More than a million restricted shares of Apple stock that seven of them were granted on Dec. 14, 2005 became fully vested Wednesday. The next day, with Apple opening at an all-time record high, four of them sold off all those shares pursuant, as the SEC Form 4 has it, to a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan, reports "Fortune" (http://macosg.me/2/18).
Chief Operating Office Tim Cook was the "big winner," the article adds. He sold 300,000 Apple shares at prices ranging from US$226.9 to $230.7, for a total of $68.8 million -- $32 million of which was set aside for taxes.
"Fortune" reports that three other officers also dumped their restricted shares Thursday. Chief Financial Officer Peter Oppenheimer sold 200,000 shares and cleared $45.98 million. Ron Johnson, senior vice president for retail sold 200,000 shares and cleared $45.95 million. Phil Schiller, senior vice president of worldwide marketing, sold 150,000 shares and cleared $34.47 million.
Three other senior staffers -- Serlet Bertrand (granted 150,000 restricted shares in 2005), Scott Forstall (50,000) and Robert Mansfield (50,000) -- sold some of their shares "to satisfy minimum statutory withholding requirements and held on to the rest," says "Fortune."
