As many people know, a company that sells products and is not a private company has stockholders. A stockholder pays to have a "share" in the company.
A "share" in the company is a portion of the publically traded company divided into small portions called shares. When the company performs well on a major stock exchange like the NYSE or the DOW, the stock prices increases.
On the other hand, when the stock performs poorly, the stock value is reduced. There are advantages and disadvantages in having stocks that share their dividends with shareholders.