Apple's Cook collects nearly $90M in vested RSUs on strong stock performance
Following a surge in Apple stock performance, Apple CEO Tim Cook last week collected the maximum number of restricted stock units -- totaling 560,000 shares -- afforded by his incentive plan, raking in $89.2 million for the effort.
Cook's award of 560,000 vested RSUs, and the subsequent sale of $43.2 million common shares, was disclosed in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing on Monday.
The chief executive on Aug. 24 saw 280,000 units of time-based RSUs and another 280,000 units of performance-based RSUs vest in accordance with an incentive plan adopted by Apple's board. In order for Cook to collect the bonus in full, Apple's shareholder return for the past three years had to beat two-thirds of the companies in the S&P 500.
Adjusted for dividends, Apple's average starting value was calculated at $97.74 on Aug. 25, 2014, while the average ending value was calculated at $166.72 on Aug. 27, 2017. Apple's total shareholder return for the three-year period was 70.57 percent, good enough to rank in 80th place of the 420 companies included in the comparison.
If Apple's performance fell in the middle third of the S&P 500, Cook's RSU award would have been reduced by half. Cook would have collected nothing if Apple stock finished in the bottom-third.
Last Thursday, Apple disposed of 291,377 shares to satisfy the minimum statutory tax withholding requirements on vesting of RSUs. Cook on Friday and today sold the remaining vested RSUs in a series of transactions ranging from $159.96 to $161.43 pursuant to his trading plan. The executive netted some $43.2 million as a result of the selloff.
Cook retains 901,474 shares of common stock in his trust worth $145.6 million at the end of trading today. Another 2,940,000 RSUs are pending, including a batch of 700,000 RSUs scheduled to vest on Aug. 24, 2021. The most recent 280,000-unit award was the second of six performance-based RSU packages set to vest in annual installments through 2021.
Cook's award of 560,000 vested RSUs, and the subsequent sale of $43.2 million common shares, was disclosed in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing on Monday.
The chief executive on Aug. 24 saw 280,000 units of time-based RSUs and another 280,000 units of performance-based RSUs vest in accordance with an incentive plan adopted by Apple's board. In order for Cook to collect the bonus in full, Apple's shareholder return for the past three years had to beat two-thirds of the companies in the S&P 500.
Adjusted for dividends, Apple's average starting value was calculated at $97.74 on Aug. 25, 2014, while the average ending value was calculated at $166.72 on Aug. 27, 2017. Apple's total shareholder return for the three-year period was 70.57 percent, good enough to rank in 80th place of the 420 companies included in the comparison.
If Apple's performance fell in the middle third of the S&P 500, Cook's RSU award would have been reduced by half. Cook would have collected nothing if Apple stock finished in the bottom-third.
Last Thursday, Apple disposed of 291,377 shares to satisfy the minimum statutory tax withholding requirements on vesting of RSUs. Cook on Friday and today sold the remaining vested RSUs in a series of transactions ranging from $159.96 to $161.43 pursuant to his trading plan. The executive netted some $43.2 million as a result of the selloff.
Cook retains 901,474 shares of common stock in his trust worth $145.6 million at the end of trading today. Another 2,940,000 RSUs are pending, including a batch of 700,000 RSUs scheduled to vest on Aug. 24, 2021. The most recent 280,000-unit award was the second of six performance-based RSU packages set to vest in annual installments through 2021.
Comments
Apple also has an employee stock purchase program which allows employees to purchase Apple shares at a discount to their trading price.
https://forums.appleinsider.com/discussion/192955/citing-concerns-in-china-activist-investor-carl-icahn-no-longer-owns-shares-of-apple/p1 post # 13
"But still Tim Cook got totally played by Ichan. He convinced Apple to do the buyback. Apple bought back $115 billion in shares and it did NOTHING to help its valuation. Ichan sells his shares for hundreds of millions in profits. Apple is stuck with $115 billion less in cash and $60 billion in debt.
Personally I'm sick of this mismanagement in capital by Tim Cook.
For wasting $115 billion alone he needs to be fired."
https://forums.appleinsider.com/discussion/196471/microsoft-debuts-surface-studio-all-in-one-pc-refreshes-high-end-surface-book/p7 post # 140
"Yup. Panos is young. He has something to prove. He has a legacy to build. He's excited and has passion.
On the other hand Cook is fat and satisfied. No passion. No fire. No excitement.
Apple really needs to inject some new blood. Cook/Ive/ect are old and lazy and not willing to take risks. They already have it made, all worth over $100 million each.
I want a young CEO who is hungry. "
https://forums.appleinsider.com/discussion/191130/apple-to-pay-italy-348m-sign-accord-to-circumvent-allegations-of-unpaid-taxes post # 23
"Well then Cook should hire someone who knows how to articulate with Wall Street an investors the vision of Apple.
He has NOT hired anyone and instead has tried to articulate the vision himself. He has FAILED. Wall Street and investors still view Apple as simply a hardware company. Apple is a lifestyle and ecosystem company. Yet Wall Street does not think so. That's Tim Cooks fault.
Either Cook needs to hire someone who can articulate this vision or he must step down."
We might also note that, when Mr. Cook agreed to make some of his RSUs performance based, he also got a change that was to his benefit. The new agreement moved up the vesting of most of the shares. Under the original terms, the RSU award meant that he'd get half of the shares (3.5 million, split adjusted) five years after he became CEO and the other half 10 years after he became CEO. That award was entirely time dependent. Under the new terms, Mr. Cook would get 8% of the shares (560,000, split adjusted) each year. Half of those shares would be time based, the other half would be performance based. Mr. Cook would also get 10% of the shares (700,000, split adjusted) five years after he became CEO and another 10% ten years after he became CEO. Those shares remained time based.
I'll also throw this in, since it relates to the theme of Mr. Cook agreeing to condition (or give up) part of the compensation he's entitled to. He has already voluntarily given up nearly $60 million worth of dividend equivalents (on unvested RSUs) which he is entitled to. He's on course to give up a total of around $80 million worth over his first 10 years as CEO.
If Apple continue producing cash like it has,. the buyback will be profitable both for investors (with much higher dividends) and Apple cause it may in fact pay less in dividend long term by doing that. Other option would be to sit on money or invest in real crap. That Wall Street takes 10 years to realize all this is immaterial, it will eventually have an impact in actuality.
A bit further down the hierarchy, large incomes for a massive number of employees don't necessarily help them all that much because it skews housing prices to the point where their large income doesn't really let them live a better lifestyle. When a house that would have been $175,000 not all that long ago is selling for $1.75 million today, that doesn't help anyone but the person who sold the house, and it only helps them if they move to a less expensive area.
Back in the day, the railroad barons and other gilded age owners may have been terrible people, but they did build great public spaces, opera houses and endow museums, libraries, parks, hospitals and schools. You don't see that today among the super-rich. They're too concerned with losing their place on Forbes' lists of the most wealthy.
Unbelievable. Do you have any clue whether and how much he personally gave for Harvey relief? Your blithe pre-emptive negative judgment of people is actually what is disgusting.
Btw, to whom do you think the $256B in cash belongs?
Um... really? Have you heard of the Gates Foundation? Do you know that Warren Buffet has pledged ALL of his Berkshire Hathaway stock -- Its value is probably upward of $75B -- to charity (actually, to the Gates Foundation)? Did you know that Zuckerberg has pledged to give away almost ALL his wealth? Have you heard of The Giving Pledge? Why don't you go over there and see how much 170 billionaires have pledged to charity, and educate yourself a bit instead of spouting ill-informed nonsense?