Penn National Gaming Inc. Chief Executive Jay Snowden’s total compensation rocketed to $65.89 million in 2021, from just $3.90 million in 2020, as surge in the gaming and esports company’s stock led to more than $50 million worth of stock awards. In the company’s 2021 proxy statement filed late Tuesday, the company said Snowden’s base salary rose to $1.79 million in 2021 from $1.22 million in 2020, while stock awards jumped to $53.05 million from $2.43 million. The stock awards included stock price hurdle Performance Stock Awards (PSAs) valued at $19.43 million and relative Total Shareholder Return (TSR) Performance Stock Units (PSAs) of $29.26 million. The awards followed the stock’s 237.9% blast off in 2020, which was followed by a 40.0% tumbled in 2021. The stock, which fell 1.3% in morning trading Wednesday toward the lowest close since August 2020, has dropped 30.1% so far in 2022 while the S&P 500 has lost 12.3%. Snowden’s 2021 compensation also included a total of $10.80 million worth of option awards and non-equity incentive plan compensation, after zero for both in 2020. Also, all other compensation, which includes matching contributions to a deferred compensation plan and the cost of the use of the company’s aircraft, slipped to $246,476 from $251,587.
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