Sometimes forgetfulness pays off
Years ago, I moved most of my meager IRA from one company to another one with lower fees. But, I kept the old account open because I couldn't face selling my 15 shares of Amazon stock for less than the $150 per share that I paid.
"If the stock goes back up, I'll sell it and then I'll close this account," I said to myself.
But, that was many years ago. I kept getting statements from that account, but I usually didn't even look at them. I totally forgot why I had even left the account open. But then, today I saw that Amazon was selling at about $722 (an all-time high). And the lightbulb went on.
I called the toll-free number and got access to the account (I have no idea what my old username and password were) and sold.
I didn't make a fortune. And I can't spend the money for several more years without paying a penalty. But it sure was nice. And now I can finally close that old account and move the cash into my "real" IRA. It'll make a big difference to that balance.