editione2.1.1
Updated September 12, 2022At face value, the most direct approach to equity compensation would be for the company to award stock to an employee in exchange for work. In practice, it turns out a company will only want to do this with restrictions on how and when the stock is fully owned.
Even so, this is actually one of the least common ways to get equity. We mention it first because it is the simplest form of equity compensation, useful for comparison as things get more complex.
Definition A restricted stock award is when a company grants someone stock as a form of compensation. The stock awarded has additional conditions on it, including a vesting schedule, so is called restricted stock. Restricted stock awards may also be called simply stock awards or stock grants.
technical What restricted means here is actually complex. It refers to the fact that the stock (i) has certain restrictions on it (like transfer restrictions) required for private company stock, and (ii) will be subject to repurchase at cost pursuant to a vesting schedule. The repurchase right lapses over the service-based vesting period, which is what is meant in this case by the stock “vesting.”
confusion Restricted stock awards are not the same thing as restricted stock units.
Typically, stock awards are limited to executives or very early hires, since once the value of the shares increases, the tax burden of receiving them (without paying the company for their value) can be too great for most people. Usually, instead of restricted stock, an employee will get stock options.
Definition Stock options are contracts that allow individuals to buy a specified number of shares in the company they work for at a fixed price. Stock options are the most common way early-stage companies grant equity.
Definition A person who has received a stock option grant is not a shareholder until they exercise their option, which means purchasing some or all of their shares at the strike price. Prior to exercising, an option holder does not have voting rights.
Definition The strike price (or exercise price) is the fixed price per share at which stock can be purchased, as set in a stock option agreement. The strike price is generally set lower (often much lower) than what people expect will be the future value of the stock, which means selling the stock down the road could be profitable.