Jensen Huang's total compensation for fiscal year 2026 is $36.3 million, down 27%, with a significant reduction in Nvidia stock awards.

The compensation of Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang saw a significant decrease in the 2026 fiscal year, reflecting the reality of slowing stock price growth for the world's most valuable company.

According to Nvidia's DEF 14A proxy statement submitted on Tuesday for the 2026 fiscal year, Huang's total compensation dropped to $36.3 million, a 27% decline year-on-year. The main reason for the reduction was a decrease in the value of stock awards, which, as his largest compensation component, fell to $24.8 million—down 36% from last year’s $38.8 million.

This change is directly related to the slowing rise in Nvidia's stock price. After tripling in 2023 and doubling in 2024, Nvidia’s stock only rose 39% last year.

So far in 2026, Nvidia's stock has increased a cumulative 18%, a relatively slow pace among major chip companies.

Slowing Stock Price Growth, Shrinking Equity Awards

In the 2026 fiscal year, Huang’s equity award was $24.8 million, a substantial decrease of about $14 million from last year’s $38.8 million. This was the core factor behind the overall compensation drop. His total compensation for the 2025 fiscal year was $49.9 million, which fell to $36.3 million this year, a decrease of more than $13.6 million.

Within Huang’s compensation structure, his fixed salary was $1.5 million, roughly unchanged from last year; non-equity incentive plan compensation remained at $6 million. These two components, totalling about $7.5 million in cash compensation, stayed stable, meaning the fluctuation in total compensation was almost entirely due to changes in equity awards.

The calculation method for stock awards is usually tied to the stock price at the time awarded. Slowing stock price growth directly affects the value of equity incentives granted, thus reducing overall compensation.

This mechanism creates a natural linkage between executive compensation and company stock performance. The decrease in Huang’s compensation is, to some extent, a direct manifestation of Nvidia’s stock price gradually normalizing after a period of hyper-fast growth.

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