What does shares outstanding Mean?

Shares outstanding refers to the number of shares of common stock a company has issued to investors and company executives. The number is used to calculate many common financial metrics, such as earnings per share (EPS) and market capitalization.

How do you identify a company's shares outstanding?

There can be a couple of ways to identify the shares outstanding. Comprehensively, an investor might look at the "shareholders’ equity" figure on the firm’s balance sheet to identify a company’s shares outstanding. Shareholders’ equity will typically provide the number of total authorized shares and the total outstanding shares.

Should you increase the number of outstanding shares?

Of course, merely increasing the number of outstanding shares is no guarantee of success; the company has to deliver consistent earnings growth as well. While outstanding shares are a determinant of a stock’s liquidity, the latter is largely dependent on its share float.

What is a total number of issued shares?

The total number of issued shares is the sum of the outstanding shares and the treasury shares. A stock’s total outstanding shares help determine its liquidity, or how rapidly shares of that stock can be bought or sold without substantially impacting the price.