Closely Held Stock


DEFINITION of 'Closely Held Stock'

A company whose common shares are owned by one individual owner or by a small group of controlling stockholders. This is in contrast to a widely held stock, in which thousands or even millions of different investors may own shares in a large company.


Closely held stock is typically not publicly traded on exchanges because the small number of owners rarely sell their shares. A common way that a closely held stock is created is when an entrepreneur starts and incorporates his or her own business, but retains ownership of all the company's outstanding shares.

  1. Effective Net Worth

    The shareholders' equity of a corporation, plus subordinated ...
  2. Ordinary Shares

  3. Preferred Stock

  4. Common Shareholder

    An individual, business or institution that holds common shares ...
  5. Common Stock

  6. Wholly Owned Subsidiary

    A company whose common stock is 100% owned by another company, ...
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