Monitor all your open Schwab positions. The Positions tab is located in the My Account tab. |
The Positions tab displays all open positions for a given account. The positions are displayed with real-time quotes - regardless of how or when you purchased your position at Schwab. Positions, and their quantities, are updated automatically every fifteen minutes or 30 seconds after your orders are filled, whichever happens first. The Market Value is calculated based on the number of shares and the current price. The Last Price is the current last trade price (streaming).
Get a quick overview of all the My Account Tab features in this self-paced Account Tab training course.
Positions Columns | |
News | If news is available on the symbol, an icon will display, which you can click to open the News tab. |
Symbol | The unique 1-5 characters used to represent the security. Symbols are defined by the different markets or exchanges. Sometimes a security might not have a symbol, in which case, an internal Schwab reference # will be used. |
Position | The type of Position held, e.g. Long, Short, etc. |
Name | The full name of the security. The letter in parentheses after the security name is the Financial Status Indicator (FSI). |
Quantity | For stocks or mutual funds, this field reflects the number of shares you currently hold. For fixed income securities, this field reflects the face value of the securities. For options, this field reflects the number of option contracts. |
Current Price | The current last trade price (streaming). |
Change from Open | The change in security price from open. |
Change from Close | The change in security price from previous close. |
Day's High | Highest price the security has traded during the current trading session |
Day's Low | Lowest price the security has traded during the current trading session |
Today's Close | Today's closing price; displays '-' during regular session |
Market Value | This figure reflects the current value of your position, normally calculated using real-time quotes, where possible. This value is updated as the quote changes. |
Cost basis | The Cost Basis is the total price paid for the position. An asterisk next to this value indicates that the amount displayed is in most cases not correct. Usually this is due to incomplete data on record for the position. If all or part of the position was purchased before August 2004 then you will see an asterisk. Also, note that the cost figure provided is the sum of all fills and does not include commissions or other fees. To correct this value, right-click and select Adjust Cost: You may enter the total amount paid or received for the position using this function. Once this has been done the asterisk will disappear even though future fills will not include commissions and therefore may not be absolutely accurate. You may adjust the cost as often as you like. |
Cost per Share | Per-share cost of the position based on your cost basis and position quantity, including commission. |
Margin Requirement | The Margin Requirements column represents the minimum dollar amount of equity you must maintain in your account (maintenance requirement). Typically, the ongoing maintenance requirement for most stocks is 30%, but Schwab may impose higher maintenance requirements on certain securities that are low priced, thinly traded, volatile, or which pose heightened risk. Special maintenance requirements are set at Schwab's discretion4 and are intended to reflect a stock's volatility and to ensure that your account maintains sufficient equity to cover large price movements. Some stocks are so volatile or illiquid that they cannot be margined.
