Company: TROW
Filing Date: 2025-03-26
Form Type: DEF 14A
Source: 0001104659-25-028002
Chunk: 62

Company: PRICE T ROWE GROUP INC
Filing Date: 2025-03-26
Form: DEF 14A
Chunk 62
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 part of our NEOs' total annual compensation. Our NEOs' salaries are generally lower than those of our peer group, and their compensation is heavily weighted toward performance-based components in the form of annual performance bonuses and long-term equity awards. The proposal does not count annual equity awards in determining the base amount of annual compensation, and thus any acceleration of equity awards could trigger the requirement to obtain stockholder approval. The 2020 Plan, which was previously approved by the Company's stockholders, includes provisions concerning the treatment of unvested equity awards under certain termination events that would constitute "severance or termination payments" under the proposal. As a result, the key terms of the proposal are not compatible with the compensation program for our NEOs, which is designed to effectively align our executives' interests with those of our stockholders. In short, the proposal undermines the NEOs' confidence that they will be able to retain the very incentives intended to drive stockholder value creation and has the perverse effect of putting more compensation at risk the more successful the NEOs are at delivering value for stockholders. The Company must retain the ability to attract, retain, and motivate key talent. The proposal would put the Company at a competitive disadvantage by limiting the Company's ability to attract, retain, and motivate key talent. The Company competes for talented employees across a mix of businesses and industries around the world, and each element of our compensation program is designed to remain competitive to attract, retain, and motivate talented NEOs. Under the proposal, compensation arrangements would be subject to a stockholder vote, and talented candidates may be unwilling to join the Company without certainty that their compensation would be approved by the Company's stockholders and they may instead seek employment elsewhere. The Company's compensation philosophy promotes a fair and well-governed, long-term approach to compensation, including pay-for-performance practices that seeks to attract and retain top talent, to be responsive to and aligned with the interests of our stockholders. Our pay-for-performance compensation program is designed to align the long-term interests of our employees with those of our stockholders by emphasizing sustained value. Our stockholders repeatedly have communicated their support for our compensation program through Say on Pay, our 2020 Plan and ESPP approvals, and more informal shareholder engagements. Adopting the proposal would add significant burden and uncertainty to our process, jeopardizing our ability to attract and retain talent and to act in the best interests of the Company and of stockholders. Our Compensation Committee is in the best position to structure an effective compensation program