What makes executive compensation excessive? Clue: it’s often not the headline number. A bigger factor in deciding what investors should deem egregious is how easy, or hard, the award is to attain. After Tesla’s third-quarter earnings, boss Elon Musk — the potential winner of a $1tn prize that comes with considerable strings — looks like a good study.
Tesla reported revenue on Wednesday ahead of what analysts had pencilled in, but earnings that fell short because of spending on “AI and other R&D projects”. Automotive sales of $21bn reflected a miniature rush to buy electric vehicles before tax credits are scrapped. Battery and solar panel revenue increased by 44 per cent, though is a fraction of Tesla’s total top line.
