Options Tracker user manual

1. Get started

1. Open Valrisa Options Tracker and complete the welcome screen.
2. Export transactions and a current positions file from your brokerage.
3. Open Imports and choose Choose CSV files or Import brokerage CSV.
4. Review the import results, then compare your stocks and open options with your brokerage.
5. Choose a brokerage, account and reporting year at the top of the app.

Transactions describe activity over time. Positions describe holdings on a particular date. Import both for a useful picture of your portfolio. Prices and holdings update when you import a new snapshot; they are not live quotes.

2. Import brokerage data

Charles Schwab transaction and position CSV exports and Interactive Brokers Activity Statement CSV files are detected automatically. For other brokerages, use the standard templates or map the file’s columns and action codes when prompted. Saved mappings are reused for matching headers; changed headers require a new mapping.

Import enough transaction history to include the opening trades for current options. Keep account names consistent. Exact duplicate files are rejected, and overlapping transaction rows are compared using normalized financial fields. A newer dated position snapshot replaces that account’s current snapshot; an older or undated file cannot replace a known newer snapshot.

For Rakuten, prepare standard USD transaction and position files from the broker’s exports. Dividend information may require a separate income document; a holdings file alone cannot create dividend history. Valrisa does not connect to your brokerage or download records automatically.

3. Use the CSV templates

In Imports, use Blank transactions template, Blank positions template and View upload specification. The same blank files are available below. Edit them in a spreadsheet and save as UTF-8 CSV, preserving the metadata rows and column headers.

Use one account per file. Fill in Brokerage and Account identically in the transaction and position files. Position files also need PositionAsOfDate in YYYY-MM-DD format. Version 1.1 is recommended; 1.0 remains supported.

Required transaction columns: Date, Action, Symbol, Amount. Optional: Description, Quantity, Price, Fees. Required position columns: Symbol, Asset Type, Quantity, Market Value. Optional: description, price, cost basis and gain/loss fields.

Option quantities represent contracts. Short position quantities are negative; long quantities are positive. Use a recognized US option symbol, such as OCC format. Transaction Amount is the signed net cash amount; record fees separately without deducting them twice. Preserve the brokerage’s original files for reconciliation.

Download transactions template · Download positions template

4. Choose brokerage, account and period

Choose a brokerage and All accounts to combine its accounts. Choose All brokerages and All accounts for the consolidated portfolio, or select a single account. Brokerage aliases are grouped for display while each account retains its identity.

Historical income, closed results and performance follow the selected reporting year or All years. Open options, stocks, current value and unrealized gain/loss use the latest position snapshot regardless of year. A historical year does not recreate a historical holdings snapshot. Journal entries follow account scope but are not limited by reporting year. Imports and full backups cover the complete portfolio.

5. Review options and LEAPs

Use Options to review open, closed or all strategies. Select a row to inspect its contracts, legs, prices, fees, capital at risk, stock exposure and confirmed roll links. Covered calls show linked share coverage; cash-secured puts show potential assignment shares. Standard US contracts normally represent 100 shares.

A LEAP is recorded as an option with a distant expiration, rather than a separate asset class. Its direction and companion legs determine how it is grouped. A long-dated option can remain open across reporting years and is not realized income simply because it was purchased or sold.

Pending confirmation means the available records do not yet confirm closure. Import the closing, expiration, assignment or exercise activity rather than assuming a contract disappeared. Review unexpected groupings against the contract, account, expiration, strike and call/put type.

6. Find all trades for a ticker

Use ticker search in Options, Stocks or History. Search is an exact ticker match, ignoring letter case and surrounding spaces: SPY matches SPY, not SPYV. Option records use their underlying ticker.

For a complete historical review, choose the brokerage/account scope and All years, then search in History. The stock trade-history action opens that ticker’s history across all years within the selected scope. Clear the search to return to the full list. A history view contains closed strategies; use Options for current open positions.

7. Read stock holdings

Stocks shows stock and ETF holdings from the latest imported snapshot. Compare quantities, market values and broker cost basis with the source file. A new transaction does not substitute for an updated holdings snapshot.

Broker cost basis remains the source value. Wheel-adjusted basis is a separate informational measure using selected-period realized covered-call and cash-secured-put results. It is not a replacement for the brokerage’s tax cost basis. Use the stock’s trade-history action to inspect related closed strategies.

8. Understand income and weekly results

Dashboard income cards open detailed views. Realized option income comes from closed strategies and is reported on closure; a strategy spanning years belongs to its closing year. Opening credits on still-open positions are shown separately and excluded from realized income.

