Ten amendments, all correcting the same item — the appointment comes first and the pay follows
Apple filed an amended current report (8-K/A) adding the compensation arrangements for the chief executive transition it had announced in April 2026. All ten 8-K/A filings this site holds as of 2026-09-02 amend the same Item 5.02, covering officer changes and compensatory arrangements.
Filing key facts
- CompanyApple Inc. (AAPL)
- FormCurrent report (8-K/A)
- ExchangeNasdaq
- Industry (SIC)Electronic Computers
- Filing date2026-09-01
- Period2026-04-17
- 8-K events5.02 Director/officer changes; compensation
- Accession no.0001140361-26-035325
Key points
- Apple filed an amended 8-K adding compensation arrangements for the CEO transition announced in its April 20, 2026 filing.
- Of the 644 SEC filings this site holds as of 2026-09-02, 10 are 8-K/A and every one of them amends Item 5.02.
- Appointment and compensation are settled at different times; here about four months separate the announcement from the pay disclosure.
- Mr. Ternus receives a \$3 million salary and a fiscal 2027 equity award with a \$55 million target value, 75 percent performance-based.
- Mr. Cook receives a \$2 million salary and a \$45 million target equity award split evenly between performance-based and time-based RSUs.
1The amendment form
Form 8-K has a companion, 8-K/A, for revising what was already filed. The A stands for amendment. It serves to correct errors, but across the records this site holds the actual use is narrower.
All ten amend Item 5.02. Such uniformity is not coincidence. Announcing who holds a role and settling what that role pays happen at different times.
2Appointment first, pay after
An officer transition must be disclosed promptly once decided. The salary and equity attached to the new role, however, are settled afterward through the compensation committee. Unable to state them in the original report, a company adds them by amendment once fixed. Here about four months separate the April announcement from the September compensation disclosure.
3What the pay consists of
| Recipient | Annual salary | Fiscal 2027 equity award (target value) | Composition |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Ternus (Chief Executive Officer) | $3 million from the transition date | $55 million | 75 percent performance-based, 25 percent time-based |
| Tim Cook (Executive Chair of the Board) | $2 million from September 26, 2026 | $45 million | 50 percent performance-based, 50 percent time-based |
Performance-based RSUs vest on total shareholder return relative to other companies in the S&P 500 — decided not by whether the share price rose but by how it fared against others. Time-based RSUs vest semiannually in equal installments of 12.5 percent over four years. The incoming CEO carries the higher performance-based proportion, while the outgoing chief moving to Executive Chair is split evenly.
4Reading the design
Salary itself is small beside the target value of the equity. For Mr. Ternus, $3 million of salary sits against a $55 million annual equity target, a gap of more than eighteen times. That most executive pay is delivered in stock, and that much of it vests on comparison with other companies, becomes visible only by reading the filings.
Why it matters
That most executive pay is delivered in stock, and much of it vests on comparison with other companies, becomes visible only by reading the filings. With appointment and pay split across two documents, the original report alone does not give the whole picture.
FAQ
What is an 8-K/A?
Why are these amendments all Item 5.02?
Sources (primary)
This article is an independent organization based on the U.S. SEC official disclosures below. Always verify the exact, latest details with the original filing.
- SEC EDGAR (filing index)
- Primary document (original)
- Accession no.：0001140361-26-035325