Colette M. Kress
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at NVDA
Executive
About Colette M. Kress
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of NVIDIA since September 2013, with nearly 25 years in senior finance roles at Cisco, Microsoft, and Texas Instruments; B.S. in Finance (University of Arizona) and MBA (Southern Methodist University). Public sources indicate she was born in 1967/1968 (age ~57–58) .
Under her tenure, NVIDIA’s FY2025 revenue rose 114% to $130.5B and non-GAAP operating income reached $86.8B; 3-year relative TSR used in MY PSUs reached 100th percentile for FY2023–FY2025, evidencing strong value creation .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cisco Systems | SVP & CFO, Business Technology & Operations Finance | ~2010–2013 | Led finance strategy, planning, reporting and business development across segments, engineering and operations |
| Microsoft | Corporate finance roles; CFO, Server & Tools Division | 1997–2010 (CFO from 2006) | Drove financial strategy and reporting for the Server & Tools division; senior roles in corporate planning and finance |
| Texas Instruments | Various finance positions | Pre-1997 | Broad finance experience in semiconductors |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Year/Period | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Silicon Valley Business Journal | CFO of the Year | 2016 | Recognition for finance leadership |
| NVIDIA Newsroom Exec Bio | EVP & CFO profile | Updated 2025 | Official corporate biography |
Fixed Compensation
| Metric | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base Salary ($) | $897,149 | $896,863 | $893,739 |
| Target Variable Cash ($) | $300,000 | $300,000 | $300,000 |
| Actual Variable Cash Paid ($) | — | $600,000 | $600,000 |
| Notes | Target variable cash flat vs prior year | 200% payout due to revenue > Stretch | 200% payout due to revenue > Stretch |
Performance Compensation
| Component | Metric | Threshold | Base | Stretch | Actual FY2025 | Payout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Variable Cash Plan | Fiscal Revenue | $45.0B (50%) | $90.0B (100%) | $110.0B (200%) | $130.5B | 200% of target |
| SY PSUs (single-year) | Non-GAAP Operating Income | $16.0B (50%) | $56.0B (100%) | $72.0B (Other NEOs 200%) | $86.8B | 200% (Other NEOs) |
| MY PSUs (multi-year) | 3-year Relative TSR vs S&P 500 | 25th pct (25%) | 50th pct (100%) | 75th pct (Other NEOs 200%) | 100th pct | 200% (Other NEOs) |
FY2024 additional incentive: “Additional SY PSUs” contingent on Non-GAAP Gross Margin achieved alongside Base Non-GAAP Operating Income; result at Stretch led to +50% of target SY PSUs becoming eligible to vest (total 68,162 shares for Kress) .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Item | Data |
|---|---|
| Beneficial Ownership (3/24/2025) | 4,872,485 shares; <1% of outstanding (24,456,668,546) |
| Stock Ownership Guidelines (Execs) | CEO: 10× base salary; Other NEOs: 3× base salary; each NEO currently exceeds requirements |
| Hedging/Pledging | Prohibited for directors, executive officers, employees (including margin/pledge restrictions) |
| Options | NVIDIA had no stock options outstanding since end of FY2024 |
Outstanding Equity Awards (Kress) as of Jan 26, 2025 (selected):
| Award | Units | Market Value ($) |
|---|---|---|
| RSUs/PSUs not vested (various grants; see footnotes) | e.g., 42,400; 54,830; 77,830 | $6,047,088; $7,819,855; $11,100,115 |
| SY PSUs earned FY2025 (eligible to vest) | 95,780 | $13,660,144 |
| MY PSUs (earned FY2023 cycle) | 43,860 | $6,255,313 |
| Total unvested RSUs & PSUs at 1/26/2025 | 827,950 | $118,082,229 (change-in-control estimate) |
Vesting schedules (key specifics):
- SY PSUs earned for FY2025 vest 25% on March 19, 2025; then 6.25% quarterly over ~3 years, fully vesting March 15, 2028 .
- SY PSUs earned for FY2024 vest 25% on March 20, 2024; then 6.25% quarterly, fully vesting March 17, 2027 .
- MY PSUs (FY2023 grant) vested 100% on March 19, 2025 after 3-year performance period .
