wholesale

Wholesale

1. Relating to the sale of goods to a retailer. That is, a wholesaler receives large quantities of goods from a manufacturer and distributes them to stores, where they are sold to consumers. A wholesaler generally is able to extract a better price from the manufacturer because it buys so many good relative to an individual retailer. In theory, this enables the retailer to sell the good at a better price for the consumer. See also: Economies of scale.

2. Relating to the sale of securities to institutional investors rather than individuals.

Farlex Financial Dictionary. © 2012 Farlex, Inc. All Rights Reserved

wholesale

The sale of securities among broker-dealers and to large institutional investors. Securities sold at wholesale go for slightly lower prices than those paid by individual investors. Compare retail.

Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms for Today's Investor by David L. Scott. Copyright © 2003 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. All rights reserved.