This Monday is a bit crazy as after Microsoft paid out the $3.00 special dividend, I had to rush to change my portfolio of stock options. According to approved amendments to the stock plans, the strike price of all outstanding options was reduced by 10%, and number of outstanding options was increased by 11.11%. Number of upcoming Stock Award shares was adjusted upward by 11.11%, too. It's a pretty big tracking task for me, as in my personal finance software, I had to create several new series of stock option while expiring the original ones.
After the $3 payout, MSFT started the week strongly, briefly touching $27.50 before falling gradually over the week. One remaining issue in my post MSFT Reaching 52-Week High. Now What? is the approach for a batch of soon-to-expire stock options. I made the decision earlier today to cash out them; the trade was executed at $26.92. After federal income tax and Medicare tax, this landed me a bit more than $2,000.
Yes, I might left some money on the table -- if MSFT turns the corner and refreshes 52-week highs, but I am satisfied with the cash at hand. It is already much better than what I could get just two weeks ago. With NASDAQ at this altitude, I cannot ask for more (yes, I am an all-time paranoid).