Is stock sold and reported on 1099B taxable as income, if the proceeds are used to purchase other stock and not taken as cash?

[gjpowers754]

My 1099B is for employer-issued stock that was sold and some proceeds used to buy shares of different stock and some proceeds returned to me by check. Most of the stock is old and I do not know its cost basis, if any. The amount used by the issuer to buy stock was well more than half the proceeds. 

[MichaelDC · Accepted solution]

Yes, any time you sell a stock or mutual fund outside of a retirement account, it needs to be reported. If you have a gain on that particular sale, you claim it. Same with a loss. You can't delay the loss or the gain by reinvesting the proceeds.

Try to make your best efforts in determining the basis. Use the various financial sites to find historical data (taking into account your employee discounted price), if the present broker hasn't kept your basis and reported it to the IRS.

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