Clorox CEO Gets $7.5M In Fiscal 2009 Compensation

VINNEE TONG

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Clorox Co. gave CEO Don Knauss compensation valued at $7.5 million, a 5 percent raise, as the company's profit rose despite the economic tumult of the past year.

The Oakland, Calif.-based consumer products maker boosted Knauss' salary by 7 percent to $1.1 million for fiscal 2009, which ended in June. He was also awarded stock and options worth nearly $5 million at the time they were granted on Sept. 16, 2008, up 9.5 percent from the prior year, according to an Oct. 2 regulatory filing.

Half the value of those grants was given as stock options with a strike price of $63.95, which has left the options underwater since the stock has stayed below that level since then. It now trades at $58.15, as of Wednesday afternoon.

Knauss also received $217,256 in perks and other compensation, a 15 percent drop from the prior year.

The pay raise came as Clorox's annual profit rose 16 percent and its adjusted profit handily beat analyst expectations. Yearly revenue rose 3 percent.