Option-for-stock grant move costs Jobs $371M
updated 08:30 pm EST, Wed November 24, 2004
Jobs compensation loss?
Bloomberg notes that Steve Jobs decision to trade in his "under-water" stock options for an one-time stock in unrealized profit: "Steve Jobs in January 2000 received the largest option grant in history: 20 million shares [along with a] second option [later] covering another 7.5 million shares, which was granted in October 2001. Jobs then took an offer in March 2003 to turn in all 27.5 million shares for five million free shares then worth about $75 million. As of the markets close on Nov. 22, those free shares had a value of $307 million. Had Jobs kept his 27.5 million option shares, they would have contained, again as of the close on Nov. 22, paper profits of $678 million. Bad move, Steve. Some people may perceive you as arrogant, but based on your decision, you really underestimated yourself."
Boohoohoo
11/24, 09:03pm reply
I am sure Steve is crying over his $3 plus billion fortune now.
Filburt
Junior Member
Joined: Aug 2001
"paper profits"
11/24, 09:17pm reply
That's the key term here. The writer is speaking as though Steve would have been able to foresee all events and know EXACTLY when to turn those options into shares (Apple's low point) and EXACTLY when to sell them. There's more theory and guesswork here than there is in a Bush tax plan.
Instead of $678 million in pretend profits, Jobs got $307M in real profits. I don't think he did TOO badly on the deal, but the writer is missing the point: it really isn't just about money with Steve, the way it is with most of the rest of the tech giants.
chas_m
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Aug 2001
when will we ever learn
11/24, 10:42pm reply
He only made 307 million dollars???
That's disgusting, outright disgusting, I think the apple board should apologize and give him another 5 million shares and beg him for forgiveness.
pay a man a decent wage, for a days work! It's a simple concept.
Jonathan-Tanya
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Oct 2004
options
11/24, 10:44pm reply
btw, chaz, that isn't how options work...you have the option to buy a share at a set price....you don't have to guess when to convert them to real shares, you never convert them to real shares until you are ready to cash in.
the speculator, was saying if he held the options, what those options would be worth today, if he still had the 'options'....not if he had converted them at some point in the past to real shares.
Jonathan-Tanya
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Oct 2004
silly
11/24, 11:13pm reply
This seems really silly........... Jobs does not strike me as someone who cares if he misses out on a few hundred million dollars. I'm sure he is more than happy with his fortune as it is.
Elektrix
Dedicated MacNNer
Joined: Sep 2001
get a life…
11/25, 03:18pm reply
Bloomberg and all their money grubbing employees, customers and hangers on et al might find it amazing that maybe, just maybe there is more to life than spending every waking minute trying to leverage more and more money out of everything and everyone FOR WHAT?!?! So many fools in this country trapped in that insanity, remember the root of all evil? The love of money, of course, and what else can they say their motivation is? Sad to say but they'll be the death of all things good, this country is weakening by the day.
ecrelin
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Oct 2000
Yeah, but...
11/26, 12:58am reply
are all the criticizers who blasted apple for this swap (which was part of the whole "We've got to get rid of the options! Won't anyone think of the children!" craze) and how much it cost apple going to say "Hey, it actually worked out better for apple?"
Probably not, they'll criticize apple still for the deal somehow...
LouZer
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Nov 2000