Accenture CEO tops list of highest-paid female S&P 500 chief executives in 2023

Accenture PLC Chair and CEO Julie Sweet ranked as the highest-paid female CEO among S&P 500 companies in 2023, with a total adjusted compensation of $31.6 million, according to an analysis by S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Sweet's stock grant of $26.1 million accounted for the majority of the total adjusted compensation for the year. Of the total equity grant, 74% of the award was linked to company performance metrics over a three-year period, according to Accenture's fiscal year 2023 proxy filing. The CEO's total compensation was down 6.4% on the year.

The rankings in the analysis are based on total adjusted compensation and are limited to S&P 500 constituents that publicly file proxy statements. The analysis compared total adjusted compensation for the CEO, interim CEO or executive determined to be the "principal executive officer" for each company's fiscal 2023.

However, Sweet was not among the overall 20 highest-paid S&P 500 executives in 2023, which was led by Broadcom Inc. President and CEO Hock Tan with a total adjusted compensation of $161.8 million.

Stock awards

Most of the 20 highest-paid female chief executives in the S&P 500 received stock grants in 2023 that represented over half of their total adjusted compensation package for the year.

Lisa Su, the chair, president and CEO of Advanced Micro Devices Inc., earned $21.8 million in stock grants, the second-highest equity award after Sweet's $26.1 million grant. Su was also the second-highest paid female S&P 500 CEO by total adjusted compensation behind Sweet.

The lowest stock grant value among the top 20 female executives was the $8.8 million package awarded to Otis Worldwide Corp. Chair, President and CEO Judith Marks.

Biggest pay jumps, declines

The female S&P 500 CEOs with the largest year-over-year percentage increases in total adjusted compensation in 2023 included the heads of Parker-Hannifin Corp., Kinder Morgan Inc. and Veralto Corp. However, the executives were all appointed as CEO of their respective companies during the fiscal year.

Excluding these three executives, Ross Stores Inc. Vice Chair and CEO Barbara Rentler's total adjusted compensation rose the most in 2023 with a 59.6% increase year over year to $18.1 million. Rentler has served as CEO of Ross since 2014.

Oracle Corp. CEO Safra Catz, who is also a member of the company's board, received $5.3 million in total adjusted compensation in 2023, down 96.2% from the previous year. This represented the biggest year-over-year drop among female S&P 500 CEOs.

Catz did not obtain any equity awards in 2023 after $129.3 million in option awards were attributed to the executive's 2022 compensation. The 2022 award represented the fair value of previously granted performance stock options, according to an Oracle proxy filing. However, Catz is not eligible to receive any new equity awards from the computer software company until the completion of an eight-year performance period that ends May 31, 2025.

Sector trends

Among the 20 highest-paid female CEOs in the S&P 500, five headed companies in the industrials sector. This group was led by Northrop Grumman Corp. Chair, CEO and President Kathy Warden.

The healthcare and financial sectors each had four CEOs among the 20 highest-paid female S&P 500 chief executives.

Accenture's Sweet and Advanced Micro Devices' Su, the two highest-paid female CEOs, both lead companies in the information technology sector.