For the second year in a row, Stephanie Ferris of Fidelity National Information Services Inc., or FIS, was the highest-paid chief executive of a Jacksonville-based company.
That shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone. Her salary is typical for a CEO of a company that is part of the Standard & Poor’s 500 index.
Ferris’ total compensation package in 2024 was $21.2 million, up from $19.4 million in 2023, her first full year as chief executive of FIS.
The median pay for S&P 500 CEOs was $16.8 million, according to an analysis by ISS-Corporate, which provides data for businesses on governance and compensation policies.
ISS-Corporate’s study of 320 S&P 500 companies that filed proxies for shareholder meetings this year found the median pay increase was 7.5%, slightly higher than Ferris’ increase of 6.8%.
Ferris’ package is similar to other CEOs of large corporations, with most of her compensation coming from the estimated value of stock and stock options granted during the year.
Ferris received stock awards with an estimated value of about $17.6 million, while her salary and cash incentive payments totaled about $3.5 million.
“CEO pay disclosures at large U.S. companies broadly reflect the strong market performance of last year,” said Roy Saliba, managing director at ISS-Corporate, in a news release.
The median shareholder return for the large companies was 15.1% during the year, the firm found.
The chief executives of the two other Jacksonville-based companies in the S&P 500 received 2024 packages lower than the median.
Joseph Hinrichs of CSX Corp. received $15.4 million in compensation, up 9% from 2023.
His package included about $9.1 million in stock awards and $2.3 million in options to buy stock.
Regency Center Corp.’s Lisa Palmer’s compensation was well below other S&P 500 CEOs at about $9.6 million, 3% higher than 2023.
Palmer’s pay included stock awards valued at $5.7 million.
Five other CEOs of Jacksonville-based companies received compensation packages of more than $10 million, topped by $18.8 million for Richard O’Dell of Proficient Auto Logistics.
O’Dell received stock awards valued at $18.2 million after Proficient’s initial public offering in May 2024, as executives of companies are typically granted stock after going public.
O’Dell’s cash compensation was a salary of $650,000.
While public company CEOs benefited from a strong stock market in 2024, changing conditions could affect their compensation packages in 2025.
“Recent market turbulence and ensuing uncertainty around tariffs, a global trade war, and a possible looming recession could raise concerns over significant CEO pay increases at companies that may be facing headwinds in the coming months,” Saliba said.
This table shows the total value of fiscal 2024 compensation packages of chief executive officers of public companies based in the Jacksonville area, and the change from 2023.
The total compensation includes the estimated value of stock awards and stock options granted.
The value of stock compensation can change based on the market price of the company’s stock, so public companies use complex formulas to come up with an estimated value that is reported on their annual proxy statements.
The chart also shows the base salary each CEO was paid in fiscal 2024 and the total of cash incentive payments, which are generally tied to meeting performance targets. You can download a high-resolution PDF of this chart here.
