Profit & Loss (P&L)

P&L tells you how much money you’ve actually made or lost. That’s it.

If your P&L shows +$5,000, you have $5,000 more than you put in. This is the most straightforward way to measure investment success.

What P&L Tells You

P&L answers the question: “How much have I actually gained or lost?”

It’s simple math: take your current value, subtract what you invested, add back what you withdrew. The result is your profit (positive) or loss (negative).

No complex formulas, no annualization, no time-weighting. Just real money gained or lost.

Why P&L Matters

P&L gives you the raw truth about your investments. While percentages and growth rates are useful for comparison, P&L tells you the actual dollar impact on your wealth.

For each asset in NetFiscus, you can see its P&L derived from your deposits, withdrawals, and current value. On your portfolio view, you can see the combined P&L across all your assets.

This answers the fundamental question every investor asks: “Am I actually making money?”

A Simple Example

You invested $10,000 in a stock fund. Over time, you withdrew $2,000 (maybe to cover an expense). Today, the fund is worth $12,000.

Your P&L calculation:

• Net Investment: $10,000 deposited - $2,000 withdrawn = $8,000
• P&L: $12,000 current value - $8,000 net investment = +$4,000
• Gain Percentage: ($12,000 + $2,000 - $10,000) / $10,000 = +40%

You’ve made $4,000 in profit - real money you didn’t have before.

When P&L Matters Most

P&L is particularly useful when:

• You want to know your absolute profit in dollars (or your currency)
• You’re tracking progress toward a specific financial goal
• You want a simple, intuitive measure of success
• You’re comparing the actual dollar impact of different investments
• You need to understand how much real wealth you’ve built

How NetFiscus Calculates P&L

NetFiscus uses a straightforward formula:

Net Investment = Total Deposits - Total Withdrawals

Net P&L = Current Value - Net Investment

Gain Percentage = (Current Value + Withdrawals - Deposits) / Deposits

The calculation considers:

• Every deposit you made (money flowing in)
• Every withdrawal you took (money flowing out)
• Dividends and income received (counted as inflows)
• The current value of your asset

All amounts are converted to your display currency using historical exchange rates from when each transaction occurred. This ensures your P&L reflects the actual purchasing power you invested.

P&L vs MWRR

While P&L measures your absolute gain, MWRR (Money-Weighted Rate of Return) measures your compound growth rate. Both are valuable but answer different questions.

Example of the difference:

You invested $1,000 in January and $10,000 in December. The asset grew 10% early in the year but stayed flat later.

• P&L shows your total profit regardless of timing
• MWRR will be lower because most of your money ($10,000) missed the growth period

Use P&L to understand your total wealth impact. Use MWRR to understand your investment efficiency and compare against benchmarks.

Understanding Your Gain Percentage

The gain percentage tells you your return relative to what you invested:

• +40% means you’ve earned 40 cents for every dollar invested
• -15% means you’ve lost 15 cents for every dollar invested

This percentage accounts for withdrawals too. If you withdrew money along the way, the formula ensures you’re measuring return on your original investment, not just what remains.

Tracking P&L Over Time

NetFiscus shows your P&L history so you can see how your profit has evolved:

• Monthly view: See P&L at the end of each month
• Yearly view: See P&L at the end of each year
• Change from previous: Understand if you’re gaining or losing momentum

This historical view helps you spot trends and understand when your investments performed best (or worst).

Requirements for Calculation

NetFiscus needs at least one deposit (inflow) to calculate P&L. Without knowing how much you invested, there’s no way to determine profit or loss.

If you see “N/A” for P&L, record your initial investment as a deposit to enable the calculation.

P&L for Your Entire Portfolio

Beyond individual assets, NetFiscus calculates P&L across your entire portfolio:

• By asset type: See P&L for all your assets combined
• By collection: Compare P&L across different portfolios or accounts
• By tag: Analyze P&L by investment category (stocks, bonds, real estate, etc.)

This aggregated view helps you understand which parts of your portfolio are driving your overall gains or losses.