Comcast Announces Contract Terms for Newly Appointed President Michael Cavanagh

Comcast has released the contract terms of Michael Cavanagh, a longtime executive who was promoted to president last October.

The deal will keep Cavanagh busy until December 31, 2027 (a fairly standard 5-year tenure) with an annual base salary of $2.5 million starting March 1. Cavanagh also received a performance option to purchase 2 million Class A common shares of the Company for an aggregate grant date fair value of $14.8 million.

The promotion made Cavanagh only the third executive to hold the title of president of the nearly 60-year-old Philadelphia media giant. He works closely with CEO Brian Roberts to direct the company’s operations. After the promotion, he will remain CFO.

In 2021, Cavanagh’s total compensation will be $27.4 million, the company reported earlier this year.

The performance award, the company’s designation for the performance-based stock option, “is designed to ensure long-term leadership continuity,” the filing states, “to improve employee retention in response to increased competition for high-performing talent and to promote financial companies’ performance by empowering them.” Compensation is aligned with strict performance targets that drive long-term value creation for shareholders.”

Cavanagh joined Comcast as CFO seven years ago, having previously served as co-president and co-CEO of The Carlyle Group, a leading global wealth management firm. Prior to that, he spent 20 years in the financial services industry, most recently as Co-CEO of JPMorgan Chase’s Corporate & Investment Bank. He was co-head of investment banking, cash management, investor services and the world’s largest global markets and trading companies, which he left in 2014.