Arista Networks management check
ANET · Information Technology · Communications Equipment · CEO Jayshree Ullal
Filings as of
3 good · 3 to watch · 1 flagged, across the seven questions below.
- Good
Have owners done well?
Beat its chosen peers$100 invested at the start of fiscal 2021 grew to $721, against $163 for the peer group the company picked itself.
- Watch
Does pay follow performance?
Pay only loosely tracked returnsOver 5 years, the CEO's pay actually paid (equity valued at the share price) had a correlation of 0.06 with shareholder return. 1 means pay moved in step; below 0, the opposite way.
- Flag
What does the CEO cost owners?
81804.2% of net income$2.9m of reported pay in fiscal 2025, against $4k of net income.
- Good
Do they own the stock?
CEO stake ≈ 1174 years of payThe CEO holds 15,525,748 shares, directly or through trusts (unvested awards not counted): about 1174 years of pay. Light activity: no buys, $657.5m sold in six months. 302 of 302 sales ran on pre-arranged 10b5-1 plans.
- Watch
Are owners being diluted?
Share count growingDiluted shares changed +0.3% a year over the last three fiscal years. Stock-based pay was 4.9% of revenue in the latest year.
- Watch
Is leadership stable?
2 CEOs in the pay tableCEOs in the pay table: Jayshree Ullal, Ms. Ullal. 7 filings under 8-K item 5.02 (officers or directors leaving or joining, or new pay arrangements) in the last 3 years.
- Good
Are the books clean?
No red flags on fileNo restatements, auditor changes or late filings since 2022.
Against the S&P 500
Each check's score (0–100) and how it compares: the share of ranked S&P 500 companies it matches or beats, and the median in Information Technology.
| Check | Score | At or above | Sector median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner returns | 100 | 33 | |
| Pay for performance | 53 | 87 | |
| CEO cost | 0 | 35 | |
| Skin in the game | 100 | 47 | |
| Dilution | 46 | 56 | |
| Stable leadership | 50 | 85 | |
| Clean books | 100 | 100 |
Closest peers
Others in Communications Equipment, by management score. Arista Networks is 32nd of 73 in its sector.
- 139CIENCiena73
- 249ANETArista Networks64
- 260CSCOCisco64
- 304MSIMotorola Solutions61
- 349LITELumentum58
- 364FFIVF5, Inc.57
Pay versus performance
From the proxy statement filed April 16, 2026. "Actually paid" values stock awards at the share price, so it rises and falls with the stock.
| Fiscal year | CEO | CEO pay | Actually paid | Other executives (avg) | $100 became | Peers | Net income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Jayshree Ullal, Ms. Ullal | $2.9m | $26.2m | $17.1m | $721 | $163 | $4k |
| 2024 | — | $8.9m | $62.2m | $10.9m | $608 | $141 | $3k |
| 2023 | — | $15.6m | $63.9m | $4.9m | $324 | $124 | $2k |
| 2022 | — | $10.7m | $3.2m | $3.3m | $167 | $109 | $1k |
| 2021 | — | $16.0m | $65.3m | $4.2m | $198 | $121 | $841 |
The board says pay is tied most to Revenue. Its other key measures: Non-GAAP Operating Income, Non-GAAP Gross Margin, Compound Annual Growth Rate of Revenue.
Insiders and the CEO's stake
Jayshree Ullal (CEO and Chairperson) held 15,525,748 shares directly after their latest Form 4 on Oct 9, 2026, roughly $3.4bn at that filing's price.
Light activity: no buys, $657.5m sold in six months. 302 of 302 sales ran on pre-arranged 10b5-1 plans.
- SoldJayshree UllalCEO and Chairperson · 10b5-1 plan$601.3mOct 9, 2026
- SoldKenneth DudaPresident and CTO · 10b5-1 plan$47.6mOct 20, 2026
- SoldCharles H GiancarloDirector · 10b5-1 plan$5.5mAug 3, 2026
- SoldMark B TempletonDirector · 10b5-1 plan$2.0mOct 1, 2026
Leadership and governance on file
- Sep 8, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jun 16, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- May 6, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Mar 17, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Apr 23, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Apr 19, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Dec 1, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jul 31, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jul 25, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Mar 29, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
Latest shareholder vote results: Jun 2, 2026, including the say-on-pay vote.
Where the money went
Over 2021–2025: $3.2bn returned to owners in buybacks and dividends, 30263384% of net income, and $1.5bn of pay in stock.
| Fiscal year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $2.9bn | $4.4bn | $5.9bn | $7.0bn | $9.0bn |
| Net income | $841 | $1k | $2k | $3k | $4k |
| Stock-based pay | $186.9m | $230.9m | $296.8m | $355.4m | $439.2m |
| Buybacks | $411.6m | $670.3m | $112.3m | $423.6m | $1.6bn |
| Dividends | — | — | — | — | — |
| Diluted shares | 319m | 1266m | 1269m | 1281m | 1276m |
Educational only, not investment advice. Figures are as filed with the SEC: pay from the proxy's pay-versus-performance table, capital allocation from 10-K XBRL data, insider trades from Form 4s over the last six months, events from the last 5 years of filings. The peer group is the one the company chose. See the method.