As Apple gets ready to drop its much-awaited Vision Pro XR headset, the tech giant wants to make sure its investors, shareholders, and fans are in the loop. Apple just released its yearly proxy statement for investors, giving the lowdown on things like executive pay and proposals from shareholders.
The paperwork spills the beans on how much cash top dogs at Apple, like CEO Tim Cook, are raking in. Word on the street, courtesy of 9to5Mac, is that Cook was eyeing a cool $49 million for 2023. Now, that’s a big drop, like 40% less than the $84 million goal he had the year before. And guess what? He went above and beyond, pocketing a sweet $99.4 million in the end.
But hold onto your hats, the freshest proxy filing spills the beans that Cook didn’t just hit his target for 2023, he smashed it. Apple spills the tea that Cook bagged a whopping $63,209,845 in the year, overshooting the planned $49 million by a solid 28%. Now, here’s the twist – even with this bump, Cook’s 2023 earnings still clocked in around 36% less than what he brought in during 2022.
In 2023, Tim Cook’s payday had a breakdown like this: a $3,000,000 salary, a massive $46,970,283 in stock awards, a sweet $10,713,450 from the non-equity incentive plan, and some extra cash on the side with $2,526,112 in additional compensation.
To add to the mix, Apple spills the beans that the average Joe or Jane working for them pocketed $94,118 in total compensation for the year 2023. Crunching the numbers, this sets up a jaw-dropping pay gap of 672 to 1 between Tim Cook and the everyday Apple employee.
The proxy statement spills the beans on what other big shots at Apple are bringing home:
- Luca Maestri, the money maestro as Chief Financial Officer: $26,935,883
- Kate Adams, the legal eagle as General Counsel and Secretary: $26,941,705
- Deirdre O’Brien, in charge of all things retail as Senior Vice President: $26,937,010
- Jeff Williams, the operations guru as Chief Operating Officer: $26,961,226
On top of that, Apple’s 2023 tab featured $1,621,468 splurged on Tim Cook’s personal jet-setting adventures, which is more than double what they dropped in the previous year. They also set aside $820,309 for Cook’s personal security, handling the extra expenses Apple coughed up to keep him safe—covering everything from direct costs to a chunk of the fixed ones.
Every year, public companies have to shoot over a DEF 14A, aka an annual proxy statement, to the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) ahead of their shareholder powwow. This paper spills the beans, giving shareholders the 411 they need to make smart calls on things like electing directors, deciding on executive pay, and giving the nod to auditors.