Corporate America took advantage of the stock market meltdown 18 months ago to shower executives with new and often larger grants of stock options, which now has led to multiple CEOs sitting on huge “mega-grants” worth tens of millions thanks to the ensuing stock market recovery.
A new study from the Corporate Library finds that during the depths of the crash in late 2008 and early 2009, companies started handing out equity-based compensation in greater numbers than previous years. More companies also awarded mega-grants, which the Corporate Library defines as grants of 500,000 options or more.
