Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella received $42.9 million in total compensation, mostly in stock awards, in the 2019 fiscal year that ended on June 30, according to Microsoft’s annual proxy statement, which came out on Wednesday. The figure is up 66% from the prior fiscal year. When he took over from Steve Ballmer in 2014, Nadella took home $84.3 million which is the highest earnings in a fiscal year for him so far.
During the first five-year performance period, Microsoft’s market capitalisation increased $509 billion (from $302 billion to $811 billion). “The past fiscal year offered another record year for financial performance, and Microsoft delivered strong results for our shareholders, including a return of $30.9 billion in the form of share repurchases and dividends,” wrote the board of directors.
Microsoft that continues to be valued as a $1 trillion company returned $7.7 billion to shareholders in the form of share repurchases and dividends in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2019. The company bought back $19.54 billion in shares last year. In the previous fiscal year, the buybacks was worth $10.72 billion – all under Nadella’s tenure. The company will hold its annual shareholders meeting on December 4.