STOCKS, Capital, is a right of ownership in a corporation. The stock is divided into a certain number of shares, and the corporation issues stockholders one or more stock certificates to show how many shares they hold. The stockholders own the company and elect a board of directors to manage it for them.

TRADE OR TRADING, the act or process of buying and selling; exchange of goods; commerce. Ex. wholesale trade, retail trade, domestic trade. The United States has much trade with foreign countries. ONLINE service is a business that provides access to the Internet, a global computer network, and also offers a wide range of content not available on the Internet. The foreign exchange market (currency, forex, or FX) trades currencies. It lets banks and other institutions easily buy and sell currencies. The purpose of the foreign exchange market is to help international trade and investment. A foreign exchange market helps businesses convert one currency to another. For example, it permits a U.S. business to import European goods and pay Euros, even though the business's income is in U.S. dollars.

COMPANY, a group of people. Ex. A great company met the conquering hero. We were a gallant company, riding o'er land and sailing o'er sea (Byron).
A group of people joined together for some purpose, such as carrying on a business or acting plays. Ex. the partners not named in the title of a firm. Ex. John Smith and Company.