Velarion · Company Intelligence
Compensation Brief
Fiscal year 2025 · Filings through 2026-07-13

Caris Life Sciences (CAI)

Fiscal year 2025 executive and director compensation, incentive-plan design, equity activity, and governance — every figure in this brief is traceable to its exact location in the company’s SEC filing — the document, the section, the page, and the table, linked directly.

$20,350,571
David Dean Halbert total, FY2025
CEO pay percentile vs peers
CEO-to-median pay ratio
Say-on-pay support, latest vote
Companies that benchmark against CAI
1 company names CAI as a compensation peer

Each company listed discloses CAI in its own benchmarking peer group, as disclosed in each company's most recent proxy statement within the last two proxy seasons. Two companies are therefore absent by design: one that named CAI in an earlier year and no longer does, and one whose own most recent disclosure is older than the last two seasons.

01

Summary Compensation Table — fiscal year 2025

Named executive officerSalaryBonusStock awardsOption awardsNon-equity incentivePension / NQDCAll otherTotal
David Dean Halbert$764,918$3,259,311$15,400,569$0$0$0$925,773$20,350,571
Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
David Spetzler611,934703,7252,780,9887,472,5800014,00011,583,227
President
J. Russel Denton458,951263,8972,085,7412,532,0250014,0005,354,614
Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary

A dash means the company reported no figure in that column; 0 means it reported zero. Figures are as printed in the filing, without adjustment.

Three-year trend — total compensation per named executive

Named executive officerFY2025 totalFY2024 totalFY2023 totalΔ FY20242025
David Dean Halbert$20,350,571
David Spetzler11,583,227
J. Russel Denton5,354,614

Prior-year totals as disclosed in the corresponding proxy; deltas are computed values with the derivation shown in the register.

02

Equity transactions since the proxy statement was filed

Every insider equity transaction reported on Form 4 after the 2025 proxy statement — acquisitions, dispositions, exercises, and withholdings — and therefore not reflected in any table in that document.

InsiderRoleTransaction dateCodeSharesPriceValueSecuritySource
Jeffrey VacircaDirector2026-05-11A31,050$16$501,426CommonForm 4 ↗
Brian J. BrilleDirector2026-05-15D13,98715213,302CommonForm 4 ↗
David SpetzlerPresident2026-05-15D13,85615211,304CommonForm 4 ↗
Jon HalbertDirector2026-05-15A68,00015990,080Common, indirectForm 4 ↗
David D. HalbertDirector2026-05-15D40,71215620,858CommonForm 4 ↗
Luke Thomas PowerSee Remarks2026-05-15D9,77115149,008CommonForm 4 ↗
J. Russel DentonSee Remarks2026-05-15D6,0471592,217CommonForm 4 ↗
Jonathan KnowlesDirector2026-05-29A1,6001624,992CommonForm 4 ↗
George H. PosteDirector2026-05-29A1,6001624,992CommonForm 4 ↗

Transaction codes per Form 4: A acquisition · S open-market sale · F tax withholding · M option exercise · G gift. Value = shares × price as reported. Dividend-equivalent and fractional-share accrual rows (derivative Class A, under $10,000 and under 2,000 shares) are aggregated per date; every row appears in full below.

03

Grants of plan-based awards — fiscal year 2025

ExecutiveAwardGrant dateThresholdTargetGrantedMaximumGrant-date fair value
David SpetzlerOPTION$7,472,580
J. Russel DentonRSU2,085,741
David SpetzlerRSU2,780,988
David Dean HalbertRSU15,400,569
J. Russel DentonOPTION2,532,025
03b

Vehicle mix — grant-date fair value by award type

Named executive officerTime-vested (RSU)Performance-vested (PSU)Options / SARs% performance-vested
David Spetzler$2,780,988$0$7,472,5800.0%
J. Russel Denton2,085,74102,532,0250.0%
David Dean Halbert15,400,569000.0%

% performance-vested = PSU grant-date fair value ÷ (RSU + PSU + Options), a computed value with the derivation shown in the register.

