EBay CEO Donahoe paid $10.1 million in 2009, down 55 pct from 2008 as stock, options shrink

EBay CEO Donahoe was paid $10.1 million in 2009

SAN FRANCISCO — EBay Chief Executive John Donahoe received compensation valued at $10.1 million in 2009, according to a regulatory filing Friday. That’s 55 percent less than in 2008, when he got more stock and options.

Donahoe, 49, has led the online auction site operator since Meg Whitman retired in March 2008. Before that, he was eBay’s head of marketplaces. His total compensation in 2008 was $22.5 million.

According to a proxy statement eBay filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Donahoe’s 2009 pay package included a salary of $934,615, up from $879,808 in 2008; a bonus of $522,917, up from $500,000; and a performance incentive of $1.6 million, up from zero. The 2008 figures include a three-month period when Donahoe wasn’t yet CEO.

He received stock and option awards in 2009 valued at $6.9 million when they were granted. In 2008, Donahoe’s stock and option awards totaled $20.8 million.

Like many retailers, eBay has been dealing with the slowdown in discretionary consumer spending resulting from the sluggish economy. It ended 2009 on a bright note, though, luring shoppers during the fourth quarter by focusing on deals from sellers who offered free shipping and returns on new items. The company also highlighted ways to save money by promoting products that were new but not the latest model.

Donahoe received other compensation the company valued at $172,394, which included $160,466 worth of personal air travel.

In 2009, eBay earned $2.4 billion, or $1.83 per share, on $8.7 billion in revenue. Over the course of the year, its stock climbed 69 percent, ending at $23.53.

The proxy statement filed with the SEC was required ahead of eBay’s annual shareholder meeting on April 29.

The Associated Press calculations of total pay include executives’ salary, bonus, incentives, perks, above-market returns on deferred compensation and the estimated value of stock options and awards granted during the year.

The calculations don’t include changes in the present value of pension benefits, and they sometimes differ from the totals companies list in the summary compensation table of proxy statements filed with the SEC.

EBay is based in San Jose, Calif.