Ok I'm lost already.
Definitions please:
1. "open market"
2. "The little numbers change all the time, because thousands and sometimes millions of shares of a specific stock are traded in a number of different transactions. each transactions may have been for a different purchase price that can change based on supply/demand as influenced by market conditions."
What market conditions? Why does the amount of transactions affect the price? Why are there different purchase prices? How do they know? Who decides the prices? How can market conditions be measured that quickly and precisely? Are companies at all in control of supply and demand - is it based on annual performance or predictions?
I want to ask about the other stuff but this is enough for my little head right now.
Good idea for a thread btw.