Resigning Just Cost Jensen Huang $108 Million in Nvidia Stock Awards
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Jensen Huang walked away from about $108 million in unvested stock awards when he left NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA | NVDA Price Prediction), according to Bloomberg. The total covers about 346,000 restricted stock units and about 310,000 performance shares that he would have received if targets were met.
NVIDIA’s board accepted his resignation as president, CEO and director on Wednesday, November 11, effective immediately. He resigned amid reporting that he was the target of a suspected Chinese intelligence effort, though China denies the reporting and lawmakers want him to testify.
The stock closed November 12 at $166.19, down $7.54 or 4.34%, and traded at $167.82 after hours. Shares are down 27.28% over the past month. For shareholders, the forfeiture serves mainly as a test of how NVIDIA pays its leaders.
What NVIDIA Disclosed
The 8-K is the only signed record so far. It reveals no separation agreement, severance, or equity treatment.
The $108 million figure is an outside estimate, and NVIDIA has not published it. The forfeiture follows NVIDIA’s policy that unvested units are lost when an executive’s continuous service ends.
Chief financial officer Colette Kress was named interim CEO, and longtime director Harvey C. Jones became the board’s first-ever chair.
How NVIDIA’s Pay Design Protected Shareholders
NVIDIA’s 2026 proxy shows that its executives are at-will employees with no employment, severance or change-in-control agreements. All of Huang’s fiscal 2026 equity awards were performance-based. Earned shares vest quarterly only while the executive stays at the company.
That structure meant the departing CEO left without a golden parachute, which is a cash or stock payout on exit. Shareholders pay nothing extra for this transition.
As of January 25, 2026, the proxy listed 1,411,679 unvested units for Huang, worth $264.9 million at $187.67 a share. A large portion vested on March 18, 2026, so less was left to lose.
Why $108 Million Barely Registers for Huang
The awards equal about 0.08% of his fortune. The Bloomberg Billionaires Index puts that fortune at $138.4 billion after the announcement, compared with about $144.5 billion before it.
About 97% of his wealth sits in directly held NVIDIA stock, roughly a 3.5% stake that the resignation does not touch. His financial exposure therefore depends on the share price.
NVIDIA has a single share class, so his votes count the same as any other holder’s, making him a large outside owner with no special power to control the board.
Two Jobs and an Expensive Search
Kress now holds both the CFO and CEO jobs. NVIDIA heads into its third-quarter fiscal 2027 report on Tuesday, November 17, after the close.
A permanent successor will likely expect a large sign-on grant to replace equity left behind at a prior employer. Against 24,147,000,000 shares outstanding, even a large grant would cause little dilution.
The business itself matters more for the stock. Second-quarter revenue reached $96.221 billion, up 105.85%, and the third-quarter guidance called for $108.0 billion ±2%, excluding China data center compute.
What Investors Should Track Before the November 17 Report
The month-long decline shows concern about who leads NVIDIA, while the latest guidance still pointed to strong growth. Leadership risk remains because Huang built the company around himself and never named a public succession plan. Customers and partners may slow orders until a permanent CEO is named.
The pay design worked as written, because NVIDIA kept unearned equity, paid no severance, and kept control with an independent chair. Earnings on November 17 will test this case. Revenue could fall below the low end of the $108.0 billion range. If it does, or if a later 8-K or Form 4 shows accelerated vesting for Huang, the case for a recovery in the shares weakens.
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Omor Ibne Ehsan is a writer at 24/7 Wall St. He is a self-taught investor with a focus on growth, cyclical, and dividend equities that have strong fundamentals, value, and long-term potential. He also has an interest in high-risk, high-reward investments such as penny stocks.
