Google CEO Sundar Pichai just got an award in stock worth about $199 million from Alphabet. The bonus takes Pichai right in the top highest-paid executives of a publicly traded company like Google.
The company gave Pichai 273,328 Class C shares. The deal with these shares is that their value will increase each quarter until 2019, should Pichai keep his job until then.
On Wednesday, Gogle's CEO sold 375 Class A common shares for $786.28 per share, and 3,625 Class C stock for $768.84 per share.
According to Bloomberg, the sum is the largest bonus ever offered to a Google executive officer.
Analysts also point out that although the sum might be huge for the everyday man, when compared with the global figures from the tech industry, it is not that impressive. Pichai's leadership creates value for the company and that impacts the organization as a whole.
The company's policy is that the CEO's equity grants must be reported in filings. This is the first time that Pichai receives an award from the company.
Alphabet offered bonuses to other executives, as well.
Diane Greene, who is in charge of Google's cloud business since November 2015, received $42.8 million in restricted stock.
Greene, who founded Bebop Technologies Inc., got equity worth $148 million in 2015, after Bebop was purchased by Google.
Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat received equity in the sum of $38.3 million. The equity sits under the same condition as Pichai's award.
A report from Credit Suisse rates Pichai's Alphabet holdings at approximately $650 million in value.
Google established a tradition of giving equity grants to its leaders every other year. The company is convinced that granting the consistent bonuses at this interval motivates executives to add value to the firm and plan their careers in the long run.
Last year, Google reorganized itself into Alphabet. It was then that Pichai, who was the right hand of Google's co-founder Larry Page, took the helm of the search engine company. After news of the restructuring reached the media, the value of Alphabet's shares went up by 4 percent.
Photo: Maurizio Pesce | Flickr
