Akebia (AKBA) CEO John P. Butler Exercises 350,000 Options

What Happened
John P. Butler, CEO, President and a director of Akebia Therapeutics (AKBA), exercised options on August 6, 2026 to acquire 350,000 shares at a strike price of $0.63 per share, costing $220,500. The filing also shows a matching derivative disposition entry for 350,000 shares at $0.00 related to the exercise (both reported with transaction code M).

Key Details

• Transaction date: 2026-08-06 (reported on Form 4 filed 2026-08-10).
• Acquired: 350,000 shares via option exercise at $0.63 each (total cash paid $220,500).
• Disposed: 350,000 derivative units at $0.00 (reported as related derivative conversion/disposition).
• Shares owned after transaction: not specified in the provided excerpt of the filing.
• Footnote F1: Ownership figures include 1,500 shares purchased June 30, 2026 under the Issuer's ESPP.
• Footnote F2: The options were granted Jan 31, 2023 and vest over four years (25% vested Jan 31, 2024; remaining 75% vest quarterly thereafter).
• Filing timeliness: Filed Aug 10, 2026; within the required reporting window for a Form 4 (not marked late).

Context

• Code M indicates an option exercise/conversion. The $0.00 "Disposed" line typically reflects conversion/cancellation of the derivative instrument tied to the exercise rather than an open-market sale at no value; no market sale of the underlying shares at a price is reported here.
• This was an acquisition (insider paid to exercise options), which is generally more informative to investors than routine sales, but filings alone do not reveal the insider's motives.