paper profit

American  

noun

1. an unrealized profit due to the appreciation of something owned but not yet sold.

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Etymology

Origin of paper profit

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

By 1986, they had a paper profit of $850 million on their Disney stake.

From Washington Post • Sep. 28, 2015

By mid-January 1980 they owned or controlled such vast quantities of silver that they were reaping $100 million in paper profit with every $1 increase in the price.

From New York Times • Oct. 21, 2014

And this July, when Hilton’s stock closed at $24.80, Gray and Nassetta had officially transformed Hilton into the most lucrative private equity deal ever, with a paper profit of $12 billion.

From BusinessWeek • Sep. 11, 2014

By the close those gains were trimmed back to 9.4 percent, but Berkshire was still sitting on a paper profit of nearly $3 billion.

From Reuters • Aug. 26, 2011

Teasing you along, letting you pile up a little paper profit, then bang!

From "The Sound and the Fury" by William Faulkner