Is the Cadence Design Systems CEO Overpaid?
On pay-for-performance, Cadence Design Systems scores B (70/100) on the CEOPay rubric: Anirudh Devgan earned $9.1M in 2025 while the company posted a 23.0% three-year total shareholder return — meaning pay is broadly aligned with shareholder returns. "Overpaid" is ultimately a judgment, but the grade puts the pay package next to the results it was meant to reward.
This page answers a common executive-compensation question: Is the Cadence Design Systems CEO Overpaid?. The answer draws on SEC DEF 14A proxy statements, the public disclosure mechanism for U.S. public-company executive pay. Every public company must file an annual proxy statement disclosing CEO and named-executive-officer compensation in detail. Why this matters for shareholders: executive compensation is the single most-disclosed governance metric at U.S. public companies, and the Dodd-Frank-mandated say-on-pay vote gives shareholders an explicit channel to express approval or dissent. Reading pay data well — including pay-versus-performance, peer-group selection, and time-vesting structures — is a basic part of stock-by-stock fundamental analysis.
The detailed answer below uses the actual proxy-statement filings, explains how to read them, and translates the executive-compensation accounting into the shareholder-relevant interpretation.
Cadence Design Systems Pay-for-Performance Scorecard
- Pay-for-Performance grade
- B (70/100)
- 3-yr shareholder return
- 23.0%
- 3-yr revenue growth
- 13.8%
- Say-on-pay approval
- 85.2%
- CEO total comp
- $9.1M
- CEO-to-worker ratio
- 59:1
Source: Cadence Design Systems SEC DEF 14A proxy statement. Pay-for-Performance grade is CEOPay's proprietary score (TSR alignment 40%, revenue-vs-pay growth 30%, say-on-pay 20%, pay ratio vs peers 10%).
The CEOPay Pay-for-Performance Score grades Cadence Design Systems a B (70/100). It weighs four factors pulled from the company's SEC filings: three-year total shareholder return alignment (73/100), revenue growth versus compensation growth (50/100), say-on-pay vote support (78/100), and CEO-to-worker pay ratio versus peers (100/100). Anirudh Devgan's $9,103,500 package is the number those factors judge.
Over the trailing three years, Cadence Design Systems delivered 23.0% total shareholder return on 13.8% revenue growth, and 85.2% of shareholders approved the pay plan in the most recent say-on-pay vote. Returns at that level make the package defensible on the numbers — the pay broadly tracked what shareholders earned.
There is no single threshold for "overpaid." The package only pays out in full if performance and vesting conditions are met, and equity dominates it: $4,551,750 of Anirudh Devgan's 2025 pay came from stock awards versus $910,350 in base salary. Reasonable shareholders weigh the grade, the say-on-pay vote, and the peer-group context together rather than the headline number alone.
Pay & Performance Data
| Component | Amount |
|---|---|
| Total Compensation | $9,103,500 |
| Base Salary | $910,350 |
| Stock Awards | $4,551,750 |
| Option Awards | $1,092,420 |
| Non-Equity Incentive | $1,365,525 |
| CEO-to-Worker Pay Ratio | 59:1 |
| Pay-Performance Grade | B |
Other EDA Software CEOs
Frequently Asked Questions
On pay-for-performance, Cadence Design Systems scores B (70/100) on the CEOPay rubric: Anirudh Devgan earned $9.1M in 2025 while the company posted a 23.0% three-year total shareholder return — meaning pay is broadly aligned with shareholder returns. "Overpaid" is ultimately a judgment, but the grade puts the pay package next to the results it was meant to reward.
Our Pay-for-Performance Score rates Cadence Design Systems as B (70/100), based on three-year total shareholder return of 23.0%, revenue growth of 13.8%, and shareholder say-on-pay vote approval.
Anirudh Devgan, CEO of Cadence Design Systems, earned $9.1M in total compensation in 2025, including $4.6M in stock awards and $910,350 in base salary.
Cadence Design Systems's CEO-to-worker pay ratio is 59:1. CEO Anirudh Devgan earns approximately 59 times the median worker's pay of $155,000, as disclosed in the company's SEC DEF 14A proxy statement.
Anirudh Devgan is the chief executive officer of Cadence Design Systems (CDNS).
More about Cadence Design Systems
On pay-for-performance, Cadence Design Systems scores B (70/100) on the CEOPay rubric: Anirudh Devgan earned $9.1M in 2025 while the company posted a 23.0% three-year total shareholder return — meaning pay is broadly aligned with shareholder returns. "Overpaid" is ultimately a judgment, but the grade puts the pay package next to the results it was meant to reward.
Source: SEC EDGAR DEF 14A proxy statements, 2026.