You should receive a confirmation of purchase
or sale — called a P&S — for every transaction that
occurs in your account. The confirmation should include the date
of the transaction, the settlement
date,
the quantity, and a description of the security,
including the CUSIP
number,
price, fees, and total cost or proceeds.
For stock transactions, the confirmation
will indicate whether the stock was sold from the dealer’s
inventory. For bond purchases, the confirmation will also include
the yield and maturity
date,
as well as the yield to call or yield
to maturity,
whichever is applicable.
Certain statements, including those that
cover managed
accounts,
may also include performance analysis and market
summaries to help you put the numbers in perspective.
You should review your confirmations carefully
and reconcile the confirmations to your brokerage statement and
report any differences to your broker right away. Be sure to ask
your broker to explain any details you don’t understand.
