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Apple CEO Tim Cook received a massive $98 million payout in 2021, gaining access to $754 million in company shares.
According to an SEC filing, the 61-year-old Cook, who is worth $1.5 billion, enjoyed stellar earnings during the 2021 fiscal year, which ended in September.
He now has access to $754m in shares of the company that were vested in August from the old grant, although it is unclear whether he has chosen to sell that stock. Cook additionally sits on $37.5 million of shares in the company that will vest annually over three years beginning 2023.
His earnings spiked after a stellar year at Apple—the company made $365 million in sales and grew revenue by 33 percent.
Apple CEO Tim Cook, 61, made $98 million in FY21
Of the $98 million Cook earned in the 2021 fiscal year, $3 million was his annual salary and $12 million in bonuses to meet Apple’s financial and environmental sustainability goals.
He also received $1.39 million in compensation, which includes: personal air travel, security, 401(k), and life insurance, and vacation pay.
However, most of the tech giant’s annual earnings come from stock awards. His 2021 awards earned him $82.35 million.
While Cook is yet to access the shares, as it is part of a five-year deal and comes in two parts, the awards were announced on the first day of fiscal 2021, which began in September 2020.
On top of his $3 million salary, Cook earned $82 million in stock awards and $12 million in bonuses for achieving Apple’s financial and environmental sustainability goals.
The 333,987 shares — currently worth $172 each — will vest over three years beginning in 2023, and will be received when Cook retires.
The other half is performance-based and will be available to Cook in October 2023. These shares — which also start at 333,987 — can go higher or lower depending on the company’s stock, but were valued at about $45 million when they were first announced.
These shares will still be received if Cook retires, however, the board of directors can withhold this if they choose to do so.
Cook’s performance has also been compared to those of Tesla, Microsoft and Meta – formerly known as Facebook.
This is Cook’s first equity award since becoming CEO in 2011.
“It has been a remarkable decade for Apple and the equity award was presented to Mr. Cook for the first time in 2021, when he was made CEO in August 2011,” Apple said in an SEC filing.
Cook joined the billionaire club in August 2020 and is a rare breed among the likes of Tesla’s Elon Musk and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. Unlike Musk and Bezos, Cook didn’t get Apple, and it’s rare for a non-founder to enter the ranks of the billionaires club, according to To the extent,