CENT 10% Owner William E. Brown Exercises Stock Options

What Happened

• William E. Brown, a 10% owner of Central Garden & Pet Co. (CENT), exercised options to acquire 127,942 shares on 2026-08-10 at an exercise price of $31.18 per share (total cash consideration $3,988,720). The issuer withheld 116,232 shares to cover the aggregate exercise price and withholding tax liability (valued at about $4,449,361 using the market price), leaving Brown with a net ~11,710 shares from this transaction.

Key Details

• Transaction date: 2026-08-10.
• Option exercise: 127,942 shares @ $31.18 (code M); Cash/tax withholding: 116,232 shares withheld @ $38.28 (code F); a derivative conversion entry for 127,942 shares is also reported.
• Net shares retained from this exercise: 127,942 − 116,232 = 11,710 shares.
• Footnotes: F1 = shares withheld by issuer to pay exercise price and withholding tax; F2 = the securities are owned by family irrevocable trusts (Brown and spouse are co-trustees and disclaim beneficial ownership except to the extent of pecuniary interest); F3 = option originally granted Aug 11, 2020 (102,354 pre-stock dividend / 127,942 post-dividend), vesting over four years starting Aug 11, 2021.
• Filing timeliness: Reported for period 2026-08-10 and filed 2026-08-12 (appears timely under Form 4 rules).

Context

• This was an option exercise with a cashless-style outcome: shares were exercised and the company withheld most shares to cover the exercise cost and taxes rather than Brown delivering cash.
• As a 10% owner the reporting person is a large holder (ownership via trusts), so these transactions reflect owner-level option activity rather than an open-market purchase or sale by an executive under a typical trading plan.
• Exercises with share withholding are common and do not necessarily signal a bullish or bearish view by the insider; they often reflect option vesting and tax/price mechanics.