Sonic Automotive (SAH) executive compensation, 2026 proxy

David Bruton Smith, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, was paid $11.8M in fiscal 2025, up 19% from $9.9M the year before. The CEO-to-median-employee pay ratio was 168:1, on median employee pay of $70,362.

Filed
March 6, 2026
Annual meeting
April 29, 2026
Pay year
fiscal 2025
Named executives
3
CEO total pay
$11.8M+19% vs prior year
CEO to median employee
168:1median $70,362
CEO pay in equity
34%$4M in awards
CEO Target Bonus
$1,737,276Target non-equity incentive payout for 2025
Median Employee Pay
$70,362Based on 2025 W-2 wages
CEO Stock Awards
$3,979,216Grant date fair value for 2025

How Smith was paid

$11.8M in total for fiscal 2025, as reported in the Summary Compensation Table. Equity awards are valued at grant, not at what they turned out to be worth.

Salary15%Stock awards34%Non-equity incentive48%All other compensation4%

Named executive officers

ExecutiveTotal
David Bruton SmithChairman and Chief Executive Officer$11,830,626
Jeff DykePresident$9,416,556
Heath R. ByrdExecutive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer$6,476,405

What changed and why

  • $11.8MDavid Bruton Smith received total compensation of $11,830,626 in fiscal 2025, representing an increase from the prior year.
  • Performance-based cash bonuses and restricted stock units made up the substantial majority of executive compensation.
  • All named executive officers received increases in base salary, stock awards, and non-equity incentive plan compensation.
  • The CEO to median employee pay ratio was determined to be 168 to 1 for the 2025 fiscal year.

About this page

Figures are automated and can be wrong; check the filing for the exact numbers. Totals follow SEC rules, which value stock and option awards at grant. Read the DEF 14A proxy statement for footnotes and the compensation committee's full reasoning.