Reports are surfacing that Apple is offering some of its employees a deal so they can avoid a huge tax mess related to backdated options.
According to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Apple employees with incorrectly dated stock options can exchange those grants for options that can be exercised at the stock-market price on the date their grants actually were finalized.
In return, Apple will make a cash payment equal to the difference in the value of the old grant and the new grant. “Cash payments will be paid on or promptly following Jan. 25, 2008, and all such payments will be subject to any applicable tax withholding,” Apple said in the SEC filing. The offer does not apply to any executives or members of the board of directors.
Pixar’s new owner, Disney, said in a statement yesterday that its investigation found backdated stock options at the company. “The committee and board have concluded that while options were backdated at Pixar prior to the acquisition, no one currently associated with the company engaged in any intentional or deliberate acts of misconduct,” Disney Chairman John Pepper Jr. said in a statement.
“The board further determined that Disney should address the additional income-tax liability issues facing Pixar employees who hold such options, including participating in programs established by the IRS and the state of California to facilitate the payment of such taxes on behalf of employees.”
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