Albertsons top execs stand to make up to $146M in payouts if merger deal goes through

If the $24.6 billion Kroger, Albertsons merger goes through, Albertsons executives could stand to receive millions of dollars in payouts, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Albertsons’ top 10 executives could receive a total of $146 million if they quit or are laid off following the mega deal, according to the filing, which also states that  Albertsons CEO Vivek Sankaran may also end up resigning under a “good reason” clause. The clause includes a change in control of the company and would result in Sankaran leaving the company, and still receiving his full compensation package, in addition to a $43 million additional payout. 

Kroger said that if the merger is approved, its CEO Rodney McMullen and Chief Financial Officer Gary Millerchip would head the new entity.

Sankaran, who worked at PepsiCo before landing the top spot at Albertsons just before the COVID-19 pandemic, is coming off an 86% raise that saw his total compensation boost from $8.6 million in 2021 to $16.1 million in 2022.

Neither Albertsons nor Kroger had responded to a request for comment at time of publication. 

The Federal Trade Commission has yet to rule on the $24.6 billion merger, but several groups have come out and said they were against the deal. The latest group to oppose the merger was the Teamsters Union, which claims 22,000 of its members as Kroger or Albertsons employees, back in June. Several unions have said they feel Kroger and Albertsons have not yet addressed their concerns linked to the merger.

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