Expert: Steven Taylor - 10/13/2010

Question
QUESTION: My cousin is disabled and her parents have passed away i found a folder with some shares from Branscan corp.that i did some research on and the companys worth over 160 billion but looks like they sold to another corp the shares date from 1971 to around 2007 i would like to know do the shares transfer to the new corp and what are the shares worth there is several different ones from 2 tenths to 4 shares 5shares 93shares 40shares ect help never did stocks before and have the responsibilty of looking over cousin now have power of att. and current trustee for my cousin thats disabled alot of stress good news would be helpful

ANSWER: Jerry, Brascan changed their name to Brookfield Asset Management, which currently trades on the NYSE for about $29.40 per share. What you need to do is contact the company's Transfer Agent, CIBC Mellon (www.cibcmellon.com). Let them know what your cousin has in terms of certificates and they will be able to not only tell you exactly what she is entitled to now, but will be able to reorganize the old shares into the new companies.


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QUESTION: so i dont have to sell the shares have they generated interest and if they have split over time does that mean that my 20 shares are now 40 or does it reset every time corp change hands like i said never dealt with shares before and thanks for your answer it was very helpful and would it be worth dealing with a broker or not worth it i would have to count up how manyshares there is but seems been buying since the 70s til at least 2004 so spans over years thanks for your help

Answer
Jerry, Brookfield does pay a dividend, but it is not a fantastic amount. Still, income is income. If your cousin did not receive those dividends, some of them should be due. Another reason why you need to talk to the transfer agent first. A broker would do that anyway, but if you call them directly it would likely be quicker. Once you know exactly what is due your cousin and how many shares she owns, then you can decide if you need to contact a broker in regards to selling the shares and reinvesting. However, I highly recommend you contact the agent first in order to get as much information as possible.