The Advisors' Blog

I shared an “early filer” stat last month that showed that spending on personal security arrangements had increased in 2024, compared to 2023. A new analysis from Equilar shows that the trend is holding true with additional companies. Here’s more detail:

An Equilar study of S&P 500 companies reveals that an increasing number are offering security perquisites as part of executive compensation packages. The analysis examines 208 companies that have filed proxy statements by April 2, 2025, and finds that almost a third (31.3%) of them provided some type of security perk in 2024. This represents a 27.8% rise between 2023 and 2024, and a 47.6% increase from 2021.

Additionally, the median spending on security perquisites has seen a significant increase of 118.9%, increasing from $43,068 in 2021 to $94,276 in 2024. This includes a 36.3% upturn between 2023 and 2024, when the median spending rose from $69,180.

Equilar also found that companies that have significantly increased spending have provided some color to justify that spend. Here are a couple of examples:

At a company where security spending increased by over 8,000% – The Company’s 2025 proxy statement specifically details security concerns and direct threats experienced by its CEO and senior executives, referencing recent publicized security incidents involving executives at other companies.

At companies that added security as a benefit – As of April 2, 2025, fourteen large-cap companies that did not previously provide security benefits to their executives have begun doing so. One such company, Centene Corporation, even notes in its recent proxy filing that the new security protections are correlated to the security issues experienced by executives within the healthcare industry.

Since most of the disclosures underlying Equilar’s analysis are about 2024 spending – which largely predated the tragic December murder of Brian Thompson – it’s likely that proxy statements filed next spring will show even greater levels of personal security. This can include actual security as well as requirements like avoiding commercial air travel. Remember that in the SEC’s view, these benefits are disclosable as “perquisites” even though many view them as necessary in today’s day and age. We have a checklist for members that can help with parsing executive security trends and disclosure requirements.

– Liz Dunshee