“Earlier this week, Reddit disclosed in a corporate filing that CEO Steve Hoffman sold 500,000 shares, and Reddit COO Jennifer Wong also disclosed that she sold 514,000 shares.”
If they believed in the platform, they would hold. Yeah looks like they are looking for bag holders.
To be fair (and you can probably see by my username I don’t like reddit anymore), I think it makes perfect sense to dispose of a fair portion of your shares in this situation.
Firstly, these asshats get paid part of their salary in shares, it’s natural to want to get more security on part of your income. Secondly, with how hard the price rose in the first couple of days, it makes sense. But people are welcome to disagree, of course.
How does that respond to the original idea, that is:
if they believed in the company, they would hold their stock.
You are not a genius for selling your company’s stock after IPO, you are a grifter. Doesn’t matter how many voting shares they have, doesn’t matter how much more money they need - they do get paid in cash too, and they can borrow against the stock.
I have nothing I’m willing to defend about Reddit management, I love the idea that they will end up penniless one day (though I’m sure that will not happen.)
I just don’t think selling off 25% of one’s shares (necessarily) means what has been suggested.
The point would be to diversify assets. You don’t want to gamble everything on the hope the thing you believe in is successful. Not that I think they believe in the platform, but it is probably a smart idea to diversify no matter what. 25% of your shares does seem like a lot though.
I don’t know how much of a bag holding exercise it is instead of a “treat yoself” moment. Half a million shares at $50/share is $25 mil, minus 50% taxes is $12.5 mil.
That isn’t that much money in the bay area. Don’t get me wrong. It’s a lot. But that’s just a $4 million house with another $1 million in furnishings, and I’m guessing a nice car or two. Take the other $6 mil and invest in a diverse portfolio. They’ve basically sold their stock so they can square away their personal lives.
That’s not how stocks work. Share value doesn’t go to the company unless the company sells shares of itself that it owns. It also doesn’t lose money from share value unless it buys shares. The value of shares goes to the shareholder when sold, and it comes out of the wallet of the buyer.
It’s a show of a lack of faith maybe, but it doesn’t effect the company at all except for the effect on stock value from selling if the company also decides to liquidate shares too.
I wasn’t trying to make a “won’t someone think about the shareholders” argument. Thanks for the strawman.
Really the gist of what I was after is “you’d do the same in their position”. $12.5 mil is a lot, but we’re not talking about $12.5mil/year. Its a one time sale. Someone that earns $100,000/yr just saw 125 years of income materialize in a couple seconds. But if you had the same opportunity, you’d probably do the same. If you would instead donate it to charity, please let us know which charities you’d donate to.
“Earlier this week, Reddit disclosed in a corporate filing that CEO Steve Hoffman sold 500,000 shares, and Reddit COO Jennifer Wong also disclosed that she sold 514,000 shares.”
If they believed in the platform, they would hold. Yeah looks like they are looking for bag holders.
I think it matters more what percent of their holdings they sell rather than the amount they sell.
The COO holds 1.4 million now, so she dumped 25% of her shares
To be fair (and you can probably see by my username I don’t like reddit anymore), I think it makes perfect sense to dispose of a fair portion of your shares in this situation. Firstly, these asshats get paid part of their salary in shares, it’s natural to want to get more security on part of your income. Secondly, with how hard the price rose in the first couple of days, it makes sense. But people are welcome to disagree, of course.
How does that respond to the original idea, that is:
if they believed in the company, they would hold their stock.
You are not a genius for selling your company’s stock after IPO, you are a grifter. Doesn’t matter how many voting shares they have, doesn’t matter how much more money they need - they do get paid in cash too, and they can borrow against the stock.
So they sold out. Fuck them both for that.
Selling quarter of your stock AT THE FUCKING IPO is a shame. I can’t believe people are defending that.
And I suspect they can’t sell the rest as easily as the A shares.
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And how does that go against the “they don’t have faith in their business” argument?
I have nothing I’m willing to defend about Reddit management, I love the idea that they will end up penniless one day (though I’m sure that will not happen.)
I just don’t think selling off 25% of one’s shares (necessarily) means what has been suggested.
What would you agree means that they don’t have faith in their business?
The point would be to diversify assets. You don’t want to gamble everything on the hope the thing you believe in is successful. Not that I think they believe in the platform, but it is probably a smart idea to diversify no matter what. 25% of your shares does seem like a lot though.
They get paid in cash ffs.
You sell stock when you think it’s overvalued.
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I don’t know how much of a bag holding exercise it is instead of a “treat yoself” moment. Half a million shares at $50/share is $25 mil, minus 50% taxes is $12.5 mil.
That isn’t that much money in the bay area. Don’t get me wrong. It’s a lot. But that’s just a $4 million house with another $1 million in furnishings, and I’m guessing a nice car or two. Take the other $6 mil and invest in a diverse portfolio. They’ve basically sold their stock so they can square away their personal lives.
Won’t somebody think of the poor shareholders.
When I treat myself, it’s to a takeaway meal that’s like $20. Reddit has “never made a profit”™. Siphoning $16mil out of it on day one is obscene.
In what way do you think they’ve siphoned $16mm out of Reddit?
That’s not how stocks work. Share value doesn’t go to the company unless the company sells shares of itself that it owns. It also doesn’t lose money from share value unless it buys shares. The value of shares goes to the shareholder when sold, and it comes out of the wallet of the buyer.
It’s a show of a lack of faith maybe, but it doesn’t effect the company at all except for the effect on stock value from selling if the company also decides to liquidate shares too.
I wasn’t trying to make a “won’t someone think about the shareholders” argument. Thanks for the strawman.
Really the gist of what I was after is “you’d do the same in their position”. $12.5 mil is a lot, but we’re not talking about $12.5mil/year. Its a one time sale. Someone that earns $100,000/yr just saw 125 years of income materialize in a couple seconds. But if you had the same opportunity, you’d probably do the same. If you would instead donate it to charity, please let us know which charities you’d donate to.