And now, he's leaving Apple. Who sounds bright now? /sigh
Look, I'm no options expert, but it is an option, right? Let's pretend Wikipedia is right when it says, "An option which conveys the right to buy something at a specific price is called a call; an option which conveys the right to sell something at a specific price is called a put." Sound like he had a put, right? Unless somebody knows differently (and I have no idea, really), he could have held the stock until later, yes? If not, and he had to sell now or not sell at all, well, this is some crappy reporting.
I could be missing something, but if Mansfield really had an option to sell, he didn't have to. He did. I didn't say Apple was about to tank. I suggested Mansfield's selling is, at best a neutral thing. For me, that's a canary. Him leaving's another, and something that probably is less surprising to a more careful listener in 2011 than yourself. There's certainly no refuting my original post with boring words: Mansfield selling, Mansfield leaving -- these are not positive things for Apple.
I mean, good for him. Freaking GREAT for him. Looks like he left many many millions on the table by leaving now, but he's done wonderfully. But his leaving this shortly after Jobs is, again, at best A Neutral Thing for stock watchers.
I held the vast majority of my shares, and I'm glad I did. Sorry I offended so many Apple fanatics. But look, there's nothing celebratory about Mansfield's decisions from Apple's point of view. Downvoters can choose to interpret tea leaves differently, but there's really no good reason to call this a positive thing.
Better luck next time.
