In a Tuesday proxy filing, the Texas-based watch and fashion accessories marketer said Kartsotis, 61, received no salary, bonus, stock options, incentives or perks last year — the latest in a string of virtually zero-compensation years dating to 2005.
Fossil says "our CEO continued to refuse all forms of compensation, expressing his belief that, given his level of stock ownership, his primary compensation is met by continuing to drive stock price growth, thereby aligning his interests with stockholders' interest.''
The notoriously media-shy Kartsotis did not return calls, but he has a 10% Fossil stake valued at about $600 million. Shares rose 34.5% in 2013 and are up about 1,350% under his 14-year run as chief executive.
Of course, many companies follow the mantra of aligning a CEO's interests with stockholders, but fat raises, large discretionary awards and massive stock grants are routine, even for executives with already massive company stakes. Some 15 CEOs and other executives received compensation valued at $100 million or more in 2013, and USA TODAY found median 2013 compensation up 13% to $10.5 million among CEOs at about one-third of Standard & Poor's 500 companies filing annual proxies through early April.
The $1 salary can shroud other compensation.
Oracle founder and CEO Larry Ellison, for example, gets $1 a year, but gained $151.4 million by exercising stock options last year. He holds a 25% stake in the company worth more than $44 billion. (Oracle's total shareholder return for fiscal year 2013: 29%).
Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, another buck-stops-here CEO, got perks valued at more than $650,000 and gained $3.3 billion by exercising stock options in 2013. His Facebook holdings are worth about $26 billion. (Facebook shares are up 53% since a May 2012 initial public offering).
Capital One Financial's Ric! hard Fairbank, who gets zero salary, received $18.3 million in bonuses, stock, stock options and perks last year, gaining another $23 million from vested shares and by exercising stock options. His Capital One stake is worth about $10 billion. (Capital One's 2013 shareholder return: 34%.)
Rare $1 exceptions: Whole Foods Market co-CEO John Mackey — who first reduced his salary in 2007 and elected to forgo future bonuses and stock compensation — and Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, who both hold company stakes worth more than $25 billion. Whole Foods rose 24% in fiscal 2013; Google surged 55%.
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