonds, as many small investors could not trade them so easily before.
With ETFs, investors achieve instant diversification and can often determine the quality of securities by merely looking at the label. For example, an investment-grade bond ETF would be an easy way to earn more income than in a savings account with limited risk. For stocks, ETFs offer a substantial reduction in idiosyncratic risk and easier access to foreign markets.
FAQs
Equity investments generally consist of stocks or stock funds, while fixed income securities generally consist of corporate or government bonds.
What is the difference between equity market and fixed-income market? ›
Equity Markets vs.
Equity markets offer higher expected returns than fixed-income markets, but they also carry higher risk. 1 Equity market investors are typically more interested in capital appreciation and pursue more aggressive strategies than fixed-income market investors.
What is the difference between equity and income investing? ›
Equity funds are pooled investments that primarily invest in stocks and offer the potential for higher returns, but they have more risk. Income funds, meanwhile, focus on generating regular income through investments in fixed-income securities like bonds or the money market. 1 They are also used to mitigate risk.
What is the difference between fixed-income and equity derivatives? ›
Fixed income markets vs equity markets
While equity markets have the potential of giving higher returns in the short run, the returns are not guaranteed and thus increases the risk. The fixed income markets, on the other hand, offer stable returns and thus lower risk, but the returns might also be modest.
What are the differences between equity and fixed-income securities Quizlet? ›
What are the differences between equity and fixed-income securities? Equity is a lower-priority claim and represents an ownership share in a corporation, whereas fixed-income (debt) security is a higher-priority claim but does not have an ownership interest.
What is the difference between equity income and fixed-income? ›
Equity investments generally consist of stocks or stock funds, while fixed income securities generally consist of corporate or government bonds.
What is the difference between the financial market and the equity market? ›
The financial market is where all trades involving financial assets happen. The capital market is where companies and governments go to raise long-term capital. The stock market is where people buy and sell equity in listed corporations. The bond market is where people buy and sell bonds.
What is the difference between equity and fixed deposit? ›
What is the difference between FD and equity fund? The key difference between FD and an equity fund lies in their nature: FD is a fixed-income, low-risk instrument, while equity funds invest in stocks, offering potentially higher returns but with higher risk.
Are mutual funds fixed-income or equity? ›
Mutual funds are professionally managed investment portfolios that are made up of different asset classes such as equities (i.e. stocks) and fixed income (i.e. bonds). Each mutual fund has a defined investment objective that determines the overall objective of the fund and the types of investments that can hold.
What is the difference between equities and bonds? ›
The debt and equity markets serve different purposes. First, debt market instruments (like bonds) are loans, while equity market instruments (like stocks) are ownership in a company. Second, in returns, debt instruments pay interest to investors, while equities provide dividends or capital gains.
The fixed income market dwarfs equities in terms of market value and trading volume, but that does not necessarily translate into “more jobs.” Liquidity is also more limited, and more trading is still done over the counter (OTC) rather than electronically.
What are the advantages of fixed income and equities? ›
Advantages of equity instruments
In addition, the fixed income also provides a return that, when compared to other types of investments, may be low, but is known in advance. This allows the investor to previously know the results that he will obtain, making it the first option for conservative investors.
What is the difference between equity and fixed assets? ›
Equity is the source of the funds required to create assets to run and grow a business. On the other hand, assets are economic resources necessary to run the business. Assets can be classified as fixed assets or current assets based on the liquidity of the assets.
What is the difference between money market and fixed-income securities? ›
We generally think of the term "fixed income" as synonymous with bonds. In reality, a bond is just one type of fixed income security. The difference between the money market and the bond market is that the money market specializes in very short-term debt securities (debt that matures in less than one year).
Are preferred securities equity or fixed-income? ›
Traditional preferred securities (“preferreds”) are fixed-income investments with equity-like features mainly issued by large banks and insurance companies.
What are fixed-income securities also known as? ›
Fixed-income securities are debt instruments that pay a fixed rate of interest. These can include bonds issued by governments or corporations, CDs, money market funds, and commercial paper. Preferred stock is sometimes considered fixed-income as well since it is a hybrid security combining features of debt and equity.
Is money market equity or fixed-income? ›
A money market fund is a type of fixed income mutual fund with very stringent maturity, credit quality, diversification, and liquidity requirements intended to help it achieve its goals of principal preservation and daily access for investors.
What are the two types of equity markets? ›
Equity share trading is roughly in two forms - spot/cash market and futures market. These are the different types of equity market in India. The spot market or cash market is a public financial market in which stocks are traded for immediate delivery.
What do you mean by fixed income market? ›
Fixed income broadly refers to those types of investment security that pay investors fixed interest or dividend payments until their maturity date. At maturity, investors are repaid the principal amount they had invested. Government and corporate bonds are the most common types of fixed-income products.
