Booyah: Dissecting Jim Cramer’s new contract…
Ever since TheStreet.com (TSCM) issued this press release yesterday announcing that it had inked a new contract with Jim Cramer, there’s been no shortage of stories about the deal — most of which note the higher salary and the end to the temporary contracts. Love him or hate him, there’s few people on Wall Street who generate that kind of buzz.
But with the help of 10KWizard’s CompareWizard feature, it’s actually possible to compare Cramer’s current contract with the one filed back in August 2005. Here’s a brief rundown of the more interesting new tidbits, many of which seem to focus on what happens if TheStreet.com is acquired, another popular topic of periodic discussion:
•If TheStreet.com is acquired or the definition for change in control is met in some other way, Cramer’s presence on the site is not a given. As the filing notes, “Cramer shall have no obligation whatsoever to write for any such products.”
•Cramer will get three times his base salary — currrently $1.3 million — if TSCM is sold.
•If the company is sold, Cramer will get a gross-up to cover his tax bill. This section of the contract is actually pretty lengthy, spelling out several different scenarios on the payment of the gross-up.
There was also interesting new language on the Cramer persona, which the Company “acknowledges and agrees that sharp and caustic commentary and behavior is a part of Cramer’s persona and appeal and…shall not constitute Cause for termination.”
Finally, there was a personal note about Cramer’s current marital status. In Cramer’s last contract, there was a clause that permitted Cramer’s wife, Karen Backfisch-Olufsen “to engage in extensive securities activities.” In the new contract, the word wife was removed and replaced with the words, “any Cramer family members (including any spouse)”.
RSS
April 10th, 2008 at 3:29 pm
Let me get this straight, the original version said
“I can’t trade in any stocks I mention, BUT MY WIFE CAN!”
and the new version says
“I can’t trade in any stocks I mention, BUT ANY MEMBER OF MY FAMILY CAN!”
How interesting …
April 10th, 2008 at 3:35 pm
Exactamundo! What’s interesting is that family can be defined pretty broadly when it’s not defined as consisting of specific people, i.e. wife, mother, father, children. I have no idea whether Cramer has a second cousin twice removed, but technically, that could qualify here as being family.
April 10th, 2008 at 4:21 pm
Oh, how I long for every financial pundit to be so transparent as to write, “On the open at Monday, I’ll be selling X, Y, and Z, and buying A, B, and C. Here’s why … ”
Apparently that kind of transparancy ain’t for the big boys. They hide behind charitable trusts that can’t buy or sell if he’s mentioned the stock on his show - BUT HIS FAMILY CAN!!!!!!!