AT&T; CEO Armstrong Gets $9.59 Million in Pay

AT&T; Corp. paid Chief Executive C. Michael Armstrong $9.59 million in 2001, almost three times his compensation a year earlier, as shares of the biggest U.S. long-distance telephone company rose 35%.

Armstrong’s salary, bonus and other compensation, excluding stock options, rose from $3.28 million in 2000, according to AT&T;’s annual report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. His 2001 compensation included a $2.21-million bonus and $4 million in restricted shares that don’t vest fully until 2004. In 2000, Armstrong received no restricted stock.

AT&T; agreed last year to sell its cable television business, the nation’s biggest, to Comcast Corp. for $72 billion. Armstrong, who will leave to become chairman of Comcast when the transaction closes, spent more than $100 billion to build the cable unit.

The company will be left with a long-distance business that has declining sales.

Armstrong, 63, also was granted options to buy 1.1 million shares, potentially worth $7.64 million, according to the filing. Their exercise prices, at $16.85 and $17.39, are above AT&T;’s current share price of $15.84.

The New York-based company’s shares were down 54 cents at $15.30 on the NYSE.