A list of maintenance requirements across security types can be found here, with maintenance requirements listed on the far right under the heading "Schwab Maintenance Req." The Margin Maintenance Requirement Lookup tool can be found here (login may be required). Maintenance Requirement Disclosure
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P&L $ | Displays the unrealized profit or loss on the position in dollar format. P&L is calculated based on an average price paid per share. Note: Lot accounting is not used, so P&L is NOT calculated on a LIFO/FIFO basis. (See example below this table.) There are limitations on the reporting of transactions/events that make up the P&L amounts. |
P&L % | Displays the unrealized profit or loss on the position as a percentage. P&L is calculated based on an average price paid per share. Note: Lot accounting is not used, so P&L is NOT calculated on a LIFO/FIFO basis. (See example below this table.) There are limitations on the reporting of transactions/events that make up the P&L amounts. |
P&L/Share | Displays the unrealized profit or loss per share on the position. Note: Lot accounting is not used, so P&L is NOT calculated on a LIFO/FIFO basis. (See example below this table.) There are limitations on the reporting of transactions/events that make up the P&L amounts. |
Day Chg P&L $ | Today's gain or loss for your equity and option positions, the calculation is based on the gain or loss for your positions since the previous market close (Marked-to-market) or your cost if purchased today. It includes estimated commissions on positions established today. Note that the change calculation for your positions established prior to today can also be based on today's open price if you have elected this option via the Positions Customization. |
Day Chg P&L % | Today's percent gain or loss for your equity and option positions. The calculation is based on the gain or loss for your positions since the previous market close (Marked-to-market) or your cost if purchased today. It includes estimated commissions on positions established today. Note that the percent change calculation for your positions established prior to today can also be based on today's open price if you have elected this option via the Positions Customization. |
Day Chg P&L/Share | Today's gain or loss for your equity and option positions expressed on a per share or per contract basis. The calculation will be based on the gain or loss for your positions since the previous market close (Marked-to-market) or your cost if purchased today. It includes estimated commissions on positions established today. Note that the per share or per contract change calculation for your positions established prior to today can also be based on today's open price if you have elected this option via the Positions Customization. |
Dividend Yield | Amount a company pays its shareholders in dividends each year relative to its stock price. |
Dividend Amount | Annual taxable payment declared by a company's board of directors and given to its shareholders out of the company's current or retained earnings. |
Bracket | Indicates whether the position has associated Bracket orders |
DRI | This stands for Dividend Reinvestment Instructions. Certain stocks and mutual funds pay a dividend. These dividends may be reinvested into additional shares of the security, or can be paid to you in cash, depending upon your instructions. "Yes" indicates that the corresponding security's dividend is being reinvested. "No" indicates that no dividends are being reinvested for that security and that dividends will be paid in cash. |
Security Type | Describes what type of security the position is: Equity, Option, etc. |
Expire Date (Opt) | Date on which the option expires and becomes worthless if not exercised or assigned |
Strike Price (Opt) | The price at which the owner of an option can purchase (call) or sell (put) the underlying security |
Underlying (Opt) | The underlying security or index on which the option is based. The letter in parentheses after the security name is the Financial Status Indicator (FSI). |
Change from Open % | Percentage the security's price has gained/declined per share since the open |
Change from Close % | Percentage the security's price has gained/declined per share since the previous close |
Schwab Equity Rating | Schwab Equity Rating evaluates individual stock and provides a 5 point rating scale (A, B, C, D, F) indicating Schwab's outlook on the potential performance of the stock over the coming 12 months. More on Schwab Equity Ratings |
Following is an example of how P&L is calculated when there are multiple executions for one position:
Executions | Average Cost Per Share | What the Positions Tab Displays |
1/15/04Buy 500 ABCD @ 20 | 20 | 1/15/04 500 ABCD Cost $10,000 |
1/15/04Buy 500 ABCD @ 30 | 25 (500 * 30) = 15000 --> (25000 / 1000) --> 25 per share | 1/15/04 1000 ABCD Cost $25,000 |
1/16/04Sell 200 ABCD @ 35 | 25 | 1/16/04 800 ABCD Cost $20,000 |
1/16/04Sell 400 ABCD @ 32 | 25 | 1/16/04 400 ABCD Cost $10,000 (25 x 400 = 10,000) |
1/17/04Buy 600 ABCD @ 32 | 29.20 | 1/17/04 1000 ABCD Cost $29,200 |
1/17/04Sell 600 ABCD @ 34 | 29.20 | 1/17/04 400 ABCD Cost $11,680 |
An asterisk (*) indicates a position with cost data that may be incomplete because it does not include transactions that occurred prior to August 2004. The cost and profit and loss data may also be incomplete because it excludes commissions, transaction fees, and corporate actions such as stock splits, stock dividends, spin-offs, mergers, and name changes. To correct the cost data, select the position and use the right-click menu to select the “Adjust Cost” function. Please note that the Account Detail tool is not the official record of your account. Your statements and confirmations are the official records of your account.
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