what is a unit investment trust uit 
a unit investment trust uit is an investment company that offers a fixed portfolio generally of stocks and bonds as redeemable units to investors for a specific period of time it is designed to provide capital appreciation and or dividend income unit investment trusts along with mutual funds and closed end funds are defined as investment companies understanding unit investment trusts uits investment companies offer individuals the opportunity to invest in a diversified portfolio of securities with a low initial investment requirement uits are sold by investment advisors and an owner can redeem the units to the fund or trust rather than placing a trade in the secondary market a uit is either a regulated investment corporation ric or a grantor trust a ric is a corporation in which the investors are joint owners and a grantor trust grants investors proportional ownership in the uit s underlying securities 