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. An "asset sale" refers to the acquisition of individual assets and liabilities.Any gain or loss on the sale, exchange or disposition of stocks or bonds is reportable for Pennsylvania personal income tax purposes. A seller often prefers to sell stock, rather than assets, because it avoids the double taxation problem. A 338(h)(10) is a tax election for a qualified stock purchase (QSP), which recharacterizes a stock purchase as an asset purchase for federal tax purposes. A seller may pay higher income taxes in an asset sale. Learn the tax implications for each type of sale.