Voice Of Post

America's highest-paid CEOs, Populists across the political spectrum decry the skyrocketing pay packages of corporate titans. Who is hauling in the most -- and how are their companies performing?
By Christopher Helman, Forbes.com

The point of the pyramid
If you're a billionaire or corporate fat cat, you may have noticed a crowd assembled near your headquarters or home. You may not know exactly what the activists are protesting; you might even joke that this might have something to do with why they are unemployed. But when it comes to one of their complaints -- that the rich have been getting richer while things keep getting worse for the downtrodden and unemployed -- you might have to admit they have a point.

As you can see from the slide show that follows, a stagnant economy that continues to hurt those at the bottom hasn't harmed the 0.0001% at the top. Compensation for the nation's highest-paid chief executives -- including salary, bonuses, perks and the value of exercised stock options -- was up 28% (as of Sept. 6) from a year earlier, according to GovernanceMetrics International.

But the "Occupy Wall Street" protesters might be in the wrong place to picket the titans on this list. No Wall Street representatives are among the 10 highest-paid CEOs. The highest-paid bank executive is Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase (JPM), who comes in 12th, with compensation of $42 million. Laurence Fink of BlackRock (BLK) is 16th at $39.9 million. Lloyd Blankfein of Goldman Sachs (GS) pulled in $21.7 million in the period.
No. 10: Michael Watford
CEO: Michael Watford

Company: Ultra Petroleum (UPL)

Industry: Oil and natural gas

Compensation: $43.7 million

Company net income (trailing 12 months): 373 million

1-year shareholder return (as of Oct. 17): -27%

Bing: Investing in oil and gas companies
No. 9: John Wren
CEO: John Wren

Company: Omnicom Group (OMC)

Industry: Advertising

Compensation: $45.6 million

Company net income (trailing 12 months): $900 million

1-year shareholder return (as of Oct. 17): 0.3%

Bing: Is Apple's '1984' the most-effective ad ever?
No. 8: Stephen Hemsley
CEO: Stephen Hemsley

Company: UnitedHealth Group (UNH)

Industry: Health care plans

Compensation: $48.8 million

Company net income (trailing 12 months): $4.9 billion

1-year shareholder return (as of Oct. 17): 30%

Bing: Per-capita spending on health care
No. 7: Lew Frankfort
CEO: Lew Frankfort

Company: Coach (COH)

Industry: Handbags, accessories

Compensation: $49.5 million

Company net income (trailing 12 months): $880 million

1-year shareholder return (as of Oct. 17): 36%
No. 6: Jeffrey Boyd
CEO: Jeffrey Boyd

Company: Priceline.com (PCLN)

Industry: Travel services

Compensation: $50.2 million

Company net income (trailing 12 months): $720 million

1-year shareholder return (as of Oct. 17): 40%

Bing: Did William Shatner really earn $600 million for Priceline commercials?
No. 5: George Paz
CEO: George Paz

Company: Express Scripts (ESRX)

Industry: Pharmacy benefit management

Compensation: $51.5 million

Company net income (trailing 12 months): $1.29 billion

1-year shareholder return (as of Oct. 17): -17%

Bundle.com: Which pharmacy plan is right for you?
No. 4: Robert Iger
CEO: Robert Iger

Company: Walt Disney (DIS)

Industry: Entertainment and media

Compensation: $53.3 million

Company net income (trailing 12 months): $4.6 billion

1-year shareholder return (as of Oct. 17): -1%

Bing: Disney in Shanghai
No. 3: Michael Fascitelli
CEO: Michael Fascitelli

Company: Vornado Realty Trust (VNO)

Industry: Real estate investment trust

Compensation: $64.4 million

Company net income (trailing 12 months): $830 million

1-year shareholder return (as of Oct. 17): -14%
No. 2: Ralph Lauren
CEO: Ralph Lauren

Company: Polo Ralph Lauren (RL)

Industry: Apparel

Compensation: $66.7 million

Company net income (trailing 12 months): $630 million

1-year shareholder return (as of Oct. 17): 51%

Bing: Fall fashion classics
No. 1: John Hammergren
CEO: John Hammergren

Company: McKesson (MCK)

Industry: Pharmaceuticals

Compensation: $131.2 million

Company net income (trailing 12 months): $1.2 billion

1-year shareholder return (as of Oct. 17): 17%

Bing: Generic versus branded drugs
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