Chevron Corp (NYSE:CVX) Chief Executive Officer Michael Wirth saw a significant increase in his pay in 2023, reaching $26.5 million, marking over 12% rise from the previous year.
This rise in compensation stands above the median pay raise for the company’s employees, according to a filing disclosed on Wednesday.
The disclosed numbers highlight a gap between executive compensation and the earnings of Chevron’s workforce, consisting of 45,511 employees.
The median annual pay for Chevron employees worldwide climbed to $175,673 in 2023. In 2022, the medium compensation for workers had declined 12% to $161,488, while Wirth’s pay had increased 4%, Reuters reported.
Chevron attributed Wirth’s compensation to his successful execution of the company’s financial priorities, including dividends, maintaining capital discipline in traditional and new energies, reducing debt by over $4 billion, and repurchasing $14.9 billion shares.
Wirth’s compensation was also positively influenced by Chevron’s proposed acquisition of oil producer Hess Corp (NYSE:HES), which strengthened the advantaged portfolio.
However, this acquisition faces scrutiny from rival Exxon Mobil Corp (NYSE:XOM) through an arbitration process.
Notably, Chevron allocated a record $26.3 billion to shareholders through dividends and buybacks in 2023, reflecting an 18% increase from 2022.
Another noteworthy executive, Mark Nelson, who was promoted to vice chair, received a substantial pay increase of 61.5% in 2023, bringing his compensation to $12.2 million.
Price Action: CVX shares are trading lower by 0.53% at $161.15 on the last check Wednesday.
Disclaimer:Â This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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