<p>The possible exception to the advice to go ahead and sell would be if your AGI is below $50k or $31k. Those are the cut offs for simplified needs (where assets are ignored in the EFC formula) and the auto 0 EFC (where the EFC is set at 0 and disregards everything other than the AGI). Selling stock would mean you would be ineligible to file a 1040a or ez which would probably make you ineligible for these which, if eligible, can have a big impact on FA. But if your AGI is over these cut offs then there would probably be little FA impact.</p>