Matriotti Albert Rafael 4

What Happened

• Albert Rafael Matriotti, a portfolio manager at BlackRock Alpha Strategies Fund (BAS), had phantom-share derivative awards settle on Feb 25, 2026. The filing shows a grant/award acquisition of 9,106.15 phantom shares valued at $10.81 each (total $98,437) and multiple exercise/conversion entries. Simultaneously, 3,075.31 phantom shares were disposed to the issuer at $10.81 per share for $33,244 (reported as a disposition).
• These transactions are not an open‑market purchase; they reflect derivative/phantom‑share settlements and a surrender/disposition (commonly used to cover tax withholding or similar obligations), rather than a discretionary buy or sell of stock on the market.

Key Details

• Transaction date: February 25, 2026 (Form 4 filed Feb 27, 2026).
• Principal entries reported:
  • Grant/Award (A): 9,106.15 phantom shares @ $10.81 = $98,437 (derivative award).
  • Disposition to issuer (D): 3,075.31 shares @ $10.81 = $33,244.
  • Exercise/conversion of derivative (M): 3,075.31; 2,391.44; and 683.87 shares reported (prices shown as N/A where cash‑settled).
• Shares owned after transaction: not specified in the filing.
• Footnotes: these are phantom shares (cash‑settled equivalents of common stock). Prior phantom grants cited from Feb 25, 2025 and Feb 23, 2024 vest in equal installments over three years (footnotes F1–F4).
• Filing timeliness: Reported Feb 27 for Feb 25 transactions (no late filing indicated).

Context

• Phantom shares are cash‑settled awards (they track the economic value of stock and pay out in cash upon vesting); they do not necessarily result in receiving tradable shares. When you see a “disposition to the issuer,” that commonly indicates shares/units were surrendered to cover taxes or other withholding obligations rather than a voluntary market sale.
• These entries look like routine compensation vesting and settlement activity by an employee/manager, not an indicator of an open‑market investment decision.