Apple CEO Tim Cook receives hefty cash bonus for 2014

Apple CEO Tim Cook got a hefty cash bonus that brought his total compensation to $9.2 million (roughly Rs. 56 crores) last year. That’s more than double what he received the previous year, as the company enjoyed a surge in sales and profit fueled by the popularity of its new, over-sized iPhone 6 models. Cook’s pay for fiscal 2014 included $1.7 million (roughly Rs. 10 crores) in salary and $6.7 million (roughly Rs. 41 crores) in incentive pay that was awarded by Apple’s board after he beat the performance goals that directors had set for him, according to a regulatory filing. He also received $774,176 in other compensation, including a 401k contribution, company-paid insurance premiums and security expenses. Apple reported $182.8 billion (roughly Rs. 11,22,571 crores) in revenue for the fiscal year that ended September 27 and $39.5 billion (roughly Rs. 2,42,568 crores) in profit, after seeing record sales last fall. Sales of iPhones rose 21 percent in the company’s fourth quarter, which made up for a decline in sales of iPads. Apple’s annual revenue has increased in each of the last three years. Cook and the company’s other top officers were awarded the maximum bonus possible under Apple’s incentive plan, after the company’s annual revenue and $52.5 billion (roughly Rs. 3,22,401 crores) in operating profit each exceeded the plan’s maximum goals by 7 percent, the filing said. The Associated Press calculates an executive’s total compensation by counting salary, bonuses, perks, stock and options awarded during the year. Despite his bonus, Apple’s CEO collected less than the company’s four other top officers, all of whom garnered sizable stock awards. The highest paid was Senior Vice President Angela Ahrendts, the former CEO at luxury goods maker Burberry who was hired in May to run Apple’s retail operations. Her $73 million (roughly Rs. 448 crores) pay package included a hiring bonus of $33 million (roughly Rs. 202 crores) in restricted Apple stock grants and another $37 million (roughly Rs. 227 crores) in restricted stock grants that Apple said were intended to compensate for Burberry stock that she forfeited on leaving her old job. While Cook’s total pay has increased for the last two years, it still pales against the $378 million in cash and stock grants he was awarded when he took the CEO job in 2011. Apple reported the compensation figures in advance of its annual shareholder meeting on March 10. The company also announced that board member Millard “Mickey” Drexler, will retire when his term expires at that meeting. Drexler, 70, is CEO of J. Crew and former CEO of the Gap retail chain. Apple said a replacement has not been nominated. Apple shares closed Thursday at $112.40, up 2.6 percent for the day and more than 40 percent in the past year. With a stock market value of $659 billion, Apple is the most valuable company in the world. Associated Press