Apple CEO Tim Cook could potentially collect his maximum 2017 performance award -- 280,000 shares -- if the company's current stock performance holds through an Aug. 24 deadline.
The company's shareholder return over three years will need beat two-thirds of the companies in the S&P 500, Bloomberg noted on Wednesday. Cook will receive 140,000 shares if Apple lands in the middle third, and none at all if it places in the bottom tier. Critically, the calculation depends on average prices in the 20 trading days before the start and end of the three years.
Apple's stock has soared in Wednesday trading as a result of strong Q3 results. At the end of Tuesday, the company sat below $150 -- as of this writing, it's over $158, and at one point on Wednesday it was poised to hit $160.
Many Apple executives have received stock incentives as motivation to stay with the company and keep profits high. These include people like COO Jeff Williams, marketing head Phil Schiller, and retail leader Angela Ahrendts.
If Cook were to receive 280,000 shares at their current price, they would be worth about $44 million.