Proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) has urged Apple investors to vote against the remuneration of Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook, citing concerns around the magnitude and structure of his equity award.
Apple, which promoted Tim Cook as its CEO in August 2011 from the earlier position of COO, will hold its annual shareholder meeting in the first week of March.
“There are significant concerns regarding the design and magnitude of the equity award made to CEO Cook in FY21… Half of the award lacks performance criteria,” ISS said in a letter on Wednesday.
Tim Cook took home $3 million in salary in 2021. In addition, he received $82.3 million in stock awards, $12 million for hitting Apple’s targets, $1.4 million for air travel, 401(k) plan, insurance premiums and others.
In total, Tim Cook earned $98.7 million in 2021, compared with $14.8 million a year earlier.
Tim Cook received 333,987 restricted stock units, in his first stock grant since 2011 as part of a long-term equity plan. He will be eligible to receive additional units in 2023.
ISS valued Tim Cook’s 2021 equity award at $75 million. Tim Cook’s pay was 1,447 times that of the average employee at the tech giant, according to a filing disclosed in January.
“Half of the $75 million award is purely time-based, and the award would continue to vest in full in the event of his retirement,” ISS wrote.
Apple declined to comment and referred to the company’s proxy filing detailing Cook’s performance-based compensation.
