A share is a part of a company that can be bought and sold. Owning shares makes you a partial owner in the company. Shares tend to be longer term investments due to their volatility.
They are also known as equities and stocks.
Yield is a measure of the income return on holding a security. Yield is usually expressed as a percentage based off the investment cost (whether at face or current market value). Yields may be known or anticipated depending on whether the security experiences major fluctuations.
Yield is associated with risk, the higher the risk, the higher the yield as investors demand a higher return in exchange for taking on more risk. A lot of the time listed yields are not guaranteed but are instead an estimate of future returns.
Types of yield calculations differ depending on asset.
Stock yields
Stock dividend yields come in two varieties, cost yield and current yield.
Dividends are a portion of the company's profits that is paid to shareholders. If a company makes a profit, they might issue a dividend. Dividends are paid up to four times a year, after each quarter. Usually dividends are grouped into "interim dividends" and "final dividends".