Simple Investing not updating shares

[Deleted User]

Hello - For starters I'm not sure if this is the right forum. The Beta Simple Investing page https://www.quicken.com/blog/quicken-simple-investing-beta states that I should direct questions to "Quicken Community forums and visit the Simple Investing topic." However I can't find the Simple Investing topic. Please let me know if I should post this somewhere else.

I switched my 401k over to the Simple - Positions Only. This is a manual account as my financial institution doesn't allow for connections. I'm following the Beta instructions: Using Update cash balance, Update share balance and Update security price, you can easily set either the current or the past balance, position, and value for any securities you track manually.

My manually entered share balance for American Funds is 558.6948. I go to my 401k provider and see the more current balance is 561.157. I want to update Quicken to reflect the current amount of share. In Quicken I open this account. Go to gear, "update share balance". I then pick American Funds and where it shows for me to enter: "current number of shares" I enter 561.157. However, instead of updating the existing number of shares, it simply adds a new entry for American Funds of 561.157. So now I have an entry for 558.6948 AND 561.157.

This seems to be an error. Please advise. Thank you.

Sherlock

If the entry's action is Share balance in the Security Detail View window's Transaction history for the security, the entry is correct.  The entry is recording your adjustment.

Chris_QPW

Are you saying that instead of updating the share balance in this section:


It added a new security/line?

I tried it and it updated the number of shares for me.  What's more if I typed a new security name that isn't on the list it took me to the creating of a new security.  Did that happen to you?

If you could post a screenshot of just the security names and number of shares it might help to see what is different.

[Deleted User]

Hi Sherlock! The steps are: update share balance. Then the window shows: adjust balance as of: date. Security to adjust: security. Current number of shares: number.

So I read this as "update" and "adjust" not "add." That is where I'm confused. Why would it ask me to adjust a balance and then simply add a new shares? I would expect it to say: add new shares. Then the window would show: add new shares as of: date. Security to add: security. Current number of shares: number.

I'm sorry. I'm just trying to change an existing share balance to a new balance. I don't want new entries anywhere. Is that not possible? Thank you.

Sherlock

xrbbaker said:

Hi Sherlock! The steps are: update share balance. Then the window shows: adjust balance as of: date. Security to adjust: security. Current number of shares: number.

So I read this as "update" and "adjust" not "add." That is where I'm confused. Why would it ask me to adjust a balance and then simply add a new shares? I would expect it to say: add new shares. Then the window would show: add new shares as of: date. Security to add: security. Current number of shares: number.

I'm sorry. I'm just trying to change an existing share balance to a new balance. I don't want new entries anywhere. Is that not possible? Thank you.

Where are you seeing add ?

The entry will appear as an Added or Removed action transaction in a report but the amount should be the difference appropriate to produce the balance specified.

[Deleted User]

Sherlock - I'm not seeing Add anywhere. I just don't understand why if the result is going to be an Add of shares, why don't they call it Add instead of Adjust when they aren't adjusting it they are simply adding new shares.

Chris_QPW - here are pics of: balance before the adjustment, the adjustment, and the results of the adjustments - which is what I'm calling an Add since all it does is add more shares. Thanks.

Sherlock

xrbbaker said:

Sherlock - I'm not seeing Add anywhere. I just don't understand why if the result is going to be an Add of shares, why don't they call it Add instead of Adjust when they aren't adjusting it they are simply adding new shares.

Chris_QPW - here are pics of: balance before the adjustment, the adjustment, and the results of the adjustments - which is what I'm calling an Add since all it does is add more shares. Thanks.

It appears you selected the wrong American Funds security.

When we specify a new balance, Quicken may add or remove shares to adjust the balance appropriately.

[Deleted User]

Sherlock - I guess that is possible. Good insight. So when I get the dropdown list I get a list of securities. How am I supposed to know which security is the one associated with this particular account? I have American Funds in several accounts. I assumed that Quicken was smart enough to figure that if I'm trying to update American Funds in a particular account, it would update the American Funds associated with that particular account. Maybe not. How then do I select the appropriate fund associated with a particular account?

Also - it doesn't ask me if I want to add a new security. Wouldn't it do that if I'm trying to execute an Adjust shares activity? I'll restore the file and grab one of the other American Funds and see if it does an Adjustment. thank you

[Deleted User]

Woohoo!!!!! Sherlock you are right. In my drop down list I have 4 instances of American Funds. I grabbed one of the others and it did in fact update and not add. Now I have to figure out why I have 4 instances or figure out how to get rid of any that don't have balances associated with them.

One small yet very significant step. Thank you so much!!

Chris_QPW

They really need to make that dialog bigger so you can see more of the name.

But baring that, when you select one of them you can use your arrow keys to go back and forth in that entry to read more of it.

[Deleted User]

As is, this is pretty horrible. Look at 401k list of funds, which shows me my account. Then look at select list which shows what I have to choose from when I want to update a share balance. I have no way to knowing which of the 3 listed American Funds New World is actually the RIGHT one that will cause an update and not add a new instance.

Any suggestions on how I can best track down these rogue security instances? I'm hoping that if I can find and eliminate them they will no longer show up in the drop down list. Thank you.

Sherlock

xrbbaker said:

Sherlock - I guess that is possible. Good insight. So when I get the dropdown list I get a list of securities. How am I supposed to know which security is the one associated with this particular account? I have American Funds in several accounts. I assumed that Quicken was smart enough to figure that if I'm trying to update American Funds in a particular account, it would update the American Funds associated with that particular account. Maybe not. How then do I select the appropriate fund associated with a particular account?

Also - it doesn't ask me if I want to add a new security. Wouldn't it do that if I'm trying to execute an Adjust shares activity? I'll restore the file and grab one of the other American Funds and see if it does an Adjustment. thank you

Quicken is assuming we're able recognize the names of the securities in our accounts.  One trick you might try is to edit the name of the security to make it more easy for you to recognize.  For example, you could replace American Funds with AF to shorten the length of the security's name.

Quicken doesn't consider adding new holding in an account to be adding a new security.  Adding a new security means Adding a new security to the list of securities in Quicken which we may do by selecting Add Security at the bottom of the Security to adjust: pull-down menu. 

[Deleted User]

Ahhh. That's a great idea. If I can change the name to something unique it will help me more easily remove the other securities that aren't actually used. Cool. thanks Sherlock. I owe you a cold and frosty beverage of your choice!

[Deleted User]

That worked well Sherlock. I first renamed the funds I use with a prefix of PC-. I then found the security list and deleted out the same funds that didn't have the PC prefix. I very much appreciate your help.