A majority of Oracle Inc. shareholders demonstrated their opposition to the compensation of the software giant’s chief executive, Lawrence Ellison, on Thursday, voting against a nonbinding resolution on the company’s pay practices.
More than 2 billion shares were voted against the company’s “say on pay†measure at Oracle’s annual meeting on Thursday, while nearly 1.6 billion were voted in favor of the proposal. After subtracting out Mr. Ellison’s roughly 1.1 billion shares, however, suggests that the margin of defeat was bigger than the initial numbers suggest.
The technology mogul received $78.4 million for the 2013 fiscal year, which ended in May, according to Oracle’s proxy statement. While that’s down from the $96.2 million that he received in the prior year, it far outstrips the $11.7 million that Cisco‘s chief executive, John Chambers, earned in 2012.
“It’s a defeat for the board however you spin it,†Michael Pryce-Jones, an analyst at CtW Investment Group, which advises several union pension plans on corporate governance matters and led a campaign against Mr. Ellison’s pay.
Still, all of Oracle’s directors were re-elected, despite the opposition by CtW and several major investors. The country’s two major proxy advisory firms, Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis, also recommended that investors vote against at least some of the directors.
Oracle didn’t immediately disclose how much support each director had garnered.
The say-on-pay vote reflected continued controversy over Oracle’s pay practices, one that has been percolating in recent years. At the heart of the dispute is the pay of Oracle executives, and Mr. Ellison’s in particular.
Oracle has defended its pay practices, calling Mr. Ellison’s compensation “appropriate.†But Mr. Pryce-Jones argued that this year’s results should force the board to take action.
“I don’t think the board has the courage to stand up and represent shareholders,†he said.
