Options (calls and puts) from Fidelity don't match when closing a position

david_bus

I trade Options through Fidelity. Quicken correctly downloads the initial option position, i.e., when I buy or sell a call or put quicken correctly lists it. However when I close the position Quicken doesn't correctly assign the close action to the correct opening position requiring me to enter multiple Placeholder transactions. What needs to be done to get closing transactions to correlate to the opening transactions? Is there a place to suggest features such as this for Quicken? And should this be a standard "trouble" ticket?

Rocket J Squirrel

It's not Quicken's fault. Fidelity is sending the wrong transaction types for the closing transactions.

If you open a position with a Buy, you should close it with a Sell. If you open a position with a Short Sale, you should close it with a Cover Short Sale. This is true whether the option expires or is exercised.

You should simply edit the incorrect downloaded transactions and correct them. Do not (ever) allow Quicken to create placeholders.

K.O. (Win-Premier)

What RJS said.  Unfortunately there are many brokerages that do not send the correct closing actions (not just Fidelity).

david_bus

to me it is a combination of faults, both Quicken AND Fidelity. The closing transaction for the Option coming from Fidelity is sending information that can be correlated with an opening transaction, but they don't get combined. When I try to go back and adjust the placeholders I find that I can't. I would say Quicken and Fidelity need to get together to correct this issue between the two of them (and other brokerage companies).

david_bus

And ... thanks for your help!

Rocket J Squirrel

Let me tear this response to shreds one piece at a time.

david_bus said:

to me it is a combination of faults, both Quicken AND Fidelity. The closing transaction for the Option coming from Fidelity is sending information that can be correlated with an opening transaction, but they don't get combined.

You think Quicken should check every downloaded transaction that closes a position and attempt to find the matching opening transaction? That's pretty much impossible. Think about the case of selling certain tax lots of a stock that were purchased over time. There is no way Quicken can figure out which lots to include in the closing transaction.

david_bus said:

When I try to go back and adjust the placeholders I find that I can't.

This is a problem. You should never allow placeholders. They are far more trouble than they're worth. I probably can't help you resolve them because I personally have never allowed them. But perhaps if you go into some detail about why you can't get rid of the placeholders, and what happens when you try, someone here may be able to assist.

david_bus said:

I would say Quicken and Fidelity need to get together to correct this issue between the two of them

This is the section of the amusement park called Fantasy Land. I have been complaining to Fidelity for many years about their Quicken issues. They just don't care.

Chris_QPW

The thing I think should be understood about placeholders is they are like allowing a balance adjustment after running a reconcile.  It is conceding that you don't have the proper transactions in the register.

david_bus

@Chris_QPW I normally don't, and when I do I can normally correct it, at least within a bank account. The problem here is I'm having a problem identifying the opening transaction which the placeholder is closing. I'll keep at it until I can get it through, thank you for your help!!

@"Rocket J Squirrel" The opening transaction looks normal, for instance "action:ShtSell, Security: PUT (LAZR) LUMINAR TECHNOLOGIES DEC 18 20 $25 (100SHS)", however the closing transaction in the import looks like "action: CvrShrt, Security: Expired PUT 4853859R" (I have no idea what that code for the PUT represents). Within the opening and closing download's Security Detail is the symbol I am either selling or buying, i.e., LAZR201218P25. If this field in both transactions is matched, along with any additional uniquely identifying information, the code within Quicken would then match a ShtSell to CvrShrt, it could even pop up a question dialog if unsure. IMO, Quicken should be able to match these fields and correlate the two transactions as being associated to one Security, this isn't an impossible task, but it may require additional programming.