Blog Post March 1, 2011

ESPP Participation Rising

According to a February 18 story on MarketWatch.com, employee participation in employee stock purchase plans (ESPPs) is rising.
Blog Post November 16, 2009

ESPP Survey Shows Participants More Committed

A 2009 survey of 3,207 participants in employee stock purchase plans (ESPPs) by Computershare and the London School of Economics found that employees in the plans said they were more interested in the company, worked harder, and were less likely to look for a job in the coming year than those not
Blog Post November 28, 2006

ESPPs Becoming Somewhat More Restrictive

In the most comprehensive study available on employee stock purchase plans (ESPPs), the research firm Equilar has found that 21.4% of the Russell 3000 companies (the largest 3,000 public companies) with ESPPs conform to the new "safe harbor" accounting rules that allow companies that offer no loo
Blog Post April 30, 2009

ESPPs in a Down Market Pose Special Challenges

When stock prices fall significantly, employee stock purchase plans (ESPPs) can run into difficult, if avoidable, problems. Most plans allow employees to buy stock at a discount from the lower of the share price at the beginning or end of the offering period.
Blog Post January 15, 2010

Estate Tax Changes Could Affect Sellers to ESOPs

The surprise failure by Congress to address the one-year lapse in the estate tax effective in 2010 means that if replacement securities owned by a seller to an ESOP who took a Section 1042 tax deferral on the sale are passed to an estate, they could be subject to capital gains taxes, at least for