I recently (just today actually) found some old stock certificates that my father had purchased in the early 60’s. I couldn’t find the company anywhere, but was wondering if old certificates themselves had any collector value? Or, if there is some way other than a Google search to locate a company?
Thanks for the help!
5 Answers
They may possibly have value as shares (unlikely). They will not have any collector’s value unless there is something special about them. Such as signature of famous, infamous people, ornately printed (usually Bonds), Pictures of trains (train enthusiasts might want them, or possibly something memorable like a well known brand name, such as Typhoo Tea, Triumph Motorcycles something like that. The only value is if they would look nice in a frame. (Maybe £30-£40) There are dealers in old certificates (Scripology), maybe Stanley Gibbons or Google scripology, or try selling on Ebay. There are literally thousands of old certificates lying around so they are not usually sellable. If they are colourful they may look nice framed and hung in the hallway, especially as they have your father’s name on them. See http://www.shareworld.co.uk/ for checking to see if they have any value as stock (if UK).
I would agree with calling your broker. It is a very cool find either way. I have a fun story for you. My brother in law came across some old stock certificates from the 1930’s after his Aunt passed away. She was the owner of a small cafe during the depression years. I’m not sure of how it came about either several workers at the local factory had gotten laid off or they were paid in stock rather than cash. Anyway, sometimes they would pay the bill for their meal with stock certificates they had gotten from the company. The certificates were from a company called Minnesota Milling and Mining they found out the company later changed it’s name to 3M. Good luck
hold on- get some one to research these as they may be very valuable indeed. Go to the Edgar Archives in the SEC and see what you can find out if not find an investment banker who may help you. There was a man who helped clean out an attic and the owner gave him some defunct stocks so she thought but the company was purchased and then repurchased several times over and it turns out the stock was now BORDEN Inc and worth millions since the stock had split so many times over the years
You need to prove that you have legal title to the certs.
– aka death certificate and estate doc that should you are beneficiary to these, or other acceptable proof. call broker/ dealer.
– you will need to sign and get a medallion stamp on the certs. a bank or broker can help here with the stamp. it is like a notary but comes with insurance guarantee.
– deposit the certs in a brokerage account and they will send them to the transfer agent to authenticate the shares and see who was the legal owner, change the legal owner to new owner and determine if the company exists, etc.
They can be valuable simply as collector’s items, yes. Check with an antique shop to have them appraised.