Nikesh Arora Ranked Second Highest-Paid CEO in US

Nikesh Arora, the India-born CEO of Palo Alto Networks, has been named the second highest-paid CEO in the US for 2023, according to The Wall Street Journal. Arora’s equity-heavy compensation package totaled $151.43 million, just behind Broadcom’s Hock Tan, who topped the list with $162 million.

Palo Alto Networks, a leading cybersecurity firm, reported nearly $5.84 billion in revenue and $2.22 billion in net income for the first three quarters of fiscal 2024.

The list also highlighted 17 Indian-origin executives among the top-paid CEOs of S&P 500 companies, including Adobe’s Shantanu Narayen, who ranked 11th with a $44.93 million package. Other notable names included Sanjay Malhotra of Micron Technology, IBM’s Arvind Krishna, and Alphabet’s Sundar Pichai.

The Wall Street Journal’s analysis encompassed hundreds of S&P 500 companies, with the median CEO compensation rising over 8% to $15.7 million in 2023. Prominent tech leaders like Elon Musk and Sundar Pichai chose non-traditional compensation structures last year.

Arora, a former Google executive and SoftBank head, continues to make waves in the tech industry with his impressive earnings and leadership at Palo Alto Networks.