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What are 'Outstanding Shares'
Outstanding shares refer to a company's stock currently held by all its shareholders, including share blocks held by institutional investors and restricted shares owned by the company’s officers and insiders. Outstanding shares are shown on a company’s balance sheet under the heading “Capital Stock.” The number of outstanding shares is used in calculating key metrics such as a company’s market capitalization, as well as its earnings per share (EPS) and cash flow per share (CFPS).

A company's number of outstanding shares is not static, but may fluctuate widely over time. Also known as “shares outstanding.”

BREAKING DOWN 'Outstanding Shares'
Any authorized shares that are held by or sold to a corporation’s shareholders, exclusive of treasury stock which is held by the company itself, are known as outstanding shares. In other words, the number of shares outstanding represents the amount of stock on the open market, including shares held by institutional investors and restricted shares held by insiders and company officers.

A company’s outstanding shares can fluctuate for a number of reasons. The number will increase if the company issues additional shares. Companies typically issue shares when they raise capital through an equity financing, or upon exercising employee stock options (ESO) or other financial instruments. Outstanding shares will decrease if the company buys back its shares under a share repurchase program.

How to Locate the Number of Outstanding Shares
In addition to listing outstanding shares, or capital stock, on the company’s balance sheet, publicly traded companies are obligated to report the number of issued and outstanding shares, and generally package this information within the investor relations sections of their websites, or on local stock exchange websites. In the United States, the figures for outstanding shares are accessible from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) quarterly filings.

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