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New to OtterLedger? Read the Documentation
45 Guides Available Quick Start Guide
Learn AI Categorization View Guide
Have Questions? Check the FAQ
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Investment Tracking

Guide 22: Investment Tracking

Track your portfolio and holdings

Overview

OtterLedger helps you track investment accounts, holdings, and portfolio performance. See your complete financial picture including retirement accounts, brokerage accounts, and other investments.

What you'll learn:

  • Setting up investment accounts
  • Tracking holdings
  • Recording investment transactions
  • Portfolio reports

Time required: 15-20 minutes for setup

Prerequisites

  • Investment account statements (for current holdings)

Setting Up Investment Accounts

Add Investment Account

  1. Go to Accounts
  2. Click Add Account
  3. Select type: Investment
  4. Enter the core fields on the General tab:
    • Name - "Fidelity 401(k)", "Vanguard IRA"
    • Institution - Brokerage name
    • Opening Balance - Current total value
    • Opening Date - Start tracking date
  5. Switch to the Investment Details tab to fill in type-specific information:
    • Broker Name - The name of your brokerage or plan provider
    • Portfolio Type - Choose from: Brokerage, 401(k), IRA, Roth IRA, HSA, 529, or other account types
    • Account Number - Stored encrypted for security; useful for matching statements
    • Website URL - Your brokerage's login page for quick access
    • Login Credentials - Username stored encrypted for reference; useful when you have many accounts

Note: Account number and login credentials are encrypted at rest. They are never transmitted outside the app.

For a full walkthrough of the tabbed account editor, see Guide 4: Managing Accounts.

[Screenshot: Add Investment Account — Investment Details tab]

Tracking Holdings

View Holdings

  1. Go to Investments in sidebar
  2. Select account
  3. View Holdings tab

Add Holdings

For each security you own:

  1. Click Add Holding
  2. Enter:
    • Symbol - Stock/fund ticker (VTI, AAPL)
    • Name - Security name
    • Shares - Number of shares
    • Cost Basis - What you paid
  3. Save

[Screenshot: Holdings list]

Holdings Information

Field Description
Symbol Ticker symbol
Shares Number owned
Price Current price
Value Current market value
Cost Original cost
Gain/Loss Profit or loss

Investment Transactions

Types of Transactions

Type Description
Buy Purchase securities
Sell Sell securities
Dividend Cash dividend received
Dividend Reinvest Dividend used to buy more shares
Transfer Move cash in/out
Interest Interest earned
Fee Management fees

Recording a Buy

  1. Open investment account
  2. Click Add Transaction → Buy
  3. Enter:
    • Date
    • Security
    • Shares
    • Price per share
    • Commission (if any)
  4. Save

Recording a Sale

  1. Add Transaction → Sell
  2. Enter:
    • Security
    • Shares sold
    • Sale price
    • Commission
  3. OtterLedger calculates gain/loss

Recording Dividends

  1. Add Transaction → Dividend
  2. Enter:
    • Security
    • Amount received
  3. For reinvested dividends, also enter shares received

Portfolio Overview

Summary View

Go to Investments for overview:

  • Total portfolio value
  • Day/week/month change
  • Asset allocation
  • Top holdings

[Screenshot: Portfolio summary]

Performance

View returns:

  • Year-to-date
  • 1 year, 3 year, 5 year
  • Since inception

Asset Allocation

See how your portfolio is divided:

  • Stocks vs. Bonds
  • Domestic vs. International
  • By sector

Updating Holdings

Manual Update

Periodically update values:

  1. Go to Investments
  2. Click Update Prices
  3. Enter current prices
  4. Save

From Statements

Use quarterly statements:

  1. Compare OtterLedger holdings to statement
  2. Add any new purchases
  3. Update share counts if different

Investment Reports

Investment Portfolio Summary

The Investment Portfolio Summary report provides a consolidated view of all your investment accounts in one place — total value, portfolio type breakdown (401(k), IRA, brokerage, etc.), and per-account balances.

To open it:

  1. Go to Reports → Report Gallery
  2. Find Investment Portfolio Summary in the Investments group
  3. Click to run

See Guide 26: Report Gallery for a full list of available reports and how to filter and export them.

Holdings Report

Shows all holdings across accounts:

  • Current values
  • Cost basis
  • Unrealized gains/losses

Performance Report

Track returns over time:

  • By account
  • By security
  • Total portfolio

Tax Lots (Advanced)

For tax planning:

  • View lots by purchase date
  • Identify short vs. long-term holdings
  • Plan tax-efficient sales

Tips & Best Practices

  1. Start with totals - Don't need every transaction from day one
  2. Update quarterly - Match to statements
  3. Include all accounts - 401(k), IRA, brokerage
  4. Track cost basis - Important for taxes
  5. Use for net worth - Investments affect total picture

Troubleshooting

Q: Value doesn't match statement

A: Check:

  • All holdings are entered
  • Share counts are correct
  • Prices are current

Q: How do I track crypto?

A: Add as securities with manual price updates.

Q: Should I enter every transaction?

A: Not required. You can start with current holdings and go forward.

What's Next?

Need help? Visit the OtterLedger community at github.com/openledger or check the FAQ.