How to record Sony Corp Spin-off on October 6, 2025

Ewm101
Ewm101 Quicken Windows Subscription Member, Windows Beta Beta
edited November 17 in Investing (Windows)

Sony Corp. spun off Sony Financial Group on October 6, 2025. How do I record this in Quicken track the cost basis of both.

Answers

  • NotACPA
    NotACPA Quicken Windows Subscription SuperUser ✭✭✭✭✭

    Tell us the specifications of the spin-off. We'd also need to know what Q product you're running, as the replies might vary because of your product

    Q user since February, 1990. DOS Version 4
    Now running Quicken Windows Subscription, Business & Personal
    Retired "Certified Information Systems Auditor" & Bank Audit VP

  • q_lurker
    q_lurker Quicken Windows Subscription SuperUser ✭✭✭✭✭

    You are going to need to be patient on that set of entries, I imagine. This is fundamentally a Japanese firm spinning off a second Japanese firm under Japan's tax laws. The US shares trade as ADRs apparently through a J. P Morgan program. While I'd expect very close parallels (like a 1-for-1 share rate), I've not seen anything that suggests this is a tax-free spinoff of ADRs within US laws. Maybe some documentation provided to US ADR holders had more information.

    In all likelihood, you can manage this through Quicken's Corporate Spinoff action, but the devil can be in the details and may vary depending upon your needs - especially whether you need to match the cost basis of both holdings (per lot) to what your brokerage finally decides upon.

  • Tom Young
    Tom Young Quicken Windows Subscription SuperUser ✭✭✭✭✭

    From what I can see the distribution is a taxable dividend. The dollar value of dividend income would be the fair market value of the shares received.

    At some point I'd think Sony would issue guidance as a fair market value to use.

    If that's correct, then the way to do this accounting properly in Quicken would be to recognize a Sony "dividend" in the dollar amount of the shares' FMV. Then buy the shares received with that cash, zeroing out the cash and establishing the basis and date of acquisition of the new shares.

  • q_lurker
    q_lurker Quicken Windows Subscription SuperUser ✭✭✭✭✭

    Google's AI had the following to offer supporting the opinion @Tom Young offered:

    I'd like to know the tax implications for US shareholders.

    For U.S. federal income tax purposes, Sony's partial spin-off of Sony Financial Group (SFIG) is expected to be treated as a taxable dividend to American shareholders. The value of the SFIG American Depositary Shares (ADS) you received is considered ordinary dividend income and is taxable in the year of the spin-off. 

    If so, I agree with Tom's suggestion of a cash dividend followed by a Buy of SFIG shares.

  • John9
    John9 Member ✭✭

    I'm on Quicken for Mac 8.3.2 I found the opening price of SFGYY in quicken was 4.75 My financial firm (Ameriprise) showed i received 129 shares plus a 3.02 "cash in lieu of shares" I don't see a spinoff transaction type, so here's what i ended up doing

    1. Recorded a 'return of capital' transaction for $615.78 ((129 shares x $4.75 opening price) + 3.02)
    2. recorded a buy for 129 shares at $4.75

    I ended up with a reasonably close valuation (+/- 1%) in Quicken to what Ameriprise shows me - not sure of their prices vs quicken …l usually see slight variations in valuations)

    My account is from a 401k rollover, so i don't really need to track tax issues

    close enough for me

    PS - i saw an article that the final spin off ration was about .2 shares of the financial group for 1 share of Sony, and that tracks to the share balances i ended up with

  • q_lurker
    q_lurker Quicken Windows Subscription SuperUser ✭✭✭✭✭

    @John9 If it is a taxable dividend, the action of Dividend rather than Return of Capital would seem more appropriate. But also for a 401k, would likely not matter. Q-Mac features and options are different than Q-Win

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