Selling post IPO culturally frowned upon?

Question

Is selling your shares post-IPO culturally frowned upon? The company I work for has a strong culture of sticking to the mission, so I think it might be frowned upon to sell post lockup. However I am also worried about the current tech sell off and what that might mean for the next few years. Has anyone else encountered this before?

mediaman · Accepted Answer

The CEO selling most of their shares after the lock-up period expires would be seen as a majorly negative signal.
If you are not the CEO or a top executive, investors won't care, or even know. It's best to diversify. Even if you lose out on potential future appreciation - and get market returns instead - it's a dramatic reduction in risk, and presuming you get a lot more value out of the first few million than in more millions later, it's usually a good tradeoff.
If you are the CEO or a major shareholder, consider establishing a planned schedule of stock sales. Investors will not be so concerned about a gradual selloff that appears to function more as a method of providing constant cash flow.

sharemywin · Answer

diversifying is not bad idea period. you should talk to a financial advisor about a good way to diversify. and if you get some kind push back you can just blame it on them.if your an insider and you need to worry about signaling or legality. again probably need a financial planner.