Buying stock is a great way to have an ownership stake in a business without buying a company altogether. Doing this can grow your saved money while you are at your day job.
A company’s stock usually trades (gets bought and sold) on a stock exchange. A couple common exchanges would be the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) or the NASDAQ.
For example, 500 stocks are in the S&P 500. The index weighs these stocks determines the stock’s percentage in the fund based on its market capitalization.