Charter CEO Chris Winfrey’s Pay Rises to $89M in 2023
Emily Bell Charter Communications CEO Chris Winfrey received a compensation package worth $89 million in 2023, up significantly from a $15.6 million package he received in 2022. Last year was Winfrey’s first full year as CEO of the cable giant, taking over at the end of 2022.
A Securities and Exchange Commission filing issued March 4 by Charter indicated Winfrey’s base salary for 2023 was $1.7 million, up from a year-earlier $1.35 million.
The bulk of Winfrey’s overall pay was in option awards, with the executive receiving $75 million in option awards, after taking home $12 million in 2020. He also received $8.7 million in stock awards, and $3.5 million in non-equity incentive plan comp.
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Winfrey’s overall pay is tied to Charter’s new 5-year performance-based equity program for executive officers, which has yardsticks like stock performance and time-based vesting criteria to ensure compensation reflects share price gains for investors.
Tom Rutledge retired as Charter CEO in 2022 and took on the role of executive chairman, with Winfrey tapped to replace him. Last year, Rutledge took home $19.5 million in overall pay, mostly in the form of option awards totaling $15 million.
Other Charter executives included in the filing were president of technology and product Richard Geronimo, who received a pay package topping $53 million, and CFO Jessica Fischer, whose package totaled $28.8 million.
Cord-cutting due to cheaper streaming video services from the likes of Netflix and Amazon continues to impact video subscriber counts for many pay TV companies, while cable giants like Charter seek to lean into their broadband customers. However, recent quarters have also seen a slowdown in broadband growth as telecom companies like T-Mobile add more home internet offerings.
Last year also saw Charter engage in a high-stakes carriage showdown with Disney, with the companies ultimately reaching a deal that makes Disney+ available to Charter pay-TV customers, while also knocking some Disney channels (like Freeform and Disney Junior) off the channel lineup.