Earned income is realized option income plus distributions. Total income adds signed net interest. Positive interest adds income; an interest charge is negative and reduces total income. Withholding is reported separately. Fees are shown for reference; imported broker net amounts remain authoritative and fees are not deducted again.

Select a month to see full Monday–Sunday weeks. A boundary week can include dates outside that month and appear in both adjacent month views. Monthly and annual totals are calculated independently: do not add overlapping weekly rows to derive a monthly total. Activity is limited by the report’s through date.

These reports describe imported investment activity, not your household spending or bank cash balance. A negative interest entry alone does not change a separately maintained spending ledger. Inspect the relevant transactions to explain a figure.

9. Dividends and reinvestment

Open the dashboard’s dividend detail to review cash dividends, reinvestment and related stock activity. Dividend history comes from transactions, not position quantities. A missing payment usually requires an income transaction export or an additional broker document.

In standard files use Cash Dividend, Reinvest Dividend, Reinvest Shares, Capital Gain Distribution, Return of Capital, Tax Withholding or Interest as appropriate. Reinvestment pairs should have the same account, symbol and date. Dividend income is counted once; the share purchase is separate. Return of capital and withholding are identified separately from ordinary distributions.

10. Performance and yield

Performance analyzes closed strategies in the chosen scope and period, including realized result, win rate, holding period, capital and return on capital. Current unrealized gains are not closed-trade results.

Yield views relate reported income to imported account value. A single-year view annualizes through the reporting date; All years shows a non-annualized all-time result. Account value is based on available positions, so incomplete snapshots affect the denominator. These measures are not a time-weighted investment return or a forecast.

11. Journal and manual entries

Use Journal for local notes, tags, tickers and optional account links. Manual transaction and strategy entry can fill gaps in your records. Enter the correct account, contract, date, quantity and signed amount, then review any possible-duplicate warning before saving.

If you later import the matching broker activity, check that a manual placeholder has not created a second economic trade. Use the app’s available manual-entry editing and undo controls rather than deleting a valid brokerage trade. Confirm roll relationships from the trade details; similar dates or tickers alone do not establish a roll.

12. Export, back up and restore

1. Open Imports → Export and backup.
2. Choose Create full backup and save it to a location you control.
3. For a report, select the CSV report type and choose Export CSV.
4. To restore, choose Restore backup, inspect the summary and confirm only when you want to replace the current portfolio.

CSV reports follow brokerage/account scope; historical reports also follow the reporting period. Stocks and open options are current snapshots. A full backup always includes all accounts and years. Restore replaces all local portfolio data; make a backup first. A report CSV is not a full restorable backup, and Restore Purchase does not restore portfolio records.

13. Currency and privacy

Version 1.5.0 reports in USD and does not perform automatic multi-currency conversion. Convert JPY or other-currency data to USD consistently before preparing standard files. Convert transaction amounts, prices, fees, cost basis and market values as appropriate; keep quantities unchanged and retain your exchange-rate records. Currency symbols do not trigger conversion.

Brokerage records, journal entries and mapping profiles remain local to your Mac. No brokerage credentials are required. Apple handles purchase and entitlement verification. Save backups securely; they contain your portfolio data.

14. Trial and lifetime access

The App Store build provides a 30-day local trial and a one-time lifetime unlock. The trial does not automatically renew or become a paid subscription. Purchase status and Restore purchase are available in the app.

After the trial expires, viewing, CSV export and backup remain available; modifying data requires access. Restore a lifetime purchase using the Apple Account that bought it. Purchase restoration and portfolio backup restoration are different operations. Owner/test builds can show different access controls.

15. Troubleshoot a result

• Duplicate or unexpected legs: compare account, contract, direction and quantity with the source; check manual entries and the latest snapshot. Similar-looking rows can be separate valid trades.
• No search results: check the exact ticker, brokerage/account, reporting year and open/closed filter.
• Missing dividends: check income transactions, action mapping, account and period; holdings alone are insufficient.
• Old holdings: import a newer dated positions snapshot.
• Different totals: compare scope, dates, open versus closed income, signed interest and overlapping boundary weeks.
• Import summary shows zero categories despite added rows: inspect History, Stocks and Options. Standard-file category counters can show zero even when records were imported; reconcile actual rows and totals.

For help, email valrisa-support@slk85.com with app version, macOS version, file type and a redacted description or screenshot. Do not send credentials or unmasked financial records. Valrisa is a recordkeeping tool; reconcile reports with official brokerage records.