C.L. King’s extensive Institutional Sales coverage reaches all major U.S. financial centers. Long tenures have fostered deep relationships with leading accounts nationwide. Our in-depth knowledge base includes relationships across the full spectrum of institutional investors.

The main objective of C.L. King’s institutional trading desk is to provide efficient executions and liquidity for our institutional clients. We offer Comprehensive Trading Services, including capital commitment, market making and economic execution.

Our trading team professionals, each with more than 25 years of experience, utilize state-of-the-art algorithmic platforms as well as high-touch execution services. Execution expertise and capital commitment together with deep institutional relationships enable C.L. King to be competitive in volatile market environments. C.L. King can act as principal or as agent on orders, facilitating both liquid and illiquid transactions.

We make a market in approximately 200 stocks. C.L. King is a registered broker-dealer, member of FINRA/SIPC and is WBENC-Certified.

Execution Services

At-the-Market “ATM” Continuous Offerings

A company may choose an ATM over an underwritten public offering when it wants to discreetly raise only a small amount of equity or a larger amount over a longer timeframe. Owners of blocks have also employed C.L. King to discreetly dribble out shares to maximize selling proceeds. C.L. King was one of only eight firms chosen by the U.S. Treasury in 2013 to help it divest its remaining GM shares through an ATM.

Block Trading

We offer discreet execution for high-volume, complex transactions with minimal market impact. By leveraging the strength of our NASDAQ-Listed trading group, C.L. King can assist insiders, affiliates, venture capital, private equity and other institutional clients to sell or acquire large positions of stock. We coordinate the process with legal counsel, transfer agents and traders as necessary.

Executive Services

Restricted Stock Services/Rule 144 Transactions

We guide clients through the sale of restricted and control stock and can sell your securities discreetly, with minimal market disruption. C.L. King has the experience to simplify the overwhelming paperwork and reporting responsibilities required by the SEC for the sale of restricted securities and can partner with your legal team to deliver immediate notification of completed transactions.

Customized Rule 10b5-1 Trading Plans

C.L. King assists officers, directors and other corporate insiders to develop well-conceived programs for selling or purchasing company stock. SEC Rule 10b5-1 protects officers and directors from insider trading liability under Rule 10b-5 for transactions under a previously established contract, plan or instruction. This rule presents an opportunity for insiders to sell or purchase company stock without the restrictions imposed by window and blackout periods, provided that the individual is not in possession of material nonpublic information when the plan is adopted.

Stock Option Exercise

We offer professional assistance and tailored option exercise programs for your incentive stock options, non-qualified stock options and stock options granted to affiliates. C.L. King will create a customized plan to coordinate the tracking, financing and exercising of stock options. We will tailor our procedures to meet your needs and ensure that you receive same-day notification of affiliate transactions for Form 4 reporting purposes. In general, options can be exercised as follows:

  • Same-day sale, where no cash outlay is necessary
  • Cash exercise, where an employee actually pays both costs and taxes
  • Partial same day sale, where an employee sells just enough stock to cover the option cost and taxes and then exercises the remaining options in order to hold the underlying stock.