# Stock prices in 1945?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stock-prices-in-1945/531139>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [March 3, 2010, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stock-prices-in-1945/531139 "2010-03-03T15:55:32Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\
**Post date:** [March 5, 2010, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stock-prices-in-1945/531139/21 "2010-03-05T19:42:54Z")

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> [@50million](#):
>
> Wow, what a mess! Is all that necessary for a basis calculation, or can I just say, “She paid X amount in 1986 when she bought these, and X amount in 1992 when she bought these,” etc?
> 
> Thanks again,

Yeah. I worked for Bell Labs during the breakup, and had a few shares of AT&T from the ESOP. For years afterwards I was getting tiny little checks for offers to sell my piddling positions in Agere, Lucent, Avaya, etc.  
Caution - AT&T is an extreme case, but for any company going back to 1945, you are likely to find spinoffs that have to be taken into account / sold as separate positions, etc.

Another thing to consider - companies sometimes qualify portions of their dividends or special distributions as “return of capital” (“untaxed distribution”). It’s not a frequent occurrence for common stock in most companies, but it is possible (it’s a fact of life for some other investment classes). If such a thing DID happen, the rule is that the distribution was not taxed, and your cost basis is to be reduced by a corresponding amount - your basis is no longer what you paid for it, or what it was worth when you inherited.

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