Starting With Shares. Roger Kinsky

a company that's listed with an exchange.

       You can't deal directly with an exchange and need to become a client of a licensed broker who arranges trades on your behalf. The broker charges a fee — known as brokerage — which can vary widely between different types of broker.

       Some less common ways of becoming a shareholder include inheritance, privatisation of a government enterprise, demutualisation, takeover, merger or split, and private treaty (rare).

       Some profitable companies operating in Australia are privately owned so you can't become a shareholder in them.

       Share prices vary from day to day and indeed within a day according to supply and demand. More demand drives prices higher, whereas more supply drives prices lower.

       A share price can remain much the same or rise and fall continually during a day's trading.

       The price change for a share after trading ceases today is the difference between the closing price today and the closing price yesterday. It's possible for there to be no price change, a price rise or a price fall.

       If you have any queries related to your shareholding or dividends, you need to contact your broker or the appropriate share registry.