A raise and a bigger bonus boosted Robert Vitale's pay as chief executive of Post Holdings by 14 percent last year to $9.9 million.
His salary was raised 20 percent to $1.2 million and his bonus target was lifted to 150 percent of salary from 120 percent.
Post met its earnings target for the year, but its  says the board used "reasonable downward discretion" to reduce Vitale's bonus because not all units reached their profit goals. His bonus was $1.5 million, or 85 percent of the target amount.
Vitale also received options valued at $2.1 million and stock worth $4.6 million. Half of the stock award will depend on Post's shareholder return over a three-year period compared with other food companies.
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Vitale also received $103,528 worth of personal flights on company planes, $80,000 for a club initiation fee and $110,574 to pay taxes on those two perquisites.
Post also presented an alternative compensation table showing that the pay Vitale actually received in 2018 amounted to just $5.6 million. In that table, it included shares that vested during the year but not the new stock and option grants.
Post calculates that Vitale earned 150 times as much as its median employee. Median pay for 11,350 Post employees was $66,102.
Vitale's golden parachute -- the amount he could collect if he leaves Post after a takeover -- is valued at $50.75 million. That includes $41.5 million worth of unvested stock and options, $8.1 million in cash severance, $1 million in deferred compensation and $20,000 worth of outplacement assistance.
Post's earnings per share, before extraordinary items, quintupled in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30. Its share price rose 11 percent.
Here's what 30 St. Louis CEOs earned in 2017:
Meet the 30 top-paid CEOs in St. Louis, 2017 pay
* Jeffrey S. Hollister, American Railcar Industries

Hollister left the company on Dec. 31, .Ìý
30. Timothy D. Boyd, Peak Resorts

In January, .
29. Earl R. Refsland, Allied Healthcare Products

28. Robert L. Montgomery, Reliv International

27. Jon P Vrabely, Huttig Building Products

; CEO earned 20 times as much as median Huttig employee. The company says its 1,300 full- and part-time workers earn a median of $47,091.
26. James B. Lally, Enterprise Financial

.ÌýEnterprise calculates that the CEO made 16 times as much as its median employee, who earned $60,000.Ìý
25. Robert D. Moore, Foresight Energy

From March:Â
24. Mike Anderson, Avadel Pharmaceuticals

.
23. Sharon John, Build-A-Bear Workshop

;ÌýJohn earned 306 times as much last year as the median Build-A-Bear employee. Median pay was $6,198 for the Overland-based company's 4,455 U.S. and British workers.Ìý
22. Eric H. Brunngraber, Cass Information Systems

21. Charles R. Gordon, Aegion

;ÌýGordon made 36 times as much as the median employee's compensation of $73,848. The Chesterfield-based pipe-repair company employs 6,242 people worldwide.
20. V.L. Richey Jr., Esco Technologies

19. Suzanne Sitherwood, Spire

18. Jeffrey S. Davis, Perficient

. Its 2,078 workers in the United States, China and India earned a median $96,193.
17. David P. Hatfield, Edgewell Personal Care

16. David Kemper, Commerce Bancshares

15. Alan R. Hoskins, Energizer

From January:
14. John Stroup, Belden

;Ìýthe CEO earned 133.6 times as much as the median Belden worker, who made $52,487 last year.
13. Anna Manning, Reinsurance Group

;ÌýManning's pay is 66 times as much as the median employee earned last year. Median pay for the company's 2,741 employees was $107,171.
12. Diane M. Sullivan, Caleres Inc.

. Median pay for its 12,055 workers was $21,528 (about 40 percent of its employees are part-time/temporary/seasonal).
11. John E. Fischer, Olin

. Olin employs 6,526 people worldwide.
10. Warner L. Baxter, Ameren

;ÌýBaxter earned 66 times as much as the median Ameren employee. Ameren employs 8,600 people and says they earn a median of $122,003.
9. Robert V. Vitale, Post Holdings

8. John W. Eaves, Arch Coal

.
7. David Farr, Emerson

From February:
6. Ronald J. Kruszewski, Stifel

Stifel reported that its CEO earned 92 times as much as its median employee. .
Mark C. Trudeau, Mallinckrodt

; Mallinckrodt CEO Mark Trudeau's pay in 2017 was 102 times as much as the median company employee, who earned $146,870.
4. Timothy Wentworth, Express Scripts

. Median pay for its 26,600 workers was $52,509.
3. Hugh Grant, Monsanto

From April:
2. Glenn L. Kellow, Peabody Energy

. Peabody's 7,148 employees in the United States and Australia earned a median $118,812 last year.
1. Centene, Michael Neidorff

The CEO earned 379 times as much as the median Centene employee, . The company's 33,312 workers earned a median $66,600, including medical premiums.
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