GLADSTEIN GARY S 4

What Happened

• Gary S. Gladstein, a director of Mueller Industries (MLI), exercised stock options on 2026-05-01 to acquire 9,778 shares. He paid an exercise price of $12.63 per share (total ≈ $123,447).
• To satisfy tax withholding, 919 of the newly acquired shares were surrendered/issued to the company at $134.24 per share (value ≈ $123,367), leaving a net increase of 8,859 shares to Gladstein.
• The filings also report the option/derivative being converted/cancelled on exercise (reported as a derivative disposal at $0).

Key Details

• Transaction date: 2026-05-01; Form 4 filed 2026-05-04 (appears timely).
• Exercise: 9,778 shares at $12.63 (code M); Tax withholding: 919 shares at $134.24 (code F).
• Net shares retained by insider: 8,859 (9,778 acquired − 919 surrendered).
• Shares owned after transaction: not specified in the provided filing.
• Notes: Code M = option exercise/conversion; Code F = payment of exercise price or tax withholding (share surrender). No 10b5-1 plan or other special instructions disclosed in the provided data.

Context

• This was an options exercise (not an open-market purchase). The surrender of 919 shares to cover taxes is a common, administrative step (often called a cashless or net share settlement) and does not, by itself, imply a change in sentiment.
• For retail investors, exercises that result in a net increase in holdings (here, +8,859 shares) represent insider accumulation of stock, albeit resulting from option terms rather than an outright cash purchase on the open market.