How to Fill Out the EQ Shareowner Services Stock Power Form

To transfer stock through EQ Shareowner Services, complete the six-section EQ Shareowner Services Stock Power form with your account information and the new owner’s details, obtain a Medallion Signature Guarantee for every signature, attach any supporting documents your situation requires, and mail the package to EQ’s processing center in Minnesota. Once EQ receives a clean package, the transfer typically completes within five business days.¹ You’ll need a separate form for each company and each account you’re transferring.

What to Gather Before You Start

Any blank field or mismatched detail can bounce the form back, so pull the following together first:

Your 10-digit EQ account number, from a statement or tax form.
The exact company name as it appears on your statements.
Your current registration — your name and ownership title exactly as they appear on the account, not a nickname or shortened version.
The share count you’re transferring, broken out by type: Direct Registration (electronic), Plan shares (dividend reinvestment), or physical certificates.²
The recipient’s full legal name, mailing address, and Social Security Number or Employer Identification Number. The Tax ID is required for IRS reporting.³
Original paper stock certificates, if your shares exist in that form. Missing certificates require a separate replacement process.

For a transfer into a trust, add copies of the trust agreement — the first page, the last page, and any page naming successor trustees.⁴ For a transfer signed under a power of attorney, include a copy of the POA. EQ needs proof that whoever signs has the authority to do so.

Filling Out the Form Section by Section

Download the form through the Equiniti Shareowner Online portal or request a paper copy from EQ’s shareholder relations line. The current version has six sections labeled A through F.²

Section A: Current Account

Enter your 10-digit account number, the company name, and your current registration exactly as it reads on your statements. Small discrepancies — a missing middle initial, “Jr.” versus “Junior” — can trigger a rejection.

Section B: Shares Being Transferred

To transfer everything, check the “Transfer ALL shares” box and leave the rest blank. Otherwise, enter the specific number of shares by type: Direct Registration, Plan, or Certificate. Certificate shares require the original paper certificates in the envelope.²

Section B also includes a box for lost certificates. If any are missing, enter the number of lost shares (or write “ALL”) in box 8 and follow the lost certificate procedure described further down. EQ charges a $75 processing fee for lost certificate replacement.²

Section C: Cost Basis / Reason for Transfer

Check one of three boxes:

Private Sale — include the date of sale and cost per share.
Gift — the gift date defaults to the date EQ processes the transfer.
Inheritance — include the date of death and the fair market value per share on that date. For jointly held shares, enter the number or percentage the deceased person owned.²

The box you pick determines how the recipient’s cost basis is set for future capital gains reporting. Correcting a wrong selection after processing is difficult.

Section D: Outstanding Payments

Check the box if you want uncashed dividend checks or other outstanding payments reissued in the current account holder’s name. Skip it if it doesn’t apply.

Section E: Signatures and Medallion Guarantee

Every owner listed on the account signs here, and each signature must carry a Medallion Signature Guarantee. If an owner cannot sign — for example, because of incapacity — a legal representative such as a power of attorney holder, custodian, or successor trustee may sign, but must write their title below the signature.²

Section F: New Account

Check the registration type (individual, joint, trust, custodial, and so on) and enter the new owner’s full legal name as it appears on their income tax return, mailing address, and Social Security Number or Employer Identification Number. For a trust, include the trust name and date. The name must match IRS records exactly; a mismatch triggers backup withholding at 24%.⁵ Non-U.S. citizens should submit a Form W-8BEN in place of a W-9 to certify foreign status.⁶

Getting the Medallion Signature Guarantee

A Medallion Signature Guarantee is not the same as a notary stamp, and a notary seal will not be accepted. A notary only witnesses that you signed. A Medallion guarantor verifies your identity, confirms you have authority to transfer the securities, and assumes financial liability if the signature turns out to be forged.⁷

Under SEC Rule 17Ad-15, eligible guarantor institutions include banks, broker-dealers, credit unions, savings associations, and national securities exchanges.⁸ In practice, you’ll get one from your own bank or brokerage. Most institutions only guarantee signatures for their existing customers, so if you don’t have a relationship with a participating bank or broker, expect to be turned away.⁷

Each Medallion stamp carries a letter prefix indicating the dollar amount the guarantor is insured for on that transaction, ranging from $100,000 (prefix E or F) up to $10,000,000 (prefix Z).⁹ The stamp value must cover the market value of the shares being transferred. Tell your bank the approximate dollar value so they apply the right level; a stamp that comes in below the transfer value gets rejected.

Every owner listed on the account must appear in person at the guarantor institution to sign and receive the stamp. A pre-signed form mailed to a bank will not be stamped because the bank must witness the signature. Fees range from no charge for long-standing customers to around $100 at some institutions.

