Filing Taxes - Very confused with ESPP stock reporting on taxes

[uxmark]

I bought Turbotax Premier, and I thought everything was going to be straightforward until I got to the Stocks section. 

I have an employee stock purchase plan with about $5,000 of gains.  When I added my numbers into Turbotax, it had me go through an Adjusted Cost Basis process as my broker only included the cost basis and proceeds.  When I finished, my ESPP was no longer a $5,000 gain but a $300 loss.  I'm so confused.  

Wouldn't the ESPP gains be additional income?  Or is it because it is reported in my W2?  I do have a line item on box 14 which says ESPP with a number slightly higher than $5,000.  I'm just not sure how my employer would have gotten the sales transaction from the broker to add to my w2.

Thanks for any help

[taxlady28]

Your employer issued form 3922 and you need it to report your stocks properly.  The 1099-B will usually show the basis as zero.  You need to edit each stock and put the proper basis from the 3922.  If you don't have the form contact your employer for a copy of it.

[ThomasM125]

With an employee stock purchase plan, the difference between what you pay for your stock and the fair market value when you purchase it is called the discount. That amount is reported as wage income on your W-2 form. When you sell the stock, the discount should be included in the amount you report for the cost basis of the stock. Often, your broker will not report a cost basis or will report only your cost as the cost basis and not include the discount. So, when you report the stock sale you may need to add the discount to the cost basis reported on the Form 1099-B.

A simple way to determine the cost basis of your employee stock shares sold is to divide the discount for the stock as reported on your W-2 form, plus any additional money you spent to acquire them, by the number of shares acquired. That will give you the cost of the shares that you can then multiply by the number of shares sold to arrive at their cost basis.

You need to edit your entry in the Investment Income section of TurboTax, then Stocks, cryptocurrency, Bonds, Mutual Funds, Other. Find the investment sale you need to edit in the Your Investment Sales summary and click on the Review tab:  

On the stock sale screen, indicate that the cost basis is missing or incorrect and you will have an opportunity to enter the correct cost basis.