Apple executives net $150M selling vested stock units granted in 2008
After a batch of restricted stock-based compensation vested last Saturday, three of Apple's executives sold off the shares, netting roughly $150 million after taxes.
Regulatory filings submitted to the SEC revealed the transactions, as reported by iPhoneinCanada.ca. Apple CEO Tim Cook, CFO Peter Oppenheimer, SVP Scott Forstall, SVP Phil Schiller and SVP Bob Mansfield were all reported as having vested restricted stock units on March 24.
The Cupertino, Calif., company granted the compensation in September 2008 in order to lock in its core executive team through 2012. At the time, shares of Apple stood at $105.26 and the stock grants were worth $122 million.
Cook received the largest award with a total of 200,000 shares. 93,360 of the shares were set aside to pay taxes on the award. After the remaining securities were sold off in batches, Cook netted $64 million. Earlier this month, the executive made " target="_blank">$11 million off vested stock granted to him after he guided the company while the late Steve Jobs' was on medical leave.
After taxes, Oppenheimer made $47 million off his 150,000 shares, while Schiller netted $39 million from 120,000 shares. Cook, Oppenheimer and Schiller each had set up their trades through a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan that schedules transactions in advance to protect executives from allegations of insider trading.
Both Mansfield and Forstall did not appear to have automatically traded their vested shares, though SEC forms showed that they had surrendered the shares needed to pay taxes on their awards. Apple SVP Jonathan Ive presumably also received more than $50 million in vested stock, but the company is not required to file SEC forms for the awards because of his position.
According to an analysis by equity research firm Equilar, Apple's executives are at the top of the list for company leaders benefitting from stock compensation this quarter. Another analysis by the firm found Cook to have the highest value in vested stock options among Silicon Valley executives during the first quarter.
Last November, Apple granted six of its senior vice presidents 150,000 shares each, with half vesting in June 2013 and the second half in March 2016. Cook was awarded a million restricted shares last August for his new role as CEO. Half of the stock units will vest in 2016 and the second half will vest in 2021.
Apple announced a plan last week to repurchase $10 billion of its shares over three years. The program, which launches in fiscal 2013, is meant to offset the impact of employee equity grants and stock purchase programs.
[ View article on AppleInsider ]
Comments
It makes my rather pathetic holdings in AAPL seem like a big joke.
2016 is going to come fast. My first hope is that money is not a primary motivator for this group - that it is all about building the world's best products. That above everything
My second hope is that Apple is aggressively identifying and training the next leadership team
I feel pretty confident on both
Hmmm...the head cheeses are selling their stock? What do these guys know that the average Joe the Plumber doesn't k now?
Don't worry, they just need some cash to buy a nice easter bunny.
.... Cook, Oppenheimer and Schiller each had set up their trades through a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan that schedules transactions in advance to protect executives from allegations of insider trading....
Hmmm...the head cheeses are selling their stock? What do these guys know that the average Joe the Plumber doesn't k now?
Cook received the largest award with a total of 200,000 shares. 93,360 of the shares were set aside to pay taxes on the award.
That seems too high.
Hmmm...the head cheeses are selling their stock? What do these guys know that the average Joe the Plumber doesn't k now?
That portfolio diversification is a good thing.
Both Mansfield and Forstall did not appear to have automatically traded their vested shares, though SEC forms showed that they had surrendered the shares needed to pay taxes on their awards. Apple SVP Jonathan Ive presumably also received more than $50 million in vested stock, but the company is not required to file SEC forms for the awards because of his position.
Why would Forstall and Mansfield have to report their stock transactions but not Ive? They're all SVP's. Just curious what defines this.
Hmmm...the head cheeses are selling their stock? What do these guys know that the average Joe the Plumber doesn't k now?
Apple is doomed.? (Must be why AAPL is up $3.50 in per-market trading, following this news. /s)
PS: Not sure that Joe the Plumber is a knowledge benchmark of any kind.
Wow!!
... in September 2008 ... shares of Apple stood at $105.26. By close of play yesterday they stood at 614.48 - a 583% increase.
Wow!!
483%
Still pretty good.
Hmmm...the head cheeses are selling their stock? What do these guys know that the average Joe the Plumber doesn't k now?
The only thing we can be sure of is that they know wha they are going to do with the cash that they have been waiting for all these years.
insiders buying stock might give us valuable information. Insiders selling tells us nothing for sure.
483%
Still pretty good.
A return of about 65% per year, compounded. Not too bad compared to buying a CD down at your local bank.