There are many acronyms used on the Internet that represent common phrases, emotions and even entire conversations. The reason acronyms are so popular is because it is easier and takes less time to type the acronym than typing the full expression. To find out the meanings of some acronyms look in the table below.
AFAIK: as far as I know.
Basher: Anyone with the audacity to suggest that an OTC Bulletin Board-listed company with no earnings, no revenue and a history of run-ins with regulators is a bad investment. Usually presumed to be in the employ of evil short-sellers (see below).
BB: bulletin board (same as board).
BTW: by the way.
CC: conference call, i.e. the phone conversation between a company and analysts following the release of that company's quarterly earnings report.
CNP: continued in the next post.
DD: Due diligence, a reference to the detailed, almost ritualistic investigation an institutional investor is legally obliged to perform before buying a stock. On chat boards, "dd" is used to refer ironically to a press release or unconfirmed rumor, as in "Great dd on that perpetual-motion machine."
DT: day trading (or day trader).
DYODD: do your own due diligence.
FAQ: frequently asked questions.
FWIW: for what its worth.
FYI: for your information.
Hypster: A person who makes enthusiastic posts in order to drive a stock's price up, often because he/she is holding the stock.
GMTA: great minds think alike.
HTH: hope this helps.
IMO: in my opinion.
IMHO: In my humble opinion. Disclaimer following a completely groundless rumor.
IOW: in other words.
LOL: Laugh out loud. Customary dismissal of "basher" comments (above) which usually turn out to be true.
Long: Investor who holds a stock, or wants others to think he does.
Long and Strong: Investor who rode a stock from $5 down to 5 cents and feels the need to boast about his ability to sustain a loss.
LMHO: laughing my head off.
Lurker: A person who reads messages but doesn't contribute by posting.
MB: message board (same as board).
Momo: Upward momentum, the hazardous ascent phase when investors make large paper profits before the price collapses.
Newbie: New visitor to a board. Usually a wolf clad in sheepskin and trying to generate interest in a stock, as in "Hey, I'm a newbie to this board and this stock looks really promising. Anybody got any dd?"
Noise: irrelevant or useless posts.
NRN: no response necessary.
OT: Off-topic, i.e. pertaining to a subject other than that for which the current board is intended. Off-topic posts are usually frowned upon.
OTF: on the floor (laughing).
OTOH: on the other hand.
P&D: Pump and dump, i.e. the unscrupulous attempt to hype a stock one is holding to get the price to rise, then selling as soon as it does.
PD: public domain, i.e. not protected by a copyright. Please note that nearly all published works are automatically copyright protected. For this reason, we recommend: (a) linking directly to online articles (by placing [url] before the link and [/url] after; (b) providing a short summary of an article, along with attribution. We do not recommend copying articles verbatim.
PM: Private message, i.e. a direct communication between two people, such as through email, rather than via the open communication of a message board.
Pump-n-dump: A scheme in which insiders pump up a stock with hype (see "Momo") and then dump their shares on unwitting investors (see "Long and Strong"), with predictable results.
ROFLMAO: Rolling on the floor laughing my ass off. Whatever this person is ridiculing, you can probably take to the bank.
Scalping: The practice of buying a stock and then recommending it to others, in an attempt to raise the stock price. The legality of such a practice is ambiguous, since anyone who buys a stock is likely to be recommending it to others. If you want to be absolutely safe, mention in your post whether you currently hold a position (long or short) in that stock.
Short: Also called a short-seller. Often dismissed as liars who "short and distort" or are "killing the dream," their presence is often a warning to the unwary that the stock involved is a "pump 'n' dump" (see above).
Short Squeeze: The triumph of the longs, in which short-sellers are forced to buy stock at any price to cover their positions. Occurs less often in fact than is trumpeted on the message boards.
SITD: still in the dark.
Spam: Unmitigated hype distributed across multiple message boards. As opposed to the targeted hype posted on specific stock boards.
THX: thanks.
TIA: thanks in advance.
Tout: When used as a noun, a person who is paid by a company (usually a micro-cap) to post favorable messages about that company, in an attempt to raise the stock price. When used as a verb, the act of posting such messages. This is strictly forbidden in Investorville, and is illegal (per SEC regulations) unless the tout clearly indicates that the company is paying the tout for these “services”.
Troll: A post intended to incite a verbal fight, or to damage a person's or company's reputation; or one who makes such posts. Such posts are not allowed on Investorville. If you see them, feel free to ignore them or report them to us.
Weak hands: Nervous investors who follow the herd and sell stock at the first sign of weakness.
