01/20/97 AT APPLE, PAY THAT DEFIES GRAVITY

AT APPLE, PAY THAT DEFIES GRAVITY

BESIDES FIXING APPLE Computer, Gilbert Amelio faces another challenge: getting his hefty pay package--one of Silicon Valley's lushest--approved at Apple's Feb. 5 annual meeting. Because he signed on after the last annual meeting, replacing Michael Spindler, shareholders only now get to vote whether to grant him 1 million stock options and up to 1 million shares.
Although no opposition to Amelio's pay has surfaced, his tenure has yet to produce the turnaround investors hoped for. Since he took over Feb. 2, shares have dropped 39% and now hover below 18. Apple says it will book another big quarterly loss of up to $150 million.
Shareholders won't get to vote on the $2.9 million in salary and bonus, $200,000 signing bonus, and $5 million loan that the board already awarded him last year. The only downside for him is that his 1 million options, granted at a $26.25 strike price, are underwater. Quips pay expert Graef Crystal: ''I'd love to short Apple and buy shares of Gilbert Amelio Inc. Now, that would be a terrific investment.'' Amelio couldn't be reached, but a spokeswoman expects the plan will be O.K.'d.
By Peter Burrows
EDITED BY LARRY LIGHT