Bad stock deal cost Steve Jobs $10 billion
Just to prove that no one is perfect, it seems that Apple CEO Steve Jobs, the man credited with the iPhone and the iPad, made a stock deal back in 2003 that has since cost him the amazing sum of $10 billion.
It’s difficult to remember that someone as successful as Steve Jobs can actually make the occasional mistake, but we all know better. It is possible for the fellow who may be the most successful CEO in America to make that occasional error, and knowing that should make us all fee a little better. According to a story in the Wall Street Journal, Jobs made his faux pas back in 2003.
In that year, tech stocks were not doing particularly well, with some actually tanking. Jobs had a large stock option coming, but canceled it and took a smaller amount at a higher price, perhaps feeling the same bearish mood as the rest of the investment community. It was not long after that event that Apple started back, sailing into the pink on the back of the iPod and iPhone. So far, that boom period is still going on, and Apple stock prices are still rising.
If Jobs had taken all of those options, they would have turned into over $12.8 billion at today’s stock price, considerably more than the $2.5 billion Jobs made on the smaller number of shares he settled for. That difference, $10.3 billion, is the amount of money that he could have gained but did not. Everyone can agree that’s a considerable chunk of change.
Still, it is hard to see a reason to feel sorry for Jobs, and it would be surprising if he felt too badly about it all. He is credited with bringing Apple back from the brink and positioning the company for even better things in the future. He is said to be the 136th wealthiest person on the planet. He seems to have his health back, which may be the best thing of all. If Steve is feeling smug instead of sorry, you can’t blame him.
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May 19th, 2010
A missed opportunity is not a cost. If that was the case, every single person who didn’t buy Google shares or Microsoft shares at the outset would have “cost” use billions of dollars. Jobs didn’t lose money, he just didn’t make as much – and guess what? Nobody can see the future – even ol Stevie boy.
May 21st, 2010
If Steve is feeling smug instead of sorry, you can’t blame him.