Dexcom (DXCM) RSU sell-vs-hold

Calculator · free · no signup · DXCM

Sell at vest or hold? Compare after-tax payout from selling Dexcom RSUs at vest vs. holding through the LTCG cliff at 12 months.

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Your vest

pre-IPO? enter price manually

Tax inputs

Hold strategy

1 yr
20%
20%
10.0%

Best after-tax payout — at year 1 yr

$47,709

Sell + invest wins by $4,981 over Hold 1 yr.

Estimates only. Not financial advice.

This vest pushes your top federal rate from 24% to 35%. Hover the Federal value below for the bracket-by-bracket slicing.

Heads-up: under-withholding. Your employer withholds federal tax at the IRS supplemental rate (22.0% on this vest, ≈ $17,600). Your marginal federal rate on this vest is 32.7%, owing $26,171. Expect to settle the $8,571 gap at tax time.

The hidden purchase

Tax was paid at vest either way. Holding is mathematically equivalent to taking $44,509 in after-tax cash and buying $44,509 of DXCM today.

Most diversification frameworks would advise against a purchase that size in a single name; the right answer depends on your conviction in DXCM. Holding past one year converts the gain to LTCG.

Sell + invest

Best payout
Vest value (shares × price)$80,000
Federal
State
Medicare−$1,160
Additional Medicare−$720
Market gain over 1 yr at 10.0%$4,451
Cap-gain tax on diversified gain — LTCG (federal + state + NIIT)−$1,251
Net at year 1 yr$47,709

Sell every share at vest; invest the after-tax cash at the market return for 1 yr, then liquidate. Diversified — no single-stock concentration risk.

Hold 1 yr

Vest value (shares × price)$80,000
Vest tax (federal + state + FICA)
Net at year 1 yr$42,728

Sold 444 shares to cover vest tax (net-settled); kept 556 shares 1 yr to qualify for long-term capital gains.

Social Security + Medicare are payroll taxes (collectively called FICA) — they apply because you're still employed at vest.

Both columns are stated in year-1 yr dollars. The sell side compounds at the market return; the hold side compounds at your single-stock expected return after a 20% volatility drag.

Estimates only. Assumes net-settled (sell-to-cover) vesting; double-trigger and pre-IPO RSUs are out of scope. Excludes multi-state moves, AMT interactions on other equity, and 83(b) elections. Not financial advice.

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Related calculators: RSU Lot Order Calculator · Stock Concentration Calculator

About Dexcom

Dexcom (DXCM) is a public Medical Device company, incorporated in Delaware and headquartered in San Diego, CA.

Last close: $85.36 per share (as of 2026-10-03).

Equity grants at Dexcom typically include restricted stock units (RSUs).

Dexcom, Inc. is an American multinational healthcare company that develops, manufactures, produces and distributes a line of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems for diabetes management. It operates internationally with global headquarters and R&D center in San Diego, California, U.S., and manufacturing facilities in Mesa, Arizona, U.S.; Batu Kawan, Malaysia; and Athenry, County Galway, Ireland.

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The company builds continuous glucose monitors, sensors worn on the body that report blood sugar every few minutes to a phone rather than requiring a fingerstick. Each sensor is replaced on a fixed cycle, so once a patient starts, the revenue is a subscription in everything but name. Growth has come from moving beyond type 1 diabetes into the far larger type 2 population and from insurance coverage expanding to match. Integration with insulin pumps makes the sensor part of an automated system rather than a standalone reader. Headquarters are in San Diego.

Sources: sec.gov · en.wikipedia.org

Equity comp at Dexcom

  • Dexcom's Amended and Restated Severance and Change in Control Plan (adopted 2023, updating a 2017 predecessor) uses double-trigger acceleration for equity awards, meaning unvested RSUs and options do not automatically vest just because the company is acquired. Full acceleration (100% of unvested equity awards) only happens if an executive also has a Qualifying Termination (for example, involuntary termination without cause, or resignation for good reason) within the Change in Control Period around the deal. If a qualifying termination happens during a Potential Change in Control window before a deal closes, unvested awards stop vesting on the normal schedule but are not forfeited, pending the outcome.
  • RSUs use double-trigger vesting. Two things must both happen before the shares are yours: (1) the normal time-based vesting completes, and (2) the company has a liquidity event (an IPO or an acquisition). Until both happen, you do not yet own the shares and you do not owe tax on them.

Sources: sec.gov · sec.gov

Researched 2026-08-21.

OptionsAhoy is an independent tool and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Dexcom.

Dexcom (DXCM) RSUs vest as ordinary income at the price on vest day. The decision is whether to sell at vest and reinvest, or hold the shares through the 12-month LTCG cliff. This calculator runs both paths through the same after-tax math so you can compare like-for-like.

Example: 500 Dexcom (DXCM) RSUs vesting at $85.36 per share is $42,680 of ordinary income on vest day. After roughly 32% combined federal + state + FICA (~$13,658), the post-tax share value is ~$29,022. Holding 12 months for long-term capital-gains treatment then only matters for the price change between vest and sale; the ordinary income at vest is already locked in. The calculator runs both paths through the same after-tax math.

All Dexcom tools → · Use the generic RSU Sell-vs-Hold Calculator for any company. Diversifying multiple RSU lots? See the lot-by-lot sell order →

Dexcom equity questions

Should I sell or hold my Dexcom RSUs at vest?
Dexcom restricted stock units (RSUs) are taxed as ordinary income on their value at vest whether or not you sell. The only open decision is what to do with the shares afterward: sell at vest and reinvest, or hold past twelve months for long-term capital-gains treatment on any further gain. The calculator above runs both paths through the same after-tax math so you can compare them directly.
Does Dexcom grant ISOs, NSOs, or RSUs?
Equity compensation at Dexcom typically takes the form of restricted stock units (RSUs). Restricted stock units are taxed as ordinary income when they vest.
Do Dexcom RSUs use double-trigger vesting?
Yes. Dexcom restricted stock units (RSUs) vest only when two things both happen: the time-based schedule completes, and the company has a liquidity event such as an initial public offering (IPO) or an acquisition. Until both occur you do not own the shares and owe no tax on them.
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