Microsoft disclosed in its annual proxy statement that CEO Satya Nadella's total compensation for the 2025 fiscal year rose to nearly $96.5 million, a significant increase from the previous year. The majority of this compensation is composed of stock awards, directly reflecting the company's booming share price which has outpaced the S&P 500 in 2025. The pay increase underscores the board's confidence in Nadella's leadership, particularly in navigating the company's aggressive expansion into artificial intelligence through its Azure cloud platform and partnership with OpenAI. The disclosure comes just a week before Microsoft is scheduled to announce its fiscal first-quarter earnings, where investors will be closely watching for continued growth in AI and cloud revenue. The filing also revealed the nomination of Walmart CFO John David Rainey to Microsoft's board of directors. There has been no immediate, significant market reaction reported specifically to the compensation disclosure, as the news aligns with the company's strong performance and stock appreciation throughout the year.