Tesla Made Elon Musk a Lot of Money Last Year
Even though Elon Musk refuses to take a salary from Tesla, the automaker still made him a billionaire in 2016.
According to Automotive News, Musk exercised $1.34 billion in stock options last year, posting the largest total CEO compensation out of all publicly traded U.S. automakers. That also means his pay increased by 3.6-million percent, although there’s a caveat. Musk’s reported total compensation “was not actually received in cash upon these exercises,” a Tesla proxy statement said. The CEO sold $593 million in stock, which was used “solely in order to pay … income taxes related to such exercise.”
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The compensation comes from Musk meeting several goals that were laid out in a long-term incentive plan in 2012. Those milestones included completing the Tesla Model X alpha and beta prototypes, putting the Model X into production, completing the Model 3 alpha and beta prototypes, and overseeing the cumulative production of 100,000 vehicles. Musk exercised options on 6.7-million shares last year, averaging about $194 per share.
[Source: Automotive News]
Jason Siu began his career in automotive journalism in 2003 with Modified Magazine, a property previously held by VerticalScope. As the West Coast Editor, he played a pivotal role while also extending his expertise to Modified Luxury & Exotics and Modified Mustangs. Beyond his editorial work, Jason authored two notable Cartech books. His tenure at AutoGuide.com saw him immersed in the daily news cycle, yet his passion for hands-on evaluation led him to focus on testing and product reviews, offering well-rounded recommendations to AutoGuide readers. Currently, as the Content Director for VerticalScope, Jason spearheads the content strategy for an array of online publications, a role that has him at the helm of ensuring quality and consistency across the board.
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