I think both the broker AND the company may have folded since then.
2006-09-25 05:28:09 · 11 answers · asked by LipServicealot 1 in Business & Finance ➔ Investing
If you have a stock certificate then just bring it to any stock broker. A certificate will cost more to cash than stock just on the books since there is paper to process. If the company has gone broke you are out of luck. It may have been purchased by another company. It does not matter who the broker was when you have the certificate.
2006-09-25 05:32:32 · answer #1 · answered by Barkley Hound 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There are companies that specialize in valuing old stock certificates. Any reputable broker such a Charles Swab or Merrill Lynch could steer you onto one of them. Even though the company went out of business, the assets may have been purchased by another company. Sometimes the company may just have changed names. It doesn't matter that the broker is out of business as long as you have the stock certificate. It might be worthless, but then again, it might not.
2006-09-25 06:05:25 · answer #2 · answered by Navigator 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Forget about the broker!
If the company is still around you can contact them to see if they have a stock plan, if so perhaps they will redeem your stock certificate for you.
If not then you need a brokerage account to deposit the certificate into and once validated you can trade the stock, cash it in or maybe sell options on it.
You didn't mention the name of the company but if you're not sure about it still being around you can research the name on Yahoo Finance or any other web site which has stock quotes.
You enter the company name and if valid it's ticker symbol will appear;
e.g. name: Microsoft, symbol: MSFT, or Home Depot symbol: HD.
You must be diligent in your search however, many many times a company may be bought out, merge with another or change it's name - you may discover your 40-year old stock is now worth a fortune as well as determining the certificate can be used as wall paper.
If it's wallpaper we can place it on my wall next to WT Grant, Pan American World Airways, and several other certificates!
2006-09-25 06:02:35 · answer #3 · answered by jmich18 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
One possible factor not mentioned so far: how is the stock 'registered'? I'm guessing that you are not the original purchaser. If that is true, then you'll have to prove to a brokerage firm that you are entitled to sell the stock. Here are some possible permutations of this:
Original purchaser was by a parent or relative, for your benefit. The registration will be something like "Jane Doe, Cust for John Doe UGMA." In this case all you'll have to do is prove that you are of adult age.
Original purchaser was your spouse and the stock is registered in both your names, but the spouse is deceased. In this case the registration will be something like "John Doe and Jane Doe, JT Ten" [or JTWROS, or Ten Ent, or Ten in Common] In this situation you'll need to prove that the spouse is deceased, and depending on the actual kind of joint ownership, perpaps produce some other documents.
If the original purchaser was a parent and they are now deceased, you'll have to prove they are deceased and produce court documents showing that you are the heir of this asset.
Good luck.
2006-09-25 07:14:27 · answer #4 · answered by ProfessorOddlot 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If company is bankrupt stock is worthless. Can only "cash-in" if was bought out or still trades & receipt meaningless as cost has nothing to do with current value.
2006-09-25 07:42:21 · answer #5 · answered by vegas_iwish 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Most Likley you can take it to another broker or bank that handles stock like Bank of America, E-Trade, Charles Schwab, Morgan Stanley.
2006-09-25 05:30:07 · answer #6 · answered by CaptKert 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Go to a broker like Charles Schwab.
2006-09-25 05:29:45 · answer #7 · answered by blueyeznj 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
there is no such thing as cashing in you have to sell the stock
if the company is out of business then the stock has no value and no one will buy it
2006-09-25 05:32:57 · answer #8 · answered by Rainy 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Research the company and see if they were bought by someone else, or what happened to them. The might have been bought by IBM and you might be rich.
2006-10-02 13:10:31 · answer #9 · answered by mss04 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sounds like you are out of luck
2006-09-25 05:29:49 · answer #10 · answered by M S 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