The 20 Highest-Paid CEOs In America

AP Photo/Eric RisbergOracle CEO Larry Ellison.

Average CEO pay at the biggest companies in the U.S. has been increasing at a moderate rate with the majority of wealth concentrated in fewer hands over the past several years, according to a new annual survey by the Wall Street Journal and the Hay Group.

Total annual compensation for the top 301 CEOs in America increased by a median 5.5% to $11.4 million from 2012 to 2013. The top 10% of earners made 23% of the total compensation, according to the report.

Meanwhile, wages and salaries for private sector employees in the U.S. increased by 1.8% during the same period, a growth discrepancy also indicative of a trend since the recession.

Notably, none of the CEOs in the top 10 lead companies ranked in the top 10% for performance. Larry Ellison is the highest paid CEO in the U.S., but Oracle ranks as No. 152 in performance. Similarly, Disney CEO Robert Iger is the sixth highest paid, but the company's performance ranks at No. 165.

Total direct compensation consists of salary, annual incentives, stock option grants, restricted stock grants, and performance awards. Most of those in the top 10 made their money from stock options and cash.

Here are the top 20 highest paid CEOs:

1. Lawrence J. Ellison, Oracle

2013 Compensation: $76.9M / One-Year Change: -18.7%

2. Leslie Moonves, CBS

2013 Compensation: $65.4M / One-Year Change: 11.1%

3. Michael T. Fries, Liberty Global

2013 Compensation: $45.4M / One-Year Change: 248.2%

4. Richard C. Adkerson, Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold

2013 Compensation: $38.9M / One-Year Change: 125.1%

5. Philippe P. Dauman, Viacom

2013 Compensation: $36.8M / One-Year Change: 11.0%

6. Robert A. Iger, Disney

2013 Compensation: $33.4M / One-Year Change: -8.1%

7. Jeffrey L. Bewkes, Time Warner

2013 Compensation: 32.4% / One-Year Change: 26.9%

8. Mark T. Bertolini, Aetna

2013 Compensation: $31.2M / One-Year Change: 174.9%

9. Fabrizio Freda, Estee Lauder

2013 Compensation: $30.9M / One-Year Change: 140.1%

10. Jeffrey R. Immelt, General Electric

2013 Compensation: $28.2M / One-Year Change: 262.1%

11. Lloyd C. Blankfein, Goldman Sachs

2013 Compensation: $28.0M / One-Year Change: 16.7%

12. Rex W. Tillerson, ExxonMobil

2013 Compensation: $27.6M / One-Year Change: 3.2%

13. Rupert K. Murdoch, 21st Century Fox

2013 Compensation: $25.8M / One-Year Change: 16.9%

14. David N. Farr, Emerson Electric

2013 Compensation: $24.9M / One-Year Change: 284.5%

15. Kenneth I. Chenault, American Express

2013 Compensation: $24.4M / One-Year Change: 10.9%

16. Laurence D. Fink, BlackRock

2013 Compensation: $24.0M / One-Year Change: 11.6%

17. Charles W. Scharf, Visa

2013 Compensation: $23.4M / One-Year Change: N/A

18. Brian L. Roberts, Comcast

2013 Compensation: $22.6M / One-Year Change: 5.7%

19. Alan Mullaly, Ford Motor

2013 Compensation: $22.5M / One-Year Change: 11.2%

20. Trevor Fetter, Tenet Healthcare

2013 Compensation: $22.4M / One-Year Change: 146.4%

Among the lowest-paid CEOs are company founders John Mackey of Whole Foods Market, Richard Kinder of Kinder Morgan Inc., and Larry Page of Google, who each earned "effectively nothing."

See the Wall Street Journal's full report here.