Company: AAOI
Filing Date: 2025-02-28
Form Type: PRE 14A
Source: 0001104659-25-019126
Chunk: 20

Company: APPLIED OPTOELECTRONICS, INC.
Filing Date: 2025-02-28
Form: PRE 14A
Chunk 20
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 meeting fee paid or provided for service on the Board or any committee thereof, or any award granted in lieu of any such cash retainer or meeting fee, shall not exceed $750,000, with the value increased to $1,000,000 for any Outside Director that joins the Company during the fiscal year.

#### Prohibition on Repricing Stock Options and SARs.
The Amended and Restated 2021 Plan provides that the Board or administrator will not have the right, without stockholder approval, to engage in a transaction that is commonly referred to as a “repricing” of outstanding stock options or SARs, including (a) reducing the exercise price of outstanding stock options or SARs with an exercise price greater than the then-current fair market value of the common stock (an “underwater award”), (b) cancelling an underwater award and granting in substitution an award with a lower exercise price, cash, and/or other consideration determined, or (c) take any other action that is treated as a “repricing” under generally accepted accounting principles.

#### Change of Control or Liquidation.
Under the Amended and Restated 2021 Plan, unless otherwise provided in the instrument evidencing an award or in a written employment, services or other agreement between a participant and us, upon the closing or consummation of the change of control:

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Upon a change of control that qualifies as a company transaction in which outstanding awards could be converted, assumed, substituted for or replaced by a successor company, outstanding awards that vest based on continued employment or service will become vested and exercisable or payable, all applicable restrictions or forfeiture provisions will lapse, and such awards will terminate at the effective time of the change of control, only if and to the extent the awards are not converted, assumed, substituted for or replaced by a successor company.

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In the event of a change of control that does not qualify as a company transaction or if outstanding time-based awards are not converted, assumed, substituted for or replaced by a successor company in a company transaction, the awards will become fully and immediately vested and exercisable or payable, and all applicable restrictions or forfeiture provisions, will lapse immediately prior to the change of control and the awards will terminate at the effective time of the change of control.

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All outstanding performance-based awards for which the payout level has been determined will be paid in accordance with the payout schedule for the award. All outstanding performance-based awards for which the payout level has not been determined will be prorated based on actual results measured against the performance