All articles tagged with #executive compensation
The newly formed Skydance has extended employment contracts and raised salaries for its top leadership team, including CEO David Ellison, following the official close of the $110 billion merger with Warner Bros. Discovery. Concurrently, outgoing Warner Bros. Discovery executives received significant transaction bonuses tied to the deal's completion.
Ynon Kreiz will serve as co-CEO of the merged Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery entity, starting October 5, 2026. His first-year compensation exceeds $46.5 million, including a $31.5 million signing bonus, as the $111 billion merger closes.
Ynon Kreiz, the former Mattel CEO, has been appointed co-CEO of the merged Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery entity. An SEC filing reveals his five-year contract includes a $31.5 million signing bonus and annual compensation exceeding $35 million. The deal, which closes on October 6, 2026, positions Kreiz to oversee daily operations while David Ellison retains the CEO role for strategic direction. Kreiz’s new pay package significantly exceeds his previous earnings at Mattel, where he left after eight years to join the media giant.
Oracle granted nearly $1 billion in stock options to co-founder Larry Ellison and new co-CEOs Clay Magouyrk and Mike Sicilia in fiscal 2026, but all awards are now underwater due to a 53% stock decline. While cloud revenue surged 39% to $34 billion, heavy capital spending on AI data centers led to negative free cash flow and record debt insurance costs. New CFO Hilary Maxson fared better by choosing restricted stock units over options, whereas Ellison and the co-CEOs received cash bonuses despite their equity losses.
Apple’s John Ternus officially becomes CEO and will earn a $3 million base salary plus annual equity awards valued at $55 million, plus a one-time prorated $2.5 million RSU grant; 25% of the equity vests over time and 75% vests based on Apple’s performance relative to the S&P 500. Former CEO Tim Cook remains executive chair with a $2 million salary and a $45 million equity award, vesting half over time and half based on performance. The leadership transition comes as Apple navigates a mature smartphone market while expanding its services and AI ambitions, with Eddy Cue gaining oversight of the App Store.)
Thousands of Brigham and Women’s Hospital nurses walked out in Massachusetts’ largest nurses strike, pressing for cost-of-living raises as hospital costs soar. Mass General Brigham defends its package, touting roughly a 30% boost in value through benefits and wage steps, while CEO Anne Klibanski earned $8.4 million in 2023 and top Brigham nurses earn well into six figures. The dispute has the system replacing striking staff with agency nurses and frames a broader pay gap within the hospital network amid rising living costs.
A look at 2025 Biopharma pay shows quirky perks—private jets, donations to wildfire relief, and a $23,000 internet bill—underscoring the extravagant and unconventional items in executive compensation.
Former Paramount president Jeff Shell’s 2025 compensation totaled about $60.7 million, largely from $58.7 million in stock awards and a $1.4 million base salary, plus a roughly $5 million cash severance under a separation agreement. The disclosure comes as Skydance’s David Ellison remains linked to Paramount post-merger, and Shell’s April departure followed a breach-of-contract suit, with other executives also noted for substantial pay packages in the SEC filing.
Paramount Skydance disclosed in an SEC filing that David Ellison’s 2025 compensation totaled $63.2 million (mostly stock vesting over five years) and former president Jeff Shell’s totaled $60.68 million, with most of each package in stock awards (Ellison about $58.7 million) plus pro‑rated salaries and cash bonuses; Shell also will receive accelerated vesting of stock and cash under his separation agreement. Several other executives posted seven-figure stock‑based pay as Paramount navigates a Warner Bros. Discovery deal and Shell’s departure amid a securities dispute.
Warner Bros. Discovery said only 17% of shares represented approved CEO David Zaslav’s potentially $886 million merger-related payout at a special meeting (82% opposed), even as shareholders overwhelmingly supported the Paramount merger; the non-binding vote won’t stop the payout, and regulators are still reviewing the deal which is expected to close later this year.
Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders overwhelmingly approved Paramount Skydance’s $111 billion merger to create a larger media company, but voted against the lavish exit compensation for CEO David Zaslav and other top executives; the advisory vote is non-binding, meaning payouts could still proceed. Zaslav’s exit package includes roughly $34.2 million in cash severance, about $517.2 million in equity, health-benefits, and up to $335 million in IRS tax reimbursements for accelerated stock vesting, totaling at least $550 million. Other top executives are slated for nine-figure sums. Regulators’ approvals are still pending, and the deal could yield about $6 billion in cost savings with potential layoffs; the brief, virtual meeting lasted around 10 minutes.
The Institutional Shareholder Services urged Warner Bros. Discovery to scrutinize or curb CEO David Zaslav’s proposed $886 million golden parachute tied to the Paramount sale, calling the excise tax gross-up and large equity awards a governance red flag even as ISS approved the sale’s competitive process.
Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav could collect up to $887 million in a severance package if the company is acquired by Paramount Skydance in a $111 billion deal, including about $335 million to reimburse excise taxes. The compensation vote is nonbinding while shareholders vote on the sale, which is expected to trigger layoffs and cost cuts as the two studios and TV networks are consolidated. The arrangement has drawn criticism from ISS, highlighting the vast portion of the payout coming from stock vesting and the tax gross-up, amid broader concerns about debt and regulatory scrutiny surrounding the deal.
Meta is granting stock options to top executives—excluding CEO Mark Zuckerberg—on an aggressive five-year plan to accelerate AI progress and retain talent, signaling urgency as it competes with OpenAI, Anthropic and Google; payouts depend on substantial share-price gains across multiple tranches and come as Meta bets big on AI investments.
David Zaslav is slated to receive more than $550 million in merger-related pay tied to Paramount Skydance’s takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, including $34.2 million in cash severance and about $517.2 million in equity, plus roughly $335 million in potential tax reimbursements that would decline over time; the filing also lists seven-figure packages for other WBD executives. The total is contingent on deal timing (closing targeted for 2026) and contingencies such as a ticking fee if the merger delays, and WBD cautions that these amounts are estimates that could differ materially. Zaslav recently sold about $114 million of WBD stock, and there was a previously unverified Nobelis Capital bid mentioned in the filing.