Posted on 07/01/2016 7:44:36 AM PDT by Jemian
I need some information concerning stock my grandfather had. He owned a portion of Fortune Brands when he died many years ago. I am trying to make an accounting of all his remaining estate. I just learned that in October 2011, which was after grandfather's death, Fortune Brands split into two separate companies, Beams and Fortune Brand Gone and Security.
My questions are: what happened to the stock? If there is still stock there, how can the estate apprehend it?
I have already searched through my state's abandoned property files.
In the new name of the companies, it should be HOME, not GONE.
Stockholders usually are given equivalent shares in the new company to compensate for the loss of equity.
Call shareholder relations for the two companies and ask them who the transfer agent is. It is all probably book entry at this point.
Call the number in this PDF:
They should have the information for the shares issued.
Thank you, All. Following up right now.
When you call, you’ll want to have at hand your grandfather’s SSN, if he was married at the time, your grandmother’s SSN, and if there was a living trust, the tax ID number for the trust, so they can look up the various numbers to see what shares were distributed. (Just went through this with my mother’s estate which my sister botched (and apparently stole $187k from.))
Do you have the paper stock certificates? If so, you should be able to use the numbers shown to give to the transfer agents for estate valuation and disposition. If the shares were held by a brokerage house, contact them for the same.
Sorry...The only stock I know anything about has four hooves....
No paper certificates, but I do have significant, other, documentation.
Thanks. I have all of that. I am waiting on a call-back right now.
LOL!
You got lucky. Hubby’s sis stole $600k that we can verify.
My Dad’s sister robbed my grandmother’s estate of 200k that we know of. My uncle was a cpa and got so disgusted that he quit in the middle of the audit and said to hell with it. He couldn’t deal with the sister’s dishonesty.
If these are copies of purchase orders, are they from Fortune Brands direct (unlikely) or from a brokerage firm? If from a brokerage firm then you need to find out if the stock was ISSUED (paper certificates) or kept in the brokerage account (street name). The former is very old style and likely only if the stock was purchased decades ago. If the brokerage firm is not a current one, you will need to contact the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to find out who to call / write. If you already have a stock broker, ask their help in this effort.
The first question is whether the stock shares are being held by a financial institution or not. When you say documentation do you mean statements from a financial institution?
The sounds like a common problem.
My Dad recently died and my sister had power of attorney for 14 years, and I’m pretty sure that she skimmed, which is of course a violation of her fiduciary duty.
I thought about looking into it; I just don’t want to destroy my relationship with her. And she did do a lot for my dad over that time; she was there with him, changed nursing homes several times, found caregivers, while I was up here, not able to do anything.
We’re still in the process of this. It’s sad how money can tear families apart.
“And she did do a lot for my dad over that time; she was there with him, changed nursing homes several times, found caregivers, while I was up here, not able to do anything”
Forget about the money-——she did the important stuff.You were lucky to have her.
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What does the significant, other, documentation show you? The name of the broker? If you have that, you will still probably be asked to prove that you are the legal heir or executor of the estate. A will from the deceased, among other things, will establish that.
I have records of dividend payments from Fortune Brands. I have a never-cashed dividend check, and I have a listing of other dividend payments from Unclaimed Property division from the state. The dividend record that I have lists owners, type and amount of shares, and the account number.
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