An investor or trader who flips stocks. This involves buying shares, usually in an initial public offering (IPO), and selling them immediately for a profit. More specifically, a flipper is one who liquidates an IPO in the first 2-3 days of trading. Flipping is said to be a phenomenon in the immediate aftermarket. Underwriters of new stock issues (e.g. brokerage firms) usually discourage flipping, and are watchful to allocate shares to committed investors- i.e., those who plan to hold on to the shares for some time. However, many investors cannot resist the temptation to flip a new issue once its price has made significant increases. Issues which rise in price sharply are known as hot issues.