Vesting-related share flow (FY2025):
| Item | Shares | Value ($) |
|---|---|---|
| Shares acquired on vesting | 801,170 | $87,336,800 |
| Shares withheld to cover taxes | 404,167 | — (disclosed share count) |
Employment Terms
| Term | Details |
|---|---|
| Employment status | At-will; no individual employment, severance, or change-in-control agreements for executive officers |
| Change-in-control equity treatment | Under the 2007 Equity Plan, if awards are not assumed/continued/substituted by acquirer, vesting accelerates in full; otherwise awards continue under successor (applies equally to NEOs and employees) |
| Clawback | Compensation Recovery Policy (since 2009), amended 2023 to comply with Nasdaq listing standards; applies to incentive compensation on certain restatements |
| At-hire economics (2013) | Offer letter: $500,000 base, target variable cash equal to 110% of salary (FY2014 plan), $1.5M sign-on bonus (repayable if leaving within 12 months) |
| Tax gross-ups | Not provided (explicit policy) |
| Insider trading controls | Preclearance for Section 16 officers; absolute prohibitions on hedging, pledging, margin trading |
Compensation Structure Analysis
| Dimension | Observation |
|---|---|
| Cash vs equity | Target pay for FY2025: Cash $1.2M; Equity $13.8M (SY PSUs, MY PSUs, RSUs) — equity-dominant mix |
| Performance linkage | Variable cash tied to annual revenue; SY PSUs tied to annual Non-GAAP Operating Income; MY PSUs tied to 3-year relative TSR vs S&P 500; all capped for maximum payouts |
| FY2024 program adjustment | Added Non-GAAP Gross Margin as additional SY PSU lever (up to +50% of target) to emphasize efficiency; achieved Stretch |
| Simplicity/transparency | Metrics are objective, few, and aligned to operating plan; CC states focus on pay-for-performance |
| Peer benchmarking | Compensation peer group includes large tech and semiconductor firms (e.g., AMD, Intel, Broadcom, Oracle, SAP, IBM, TI, Qualcomm) |
| Say-on-pay context | Board cited 93% approval of Fiscal 2022 NEO compensation in outreach; continued annual say-on-pay |
Performance & Track Record
| Metric | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $60.9B (up 126% YoY) | $130.5B (up 114% YoY) |
| Gross Margin | 72.7% | 75.0% |
| Operating Income (GAAP) | $33.0B | $81.5B (up 147% YoY) |
| Non-GAAP Operating Income | $37.1B | $86.8B |
| MY PSU TSR outcome | 99th percentile (FY2022–FY2024) | 100th percentile (FY2023–FY2025) |
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Heavy tilt to performance-based equity (SY/MY PSUs) and clear annual/3-year metrics (revenue, non-GAAP operating income, relative TSR) aligns Kress’s pay with shareholder outcomes; FY2025 and FY2024 outcomes paid at maxima due to extraordinary results .
- Retention risk/pressure: Large unvested equity (827,950 units; ~$118.1M change-in-control value) and multi-year vesting cadence support retention; prohibited hedging/pledging and ownership guidelines (≥3× salary) reinforce alignment .
- Trading signals: Quarterly vesting of SY PSUs and RSUs and tax withholding (404,167 shares withheld in FY2025) create predictable share flows; absence of options reduces exercise-driven volatility; insider trades require preclearance, and hedging/pledging are banned .
- Governance/terms: No executive severance agreements or special change-in-control cash benefits; equity accelerates only if not assumed in a transaction; robust clawback compliant with Nasdaq reduces downside risk from restatements .
- Peer pressure/pay trends: Peer set spans mega-cap tech/semis; CC emphasizes simplicity and caps; additional SY PSUs (FY2024) show willingness to add efficiency-focused levers when appropriate .
Citations:
**[1045810_0001045810-25-000095_nvda-20250512.htm:5]** **[1045810_0001045810-25-000095_nvda-20250512.htm:8]** **[1045810_0001045810-25-000095_nvda-20250512.htm:9]** **[1045810_0001045810-25-000095_nvda-20250512.htm:11]** **[1045810_0001045810-25-000095_nvda-20250512.htm:64]** **[1045810_0001045810-25-000095_nvda-20250512.htm:73]** **[1045810_0001045810-25-000095_nvda-20250512.htm:78]** **[1045810_0001045810-25-000095_nvda-20250512.htm:91]** **[1045810_0001045810-25-000095_nvda-20250512.htm:96]** **[1045810_0001045810-25-000095_nvda-20250512.htm:98]** **[1045810_0001045810-25-000095_nvda-20250512.htm:99]**
**[1045810_0001045810-24-000104_nvda-20240514.htm:4]** **[1045810_0001045810-24-000104_nvda-20240514.htm:7]** **[1045810_0001045810-24-000104_nvda-20240514.htm:53]** **[1045810_0001045810-24-000104_nvda-20240514.htm:55]** **[1045810_0001045810-24-000104_nvda-20240514.htm:56]** **[1045810_0001045810-24-000104_nvda-20240514.htm:64]** **[1045810_0001045810-24-000104_nvda-20240514.htm:67]** **[1045810_0001045810-24-000104_nvda-20240514.htm:72]**
External: **[https://nvidianews.nvidia.com/bios/colette-kress]** **[https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1045810/000104581013000080/form8-kxckress9x14x13.htm]** **[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colette_Kress]** **[https://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2016/12/02/cfo-of-the-year-2016-colette-kress-of-nvidia.html]**