I use Fidelity for an investment. Their website says I have a cost basis of $5000.00 invested in FUSVX. Now the balance of this mutual fund (which I believe is simply market value at closing from the previous day) reads 4947.77.
4947.77 (balance) - 50000 (price paid) = -52.23.
Negative return right? Why does my YTD return read positive 0.65% for this mutual fund?
I also have a money market balance of 400 valued at 400. They take the .65% mutual fund return and add the 0% return for the money market and give me a .72% positive total return...?
I called Fidelity and talked to two representatives who could not give me a clear explanation of why this is. Basically, they said "it has to do with time and dollar cost averaging". I understand DCA; this feels like voodoo.
I have a TD ameritrade acct and their cost and gain/loss numbers make sense. Can someone explain Fidelity's seemingly magic number system?
Fidelity Definitions
Balance
The market value of each investment in your account as of the date displayed in the Returns As Of column.
Cost Basis
Generally, the total cash value of all your share purchases of a given investment option, accumulated based upon the original cash amount used to purchase shares, exclusive of any change in the price of a given investment over time. This basis is inclusive of all your share purchase activity, regardless of the type of activity (includes standard cash flows, such as contributions, exchanges and withdrawals, as well as non-cash flows such as interest, dividends and adjustments). Keep in mind that cost basis calculations are done at the investment option level. Due to gain/losses realized at the time of an exchange from one investment to another, adding up your cost basis for each investment option will not give you an account level cost basis If your investments were transferred from another recordkeeper to Fidelity, your cost basis starts at the point your new shares were purchased here at Fidelity, except for stock funds. For company stock funds, your tax cost basis is transferred and thus reflected in cost basis number indicated in the table.
YTD
Your cumulative return of each investment since the beginning of the current year. Refer to the "Returns As Of" date to determine when this value was last calculated.