US CEO pay surges, Goldman Sachs and Welltower under spotlight
Reuters reports S&P 500 CEO pay (excluding Elon Musk) averaged $22.8m in 2025, up 21% from 2024. Goldman Sachs paid CEO David Solomon $118.9m, with 71% shareholder support for the pay vote. Welltower awarded CEO Shankh Mitra $821m, with 19% support. CEO-to-worker pay rose to 312x.
How this was made

The 30-second read
Why it matters
The key tradable element is governance risk signaled by shareholder vote percentages on executive pay, which can affect sentiment and future compensation negotiations. However, there is no mention of earnings, guidance, regulatory action, or corporate transactions.
Market read
Hard numbers on CEO pay and say-on-pay support create a governance headline that may matter around proxy season, but the article lacks a direct financial or regulatory trigger.
What to watch
The text does not detail performance outcomes, peer-relative pay benchmarking, or whether boards plan compensation changes, limiting near-term tradability.
Background
The article reports record CEO compensation levels in the S&P 500 and focuses on two outlier pay packages at Goldman Sachs and Welltower, including their say-on-pay vote results.
Ticker impact
Goldman Sachs paid CEO David Solomon $118.9M in 2025, including a special retention award, but only 71% shareholder support.
Near-term impact likely limited, but governance headlines could weigh on sentiment around proxy season.
The article provides hard figures on pay magnitude and shareholder vote support, but no direct operational or financial change.
Welltower awarded CEO Shankh Mitra a $821M package tied to 10-year performance targets, with only 19% of shares supporting it.
Potential for volatility around governance/proxy developments, but no immediate fundamental catalyst is described.
The disclosed vote result is concrete and time-relevant, yet the article does not mention a change in strategy, earnings, or regulatory action.
Market effects
Highlights investor sensitivity to executive pay in large-cap finance and REITs, potentially influencing compensation norms across sectors.
Primarily US governance and proxy-voting sentiment, with no direct non-US market linkage described.
US CEO pay scrutiny can spill into global investor expectations for governance, but the article is US-focused.
Counterpoint
Despite low support for these two packages, the article notes overall S&P 500 say-on-pay support remains high, suggesting backlash may be contained.
Key entities
- companyGoldman Sachs
CEO David Solomon received $118.9M in 2025, with 71% shareholder support on the pay advisory vote.
- companyWelltower
CEO Shankh Mitra received a $821M package, with only 19% shareholder support on the pay advisory vote.
- indexS&P 500
Average CEO-to-worker pay ratio and overall say-on-pay support are cited as context for investor scrutiny.




