Dell officials sell shares as part of diversification
From Austin American-Statesman, Tuesday, October 20, 1998, page D2
By Jerry Mahoney, American-Statesman Staff
Michael Dell and several senior executives at Dell Computer Corp. sold large blocks of shares of Dell stock this fall, in what a company spokesman described as planned portfolio diversification.
Michael Dell sold 4 million shares, or about 2 percent of his holdings, on Sept. 25 for nearly $260 million, according to reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
For several years, the 33-year-old founder of Dell has sold Dell shares according to a schedule set by the company. The schedule is approximately a six-week period beginning immediately after quarterly results are announced.
Under that schedule, Dell is restricted from selling his shares during about half the year, said Dell spokesman T. R. Reid. Other officers, including Vice Chairman Mort Topfer and Kevin Rollins and Chief Financial Officer Tom Meredith also are governed for the most part by that schedule, Reid said.
Michael Dell's Sept. 25 sale, four days before the shares reached a peak of $69.25, was a departure from his pattern. But it was consistent with his efforts to diversify his investments and should not be interpreted as a signal about the company, Reid said.
Eight other executives and directors also sold hundreds of thousands of shares in the days leading up to Sept. 29, according to the Washington Service, which tracks insider buying and selling.
"That these trades come relatively close together should not be surprising," Reid said.
Paul Elliott, research analyst with CDA Investnet, said that in some cases Dell executives sold more shares than the number of options they exercised, which suggests they lowered their holdings in Dell.
That and the timing of the sales were departures from previous practices, he said.
On Monday (Oct 19), Dell shares closed at $57.25, up 56 ¼ cents in N asdaq trading.
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