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You can't take it with you: Sunset provisions for equity compensation when managers retire, resign, or die

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  • Dahiya, Sandeep
  • Yermack, David

Abstract

Company stock option plans have diverse "sunset" policies for modifying terms of options held by managers who exit the firm. In our S&P 500 sample, these forfeiture, vesting, and expiration provisions are less generous in companies characterized by fast growth, dependence on skilled human capital, and high strategic interaction with competitors. While these results apply for workers who retire at the end of their careers, almost no variation exists in the treatment of workers who resign with the possibility of working elsewhere. For CEOs over age 60, companies' sunset rules imply large discounts to option award values and estimates of total compensation.

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  • Dahiya, Sandeep & Yermack, David, 2008. "You can't take it with you: Sunset provisions for equity compensation when managers retire, resign, or die," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 14(5), pages 499-511, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:corfin:v:14:y:2008:i:5:p:499-511
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    4. Gabaix, Xavier & Sannikov, Yuliy & Edmans, Alex & Sadzik, Tomasz, 2009. "Dynamic Incentive Accounts," CEPR Discussion Papers 7497, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    5. Cziraki, Peter & Xu, Moqi, 2014. "CEO job security and risk-taking," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 55909, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    6. Denton Collins & Gary Fleischman & Stacey Kaden & Juan Manuel Sanchez, 2018. "How Powerful CFOs Camouflage and Exploit Equity-Based Incentive Compensation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 153(2), pages 591-613, December.
    7. Doukas, John A. & Zhang, Rongyao, 2020. "Corporate managerial ability, earnings smoothing, and acquisitions," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    8. Liljeblom, Eva & Pasternack, Daniel & Rosenberg, Matts, 2011. "What determines stock option contract design?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 102(2), pages 293-316.
    9. Izhakian, Yehuda & Yermack, David, 2017. "Risk, ambiguity, and the exercise of employee stock options," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(1), pages 65-85.
    10. Bang Dang Nguyen & Kasper Meisner Nielsen, 2014. "What Death Can Tell: Are Executives Paid for Their Contributions to Firm Value?," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 60(12), pages 2994-3010, December.
    11. Vuong Thao Tran & Van Hoang Vu & Anh Le & Dinh Hoang Bach Phan, 2024. "Does it pay to treat employees well?: The case of informal finance," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 51(1-2), pages 473-510, January.
    12. Klein, Daniel, 2018. "Executive turnover and the valuation of stock options," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 76-93.
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