STICKELS ERIC 4

What Happened
Eric Stickels, a director of Community Financial System, Inc. (CBU), had 250 phantom stock units (deferred stock units under the company's LTIP) settled on March 16, 2026. Those units were converted into 250 shares of common stock; a fractional .9119 share was paid in cash at $57.42 per share. The 250 shares are worth about $14,355 and the fractional cash payment was about $52.36, for a total value of roughly $14,407.

Key Details

• Transaction date: March 16, 2026; Form 4 filed March 17, 2026 (timely filing).
• Transaction type/code: M — exercise/conversion of a derivative (settlement of phantom/deferred stock units).
• Price/reference: cash settlement for fractional share used $57.42/share (per footnote). Full-share value implied at same price.
• Shares settled: 250 shares issued; 0.9119 share settled in cash (~$52.36).
• Shares owned after transaction: not specified in the filing.
• Footnotes: F2 confirms these are deferred “phantom” stock units under the 2022 LTIP that convert into common stock at a predetermined date. F3 notes additional phantom units (32.1998; 35.6078; 32.6668) were acquired earlier via the plan’s dividend reinvestment feature.
• No indication of a sale or open‑market trade; this was a plan settlement rather than a purchase or disposition for cash proceeds to the insider.

Context
Deferred/phantom stock units are the economic equivalent of shares granted under the LTIP and are often settled in stock or cash at vesting or specified dates. Such settlements are routine compensation events and do not necessarily signal buying or selling intent. The filing shows conversion/settlement rather than an open‑market sale.