Oracle awarded co-founder Larry Ellison and co-CEOs Clay Magouyrk and Mike Sicilia stock option packages valued at $988 million combined in fiscal 2026, which ended May 31. Despite a 38% total return in Oracle shares during the year, all options were underwater by fiscal year-end, with strike prices above the current stock price, according to fortune.com.
Ellison received options valued at $117.8 million with a strike price of $280, granted in October. Magouyrk and Sicilia were granted packages worth $621.7 million and $248.7 million, respectively, with strike prices of $308, shortly after their promotions in September 2025. The stock closed at $137 on Friday, down 53% over the past 12 months, rendering the options without intrinsic value at fiscal year-end, the company’s proxy statement revealed.
Oracle’s stock volatility and the high strike prices near peak valuations contributed to the underwater status of these options. The company has been investing heavily in data centers, spending $55.7 billion in capital last fiscal year amid a booming cloud business. The stock price needs to more than double for Magouyrk and Sicilia to realize gains from their options, highlighting the challenges in executive compensation tied to stock performance in volatile markets.
Oracle’s fiscal 2026 proxy statement published on September 25 confirmed the underwater status of all three executives’ stock option packages. Oracle’s stock closed at $137 on September 25, marking a 53% decline over the past year and underscoring the gap between option strike prices and current market value.