I have written an article explaining stocks before, but a stock is not always an easy concept to understand. We know that a stock is a share. A share of a company. A public company. But what does that mean? How are stocks formed? How did stocks originate? Those are just a few of the questions that this infographic will answer.

This infographic is from the good people over at Mint.com. And it will show you:

• How a stock originates
• How stocks rise in value
• How shareholders earn money
• How stocks came into being
• Why you may want to buy stocks

(Click on image to enlarge)