Mutual funds report NAV at the end of each trading day. The fund's manager uses the closing price of all the securities within the fund. It then subtracts liabilities and divides the NAV by its outstanding shares. Mutual funds use NAV as the value at which they sell shares to investors.
ETFs also use NAV. However, because they trade like stocks, their market value can differ from their NAV. Shares can sell at a premium to the fund's NAV if investors bid up the share price or a discount if they sell them off. Investors should consider an ETF's NAV before buying shares to ensure they aren't paying a significant premium to NAV for the shares.
Many non-traded REITs use NAV to calculate the net value of their real estate assets. These REITs will also use NAV as the value for selling additional shares to investors or for share redemptions.
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