Understanding Your Investment Statements and Contract Notes

Looking through a contract note or statement should be straightforward, but the language used can sometimes make it feel more complicated than it needs to be.

This guide is here to make things clearer, so you can quickly understand what you’re looking at and feel more confident about your investments.

What is a contract note?

A contract note is simply a confirmation that a transaction has taken place on your account.

You’ll receive one when you:

• Buy an investment

• Sell an investment

It shows you exactly what happened, when it happened, and what it cost.
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Common Terms

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Here are some of the terms you’re most likely to see - without the jargon

Where your investment was traded

XLON
This is a code meaning the London Stock Exchange. It tells you where the trade happened.

Exchange
The place where investments are bought and sold. Think of it as a marketplace.

ISIN
A long code that uniquely identifies your investment. It’s like a serial number for a fund or share.

Details about your transaction

Trade date
The day the deal was transacted.

Settlement date
The day everything is finalised - when the money and investments move and settle. This is general 1 to 2 working days after the trade date.

Quantity
How much you bought or sold (number of shares or units).

Price
The value of each share or unit at the time of the trade.

What it cost

Gross amount
The total value of the transaction before any charges.

Net amount
What you pay or receive after charges and fees have been applied.

Charges or fees
Any costs linked to the transaction, such as dealing fees.

Stamp duty
A tax that may apply when buying certain UK shares.

Your investments at a glance

Holding
An individual investment in your portfolio.

Valuation
The total value of your investments at a specific time.

Income or dividends
Payments you may receive from your investments.

Ex-dividend date
The cutoff date for receiving a dividend. If you buy after this date, you won’t receive a dividend for that dividend period.

Dividend payment date
When the income is actually paid to you.
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Why this matters

Understanding these terms makes it easier to:

• Sense-check your transactions

• See what you’ve been charged

• Keep track of your investments

• Feel more in control of your finances
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If something still doesn’t look right

That’s completely okay - these documents aren’t always intuitive at first.

You can:

• Speak to your adviser

• Contact Quilter Invest support at support@quilterinvest.com  

• Explore more guides in the Learning Hub

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