04

Outstanding equity awards at fiscal year-end 2025

ExecutiveAwardShares unvestedExercise priceMarket value unvested
J. Russel DentonOption26,379,85010.23
David SpetzlerRSU132,4283,572,907
J. Russel DentonRSU99,3212,679,681
David SpetzlerRSU9,897267,021
J. Russel DentonRSU3,35490,491
David SpetzlerOption150,00018.6
J. Russel DentonOption51,00018.6
05

Incentive-plan design — the Compensation Discussion & Analysis

We believe that equity awards provide our executive officers with a strong link to our long-term performance, create an ownership culture and help to align the interests of our executive officers and our shareholders.

CEO STI target (% of salary)200%
CEO LTI target (% of salary)
Independent consultantCompensia, Inc.
Clawback policyTrue
Anti-hedgingTrue
Anti-pledgingFalse
07

CEO pay ratio

Ratio (CEO : median employee)
CEO total compensation
Median employee compensation
08

Director compensation — fiscal year 2025

DirectorCash feesStock awardsOption awardsNon-equity incentiveAll otherTotal
Peter M. CastlemanIndependent · Lead Independent Director · Audit · Compensation (Chair)$110,500$299,999$37,062$0$199,779$647,340
Danny PhillipsIndependent · Audit (Chair)75,000299,99937,0620412,061
Joseph E. GilliamIndependent · Audit · Compensation71,500299,99937,0620408,561
David FredricksonIndependent50,000299,99937,0620387,061
Laura I. JohansenIndependent · Compensation59,000299,9990358,999
Jeffrey VacircaIndependent50,000299,9990349,999
Jonathan KnowlesIndependent · Not standing for re-election50,000299,9990349,999
George H. PosteIndependent · Not standing for re-election50,000299,9990349,999
Jon S. HalbertNot independent50,000299,9990349,999
Lloyd B. MinorIndependent50,000299,9990349,999
Nathan BurnsIndependent · Departed during FY000000
Brian J. BrilleEmployee director00000
David Dean HalbertEmployee director · Board Chair00000
Vijay MohanIndependent · Departed during FY000000
09

Board fee structure and ownership guideline

Annual cash retainer$50,000
Annual equity retainer$337,061
Per board meeting fee
Committee chair fees (audit / comp / nom-gov)25,000 / 18,000
Stock ownership guideline
09b

Total cost of the board

ComponentFY2025
Cash retainers and fees$616,000
Equity awards (grant-date value)$2,999,990
All other compensation$199,779
Total cost of the board$3,815,769

Computed as the sum of the director compensation table rows above; inputs and formula shown in the register.

10b

Chief executive pay against the peer group

Most recent fiscal-year chief executive compensation at each disclosed peer, taken from that company's own proxy statement.

RankCompanyFYChief executiveSalaryStock awardsOption awardsNon-equity incentiveTotal
1Caris Life Sciences2025David Dean Halbert$764,918$15,400,569$0$0$20,350,571

Each peer's compensation is from its most recently filed proxy; fiscal years differ by company. Each peer's figures come from its own filings; the subject company is highlighted. Peers whose chief executive compensation is outside our coverage universe are stated as such, never left blank.

11

Source register

Each figure's location is given both for the eye (section · page · table · row · column) and for a script (table/row/column index and exact character span in the filed document). Any figure can be independently confirmed against the source.

