Realised and unrealised gains: follow a partially sold practice position

Use a single purchase price

Allow 20 minutes and draw two boxes labelled sold and remaining. The starting account has SEK 1,000 and buys 20 shares at 30, costing 600. Cash of 400 remains. Every share comes from that one purchase. The model excludes fees, dividends, taxes, multiple purchase prices and outside cash flows.

Our comparison basis is the purchase amount of SEK 30 per share in this teaching model. This is not guidance on tax returns or statutory acquisition-cost rules. Investor.gov’s statement guide distinguishes completed sales from continuing holdings. Write which portion of the original twenty shares each calculation concerns before subtracting any amounts.

If the table does not fit, scroll it sideways.

The sale creates cash and a separate result figure

Sell eight shares at SEK 35 each. Sale proceeds are 8 × 35 = 280. Their share of the original purchase amount is 8 × 30 = 240. Realised result in this model is 280 − 240 = +SEK 40, not +280. Cash becomes 400 + 280 = 680.

The second person checks that eight shares leave the holding and the full sale receipt enters cash. Do not add only the profit of 40 to cash: the 240 originally used for these shares also returns through the sale. A result calculation and a cash register answer different questions even though they concern the same event.

Value the unsold shares using a later card

Twelve shares remain. A later model card supplies SEK 28, giving a value of 12 × 28 = 336. Their original purchase amount was 360. Unrealised change is 336 − 360 = −SEK 24. No new cash receipt occurs; these shares remain in the account rather than being sold.

Whole-account value is now 680 + 336 = SEK 1,016. The result against the starting 1,000 is +16. The same amount comes from +40 realised and −24 unrealised. A loss on the remaining portion can therefore coexist with a profit on the completed sale. If other flows are present, those need separate explanation too.

Explain which question each number answers

Write four sentences: I received 280 in cash; the sold portion produced a model result of 40; remaining value is 336; the remaining portion has changed by −24 against its purchase amount. Ask the checking person to identify quantity and price behind each statement. Calling every number profit obscures the calculation rather than explaining it.

Connect the task to Investiq’s virtual portfolio when distinguishing a simulated sale from a valuation. The page promises neither an automatic result breakdown nor tax calculation in the app. Your paper worksheet holds the calculations. Continue to the reconciliation task for multiple trades, and check the relevant definitions when reading actual reports.