What happened?
According to a recent Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Alphabet (GOOG -1.96%) (GOOGL -1.97%) CEO Pichai Sundar was just rewarded for his hard work with a whopping 273,328 shares of class C shares. At its current stock price of about $673, Sundar's massive payday equates to nearly $184 million.
As is often the case when executives are awarded large stock-based compensation, Sundar's new shares will vest over time, in his case, each quarter through 2019 assuming he still holds the position of CEO during that span. The nearly $200 million windfall is the largest Alphabet has awarded any of its executives, and based on its relatively short vesting period, rivals that of Apple (AAPL 0.52%) CEO Tim Cook's deal when he took over the top job from Steve Jobs.
Does it matter?
iFans may recall Apple made some waves about four years ago when it filed its own SEC document detailing what was then about $400 million in stock-based compensation for Cook, who was its new CEO. However, half of Cook's shares will vest for the first time this year, and then he'll need to wait until 2021 to access the remaining 50%.
These huge paydays may seem a bit over the top and are sure to raise the ire of pundits wanting to rein in executive compensation. That said, considering the massive size of both Alphabet and Apple -- not to mention the large cash hoards on their respective balance sheets -- Sundar's $200 million over the next three years won't even make a dent. Except to Sundar, of course.
