An asset sale is the purchase of individual assets and liabilities, whereas a stock sale is the purchase of the owner's shares of a corporation. In a stock sale, the buyer acquires equity from the target company's shareholders.Learn the tax implications for each type of sale. Asset Sale lets buyers choose specific assets and liabilities; Stock Sale doesn't. Stock sales tend to attract taxes too. While stock sales occur between the shareholder (the business owner) and the buyer, asset sales occur between the company itself and the buyer. Generally, a stock sale is better for the seller and an asset sale is better for the buyer. An asset sale is when a company sells off its assets. Those assets may include physical items like machines, equipment, inventory, and vehicles. An asset sale may allow you to benefit from tax advantages, such as offsetting gains with capital losses, potentially reducing your overall tax liability.