EQ may waive the Medallion requirement for transfers valued under $10,000.¹⁰ Check the instructions in your transfer packet to confirm whether the waiver applies.

How the Cost Basis Choice Affects the Recipient

Section C has real tax consequences for the person receiving the shares. For gifts, the recipient generally inherits the donor’s original cost basis, so a donor gifting appreciated stock should give the recipient the original purchase price documentation, which they’ll need when they eventually sell.¹¹ For inherited shares, the cost basis typically resets to the fair market value on the date of death, which is why the form asks for that figure. For a private sale, the basis starts at the sale price.

Whichever type of transfer you check, the recipient’s Tax ID goes on the form because EQ reports the transfer to the IRS. Without a valid taxpayer identification number, EQ is required to withhold 24% of future reportable payments as backup withholding.⁵

Extra Documents for Estate Transfers

Transferring shares from a deceased owner’s account uses a separate Transfer of Ownership package and requires more documentation than a standard transfer. Requirements vary depending on whether the account was held individually or jointly.¹⁰

Expect to submit:

The completed Transfer of Ownership form with a substitute W-9 for the recipient.
A certified copy of the death certificate.
A notarized Affidavit of Domicile establishing where the deceased person lived.
A Certificate of Appointment (Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration) proving the executor’s or administrator’s authority. If the estate qualifies, small estate affidavit documentation under the deceased person’s home state law can substitute.
A copy of the legal representative’s government-issued photo ID.
An Inheritance Tax Waiver if the state of transfer requires one.¹⁰

The executor or administrator signs in their representative capacity and writes that title below the signature. Original stock certificates go in if they exist; electronic book-entry and dividend reinvestment shares don’t need one. The Medallion Guarantee still applies unless the transfer falls under the $10,000 waiver threshold.

If You Can’t Find the Stock Certificates

When you need to transfer certificate shares and the original paper certificates are missing, report the loss to EQ in writing or through your online account before submitting the Stock Power form.¹²

Replacement requires a surety bond, called a bond of indemnity, which protects EQ and the issuing company if the original certificate surfaces later. You can obtain a bond from any insurance provider or use EQ’s provider, Travelers Casualty and Surety Company of America. Through EQ’s provider, you’ll receive an Affidavit of Loss and Indemnity Agreement to complete, notarize, and return with payment covering an administrative fee plus a percentage of the shares’ current market value.¹² The Stock Power form itself carries an added $75 processing fee for lost certificate replacement.² You can submit the Affidavit of Loss and the Stock Power form together in one package.

Where to Send the Completed Package

Once the form is complete, every required signature is Medallion guaranteed, and supporting documents are assembled, mail everything to EQ:

Regular mail: EQ Shareowner Services, PO Box 64874, St. Paul, MN 55164-0874
Overnight delivery: EQ Shareowner Services, 1110 Centre Pointe Curve, Suite 101, Mendota Heights, MN 55120-4100¹³

Check your specific transfer packet first, because some companies route transfers to a different EQ processing address. If the packet came with a pre-printed address, use that one. Use a trackable shipping method, especially for high-value packages or anything containing original certificates. Once EQ has a clean package in hand, processing typically completes within five business days if no restrictions or holds are on the account.¹ EQ then issues a new account statement or confirmation to the recipient.

What Sends the Form Back

White-out, corrections, or visible alterations anywhere on the form make it invalid. Start over with a fresh form if you make a mistake.¹⁴

Signature mismatches are the other common rejection. If your signature has drifted since you opened the account, EQ may flag it, and re-signing alone won’t fix it. Resolving the discrepancy can require a notarized affidavit and bank verification of your current signature. Sign consistently with the style on your earlier account documents, and check with EQ ahead of time if you’re unsure.

Beyond those two, the frequent rejection reasons are a registration name that doesn’t exactly match the name on file, a missing recipient Tax ID, and a share count that doesn’t reconcile with EQ’s records. Cross-check every field against your most recent account statement before you seal the envelope. If EQ rejects the package, you’ll get a notice explaining what’s wrong; a correction or white-out on the form itself means restarting on a clean copy.

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Equiniti. Transfer of Ownership Package
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EQ Shareowner Services. Stock Power Form Instructions
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EQ Shareowner Services. Stock Power and Transfer Instructions
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Broadridge Corporate Issuer Solutions. Legal Transfer Form
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EQ Shareowner Services. Shareholder Toolkit: What Shareholders Need to Know
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U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Medallion Signature Guarantees: Preventing the Unauthorized Transfer of Securities
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U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Final Rule: Acceptance of Signature Guarantees from Eligible Guarantor Institutions
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Colonial Stock Transfer. Medallion Signature Guarantees
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