Golden Entertainment (NASDAQ: GDEN) CEO swaps shares in VICI merger
Rhea-AI Filing Summary
NEW ROYAL HOLDCO I INC. (GDEN) Chairman and CEO Blake L. Sartini reported a large, merger-driven restructuring of his equity on April 29–30, 2026. On April 29, he received 68,366 shares of common stock as a grant and exercised multiple stock options and stock units, including 200,000 options at $11.50 per share and 264,000 options at $10.51 per share. The filing shows all outstanding RSUs, PSUs and unvested stock options vested in full and were exercised on the Equity Award Settlement Date under a Master Transaction Agreement involving VICI Properties Inc. A total of 341,965 shares were withheld to cover tax obligations and option exercise costs at $28.55 per share. Following these events, on April 30 the Sartini family trust disposed of 5,644,788 shares and Sartini directly disposed of 524,509 shares to the issuer or its successor, as part of the reorganization in which each common share was exchanged for 0.902% of a VICI Properties Inc. share, leaving no reported common stock of the issuer held after the transaction.
Positive
- None.
Negative
- None.
Insights
CEO’s Form 4 reflects option/RSU cleanup and merger consideration, not open‑market selling.
The filing shows Blake Sartini’s equity awards being accelerated and settled under a Master Transaction Agreement with VICI Properties Inc. All outstanding RSUs, PSUs and unvested options vested and were exercised on the Equity Award Settlement Date, converting derivative awards into common stock.
Cash obligations for taxes and option exercises were largely handled via share withholding: 341,965 shares at $28.55 per share. This is a mechanistic tax-withholding disposition, not a discretionary market sale, and is typical around large equity settlements.
Subsequently, 5,644,788 shares held by the Sartini family trust and 524,509 directly held shares were disposed in connection with the reorganization, with each share exchanged for 0.902% of a VICI Properties Inc. share. Because these are issuer and merger-related dispositions rather than open-market trades, the economic terms are primarily driven by the transaction agreement, and the filing reads as structural cleanup of holdings during a change-of-control event.
Insider Trade Summary
| Type | Security | Shares | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Disposition | Common Stock | 524,509 | $0.00 | -- |
| Disposition | Common Stock | 5,644,788 | $0.00 | -- |
| Exercise | Stock Option | 264,000 | $0.00 | -- |
| Exercise | Stock Option | 200,000 | $0.00 | -- |
| Exercise | Restricted Stock Units | 19,696 | $0.00 | -- |
| Exercise | Restricted Stock Units | 48,727 | $0.00 | -- |
| Exercise | Restricted Stock Units | 62,638 | $0.00 | -- |
| Exercise | Restricted Stock Units | 68,367 | $0.00 | -- |
| Exercise | Common Stock | 264,000 | $10.51 | $2.77M |
| Exercise | Common Stock | 200,000 | $11.50 | $2.30M |
| Exercise | Common Stock | 19,696 | $0.00 | -- |
| Exercise | Common Stock | 48,727 | $0.00 | -- |
| Exercise | Common Stock | 62,638 | $0.00 | -- |
| Exercise | Common Stock | 68,367 | $0.00 | -- |
| Grant/Award | Common Stock | 68,366 | $0.00 | -- |
| Disposition | Common Stock | 136,733 | $28.55 | $3.90M |
| Tax Withholding | Common Stock | 341,965 | $28.55 | $9.76M |
Footnotes (1)
- Represents the exercise of stock options on the Equity Award Settlement Date, as defined under, and in accordance with the terms of, that certain Master Transaction Agreement dated November 6, 2025 by and among the Issuer, Argento, LLC, VICI Properties Inc., and VICI Royal Merger Sub LLC, (the ''Master Transaction Agreement''). Represents the accelerated vesting and conversion of restricted stock units (''RSUs'') or preferred stock units (''PSUs''), as applicable, on a one for one basis for shares of common stock, plus the issuance of shares of common stock in satisfaction of dividend equivalents, in accordance with the terms of the Master Transaction Agreement. Represents the accelerated vesting and cash settlement of the RSUs granted in February 2026 in accordance with the terms of the award agreement and Master Transaction Agreement. For Form 4 reporting purposes, each RSU converted to one share of common stock which was disposed to the Issuer in exchange for the closing stock price on the Equity Award Settlement Date. Represents the accelerated vesting and cash settlement of the PSUs granted in February 2026 in accordance with the terms of the Master Transaction Agreement. For Form 4 reporting purposes, each PSU converted to one share of common stock which was disposed to the Issuer in exchange for the closing stock price on the Equity Award Settlement Date. Represents shares withheld by the Issuer in satisfaction of tax withholding obligations resulting from vesting of stock options, RSUs and PSUs, and shares withheld by the Issuer in satisfaction of payment of the exercise price for the options exercised. Represents the disposition of shares of common stock of the successor entity to the Issuer, in the reorganziation and merger involving the Issuer, under and in accordance with the Master Transaction Agreement. Each share of common stock was exchanged for 0.902 shares of VICI Properties Inc., with cash paid in lieu of fractional shares. Shares are owned directly by The Blake L. Sartini and Delise F. Sartini Family Trust, of which Blake Sartini and Delise Sartini are co-trustees. The outstanding RSUs and PSUs vested in full, and all outstanding unvested stock options became fully exercisable and were exercised, on the Equity Award Settlement Date in accordance with the terms of the Master Transaction Agreement. Represents a contingent right to receive shares of common stock, that convert into common stock on a one-for-one basis upon vesting, and have no expiration date.
Key Figures
Key Terms
Master Transaction Agreement regulatory
Equity Award Settlement Date financial
Restricted Stock Units financial
Preferred Stock Units financial
tax withholding obligations financial
issuer disposition financial
