How to handle sale of partial lots of stock?

[John Schoffstall]

Derek Atkins wrote:
> You're using Weighted Balance for the stock price.  Don't do that.
> You want to use the "most recent pricedb entry" and make sure you
> have a pricedb entry for the $20/share

Okay, I did that. Now the balance sheet looks like this:

Assets
Assets                 $0.00
  Investments:      $3995.00
Assets                    $3995.00

Liabilities
Liabilities                  $0.00
Unrealized Gains(Losses)   $333.33

Equity
Equity                 $0.00
  Opening Balances: $2000.00
Retained earnings:           $0.00
Net Profit:                $995.00
Total Equity:             $2995.00

Liabilities & Equity:     $3328.33

But Unrealized Gains should be $1000, not $333.33. Price db entries are $10 for 3/14 and $20 for 3/15-present.

== John

> -derek
> 
> Quoting John Schoffstall <john.schoffstall at pobox.com>:
> 
>> Derek Atkins wrote:
>>
>>> Um, it should work just fine if you put in the correct gain/loss splits.
>>> Can you show an example of where it's failing, please?
>>
>>
>> Create a GnuCash file with Assets, Expense, Income, and Equity 
>> accounts. Create a stock account under the Brokerage account, "Digital 
>> Datawack" (DWAK). We'll use these accounts:
>>
>> Assets:Investments:Brokerage
>> Assets:Investments:Brokerage:DWAK
>> Expense:Commissions
>> Income:Capital Gains
>> Equity:Opening Balances
>>
>> Enter a transaction for 200 shares of Digital Datawack at $10 a share 
>> as an opening balance:
>>
>> Date       Action Account                           Shares Price Debit 
>> Credit
>> 03/14/2006 Buy    Assets:Investments:Brokerage:DWAK 200       10  2000
>>                  Equity:Opening 
>> Balances                                2000
>>
>> Our balance sheet looks like this:
>>
>> Assets
>> Assets                 $0.00
>>  Investments:      $2000.00    Assets                    $2000.00    
>> Liabilities
>> Liabilities                  $0.00
>> Unrealized Gains(Losses)     $0.00
>>
>> Equity
>> Equity                 $0.00  Opening Balances: $2000.00
>> Retained earnings:           $0.00
>> Net Profit:                  $0.00
>> Total Equity:             $2000.00
>>
>> Liabilities & Equity:     $2000.00
>>
>>
>> Digital Datawack doubles in a day! We'll lock in profits and sell half 
>> our shares:
>>
>> Date       Action Account                         Shares Price Debit 
>> Credit
>> 03/15/2006 Sell   Assets:Investments:Brokerage                     1995
>>                  Expenses:Commissions                                
>> 5                           
>> Assets:Investments:Brokerage:DWAK               1000
>>                  Assets:Investments:Brokerage:DWAK    -100    
>> 20        2000
>>                  Income:Capital 
>> Gains                                   1000
>>
>> But now our balance sheet looks like this:
>>
>> Assets
>> Assets                 $0.00
>>  Investments:      $3661.67   Assets                    $3661.67    
>> Liabilities
>> Liabilities                  $0.00
>> Unrealized Gains(Losses)     $0.00
>>
>> Equity
>> Equity                 $0.00  Opening Balances: $2000.00
>> Retained earnings:           $0.00
>> Net Profit:                $995.00
>> Total Equity:             $2995.00
>>
>> Liabilities & Equity:     $2995.00
>>
>> Drilling down into the balance sheet a little, it seems that 
>> everything is correct, except that our remaining shares of DWAK are 
>> being assigned the value of $1666.67. Huh?
>>
>> So: what's going on here? What am I missing?
>>
>> == John
>>
>>>
>>> -derek
>>>
>>> Quoting John Schoffstall <john.schoffstall at pobox.com>:
>>>
>>>> [ack, replied to Derek instead of to the list, sorry]
>>>>
>>>> Thanks for the fast reply!
>>>>
>>>> Yes, I read that, and set up the splits as described. It works if I 
>>>> sell exactly the number of shares that I own. But if -NUM_SHARES is 
>>>> less than my total owned shares, my balance sheet will be unbalanced 
>>>> as a result. It remains unbalanced until I sell the rest of the 
>>>> shares of that stock account.
>>>>
>>>> == John
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Derek Atkins wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> You should read the concepts guide.
>>>>>
>>>>> http://www.gnucash.org/docs/v1.8/C/gnucash-guide/invest_sell1.html
>>>>>
>>>>> -derek
>>>>>
>>>>> Quoting John Schoffstall <john.schoffstall at pobox.com>:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Greetings! Running 1.8.10 on Debian etch. New GnuCash user, new 
>>>>>> list user, new Linux user.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I've been climbing the GnuCash learning curve for the past week, 
>>>>>> been happy with the software, and making good progress until now. 
>>>>>> I've hit a snag I can't get past, though.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> How do you sell a partial lot of stock -- e.g., selling only 100 
>>>>>> of 200 owned shares -- without unbalancing your balance sheet? 
>>>>>> I've tried creating two lots, each of 100 shares and only selling 
>>>>>> one, but that still whacks the balance sheet.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> The examples in the docs all seem to show only the purchase and 
>>>>>> sale of equivalent amounts. I've googled the net and the mailing 
>>>>>> list archives, but can't find an answer I can understand.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> This is a common situation; there must be an answer. Can anyone help?
>>>>>>
>>>>>> == John
>>
>>
> 
> 
>