Al Gore’s Apple Stock Is Now Worth $35 Million

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Apple
stock has rocketed as of late and former Vice President Al Gore’s investment in the shares has soared into the tens of millions of dollars.

Gore most recently acquired Apple stock (ticker: AAPL) on Jan. 27 when he used options to purchase 32,889 shares for $28.86 each, less than a 10th of the market value as of Friday’s close at $309.51. Gore paid a total of $949,081 for Apple stock worth $10.2 million. He now owns 113,585 Apple shares, according to a form Gore filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Gore’s stake is now valued at $35.2 million.

The options that Gore used were obtained from his service as an Apple director. He has served on the company’s board since 2003, four years before the first iPhone launched. Gore’s options were exercisable as of February 2010 and were set to expire this Feb. 25.

Gore, through a representative, declined to comment on his latest stock transactions.

Apple directors are no longer issued stock options. Instead, they now receive awards of restricted stock units, or RSUs, along with a cash retainer. As of the latest proxy, nonemployee directors receive a $100,000 retainer in cash and $250,000 in RSUs.

Apple stock surged 89% in 2019, triple the 28.9% rise in the
S&P 500
index. So far in 2020 it has gained 5.4%, compared with the flat performance by the index.

Gore hasn’t been selling into Apple stock’s strength. In fact, he last sold Apple stock in February 2017, when he sold a total of 285,437 shares for $38.4 million, an average per-share price of $134.67 each.

Inside Scoop is a regular Barron’s feature covering stock transactions by corporate executives and board members—so-called insiders—as well as large shareholders, politicians, and other prominent figures. Due to their insider status, these investors are required to disclose stock trades with the Securities and Exchange Commission or other regulatory groups.

Write to Ed Lin at [email protected] and follow @BarronsEdLin.