Further, its stock price has catapulted from approximately $1.50/share (split-adjusted) in 1997 to more than $1,850/share today. This climb amounts to a nearly 40% compound annual growth rate in stock price since its IPO. What many people don’t know is that Amazon blew up and reinvented its compensation system in the mid-2000s, and the compensation system it invented back then still lives on today. The system is somewhat contingent upon Amazon having a well-performing stock price, although “mega grants” help to some extent to compensate for and bridge stock price troughs. At that juncture, the proxy advisors and investors may not be so forgiving, particularly if the stock price is not performing.

Source: Forbes April 23, 2019 20:26 UTC