It is expected that portfolio total returns are calculated independently and correctly. How many people realize that the quality of input will impact the numbers, especially in the case of large cash flows? In this article we will see distorted performance calculations, for instance due to cash flow timing and incorrect or incomplete portfolio valuations at the moment of the cash flow. This article proposes ways to assess the data quality, and proposes data and setting changes as solutions to present correct total returns.

Gerard C. M. van Breukelen, CIPM