Apple CEO Tim Cook made $4.17 million in 2012

Apple chief executive Tim Cook took home $4.17 million in compensation for the fiscal year 2012, a year in which Apple blew past all revenue projections and became the most valuable company in the world, according to a filing the company made Thursday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

That figured includes $1.36 million in salary and a $2.8-million cash bonus.

If that total take-home pay sounds paltry for the chief executive of the world’s most valuable company, well, weep not for him. Cook did not receive any more stock this year, in large part because the company awarded him 1 million restricted stock units when he was promoted to chief executive in August 2011. Those RSUs vest over the next 10 years.

The board did increase Cook’s salary from $900,000 to $1.4 million.

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“Despite this increase, the target annual cash compensation for Mr. Cook remains significantly below the median annual cash compensation level for CEOs at peer companies,� according to the filing.

One fun fact from the filing: As Apple grew this year, the filing says the company had to lower the bar for defining what those “peer companies� were.

Not surprisingly, the board determined that Apple blew past all of its financial goals for fiscal 2012. As such, top executives received their maximum bonuses of 200% of their salary.

Also interesting to note: When the company announced it was paying a dividend earlier this year, the board modified the restricted stock units of its employees so that they would receive the dividend as well. However, Cook requested that his RSUs not be modified. The upshot? Assuming Apple continues to pay the dividend over the next 10 years, Cook is passing on about $75 million, according to the securities filing.

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