#SupportsDocumentFiledAccessionLocation in document
1Section 01, David Dean HalbertDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Summary Compensation Table” · page 25. As printed: 20,350,571. Filing ↗machine: r2 · c24 · span 308767–308777
2Section 01, David SpetzlerDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Summary Compensation Table” · page 25. As printed: 11,583,227. Filing ↗machine: r4 · c24 · span 314042–314052
3Section 01, J. Russel DentonDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Summary Compensation Table” · page 25. As printed: 5,354,614. Filing ↗machine: r6 · c24 · span 319604–319613
4Section 03, David Spetzler OPTIONDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “IPO (” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: t26 · r4 · c9 · span 313339–313348
5Section 03, J. Russel Denton RSUDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “IPO (” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: t26 · r6 · c6 · span 318478–318487
6Section 03, David Spetzler RSUDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “IPO (” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: t26 · r4 · c6 · span 312916–312925
7Section 03, David Dean Halbert RSUDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “IPO (” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: t26 · r2 · c6 · span 307655–307665
8Section 03, J. Russel Denton OPTIONDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “IPO (” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: t26 · r6 · c9 · span 318901–318910
9Section 07, pay ratio10-K2026-03-030002019410-26-000016Section “CEO Pay Ratio”. As printed: —. Filing ↗
10Section 08, Peter M. CastlemanDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 647,340. Filing ↗machine: t23 · r2 · c9 · span 210029–210036
11Section 08, Danny PhillipsDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 412,061. Filing ↗machine: t23 · r11 · c9 · span 228828–228835
12Section 08, Joseph E. GilliamDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 408,561. Filing ↗machine: t23 · r5 · c9 · span 216352–216359
13Section 08, David FredricksonDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 387,061. Filing ↗machine: t23 · r4 · c9 · span 214305–214312
14Section 08, Laura I. JohansenDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 358,999. Filing ↗machine: t23 · r7 · c9 · span 220445–220452
15Section 08, Jeffrey VacircaDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 349,999. Filing ↗machine: t23 · r13 · c9 · span 233257–233264
16Section 08, Jonathan KnowlesDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 349,999. Filing ↗machine: t23 · r8 · c9 · span 222492–222499
17Section 08, George H. PosteDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 349,999. Filing ↗machine: t23 · r12 · c9 · span 230874–230881
18Section 08, Jon S. HalbertDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 349,999. Filing ↗machine: t23 · r6 · c9 · span 218397–218404
19Section 08, Lloyd B. MinorDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 349,999. Filing ↗machine: t23 · r9 · c9 · span 224554–224561
20Section 08, Nathan BurnsDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. Filing ↗machine: t23 · r3 · c5 · span 211461–211462
21Section 08, Brian J. BrilleDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. Filing ↗
22Section 08, David Dean HalbertDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. Filing ↗
23Section 08, Vijay MohanDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. Filing ↗machine: t23 · r10 · c5 · span 225987–225988
24Section 02, Jeffrey Vacirca 2026-05-11Form 42026-05-120001724161-26-000005Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. Filing ↗
25Section 02, Brian J. Brille 2026-05-15Form 42026-05-180002071959-26-000006Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. Filing ↗
26Section 02, David Spetzler 2026-05-15Form 42026-05-180002071953-26-000004Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. Filing ↗
27Section 02, Jon Halbert 2026-05-15Form 42026-07-130001189394-26-000005Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. Filing ↗
28Section 02, David D. Halbert 2026-05-15Form 42026-05-180001034380-26-000004Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. Filing ↗
29Section 02, Luke Thomas Power 2026-05-15Form 42026-05-180002072013-26-000004Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. Filing ↗
30Section 02, J. Russel Denton 2026-05-15Form 42026-05-180002071923-26-000005Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. Filing ↗
31Section 02, Jonathan Knowles 2026-05-29Form 42026-06-020001662103-26-000002Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. Filing ↗
32Section 02, George H. Poste 2026-05-29Form 42026-06-020001180770-26-000003Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. Filing ↗
33Section 03b vehicle mix (computed)ComputedcomputedRSU / PSU / Options grant-date fair values summed per officer from the grants table; % performance-vested = PSU ÷ (RSU+PSU+Options).machine: formula: sums + PSU ratio
34Section 09b board cost (computed)ComputedcomputedCash 616,000 + equity 2,999,990 + all other 199,779 = 3,815,769, summed across the director compensation table rows.machine: formula: Σ = 3,815,769
35Caris Life Sciences (subject), Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-04-230002019410-26-000032CEO total compensation as printed in Caris Life Sciences's own proxy. As printed: 20,350,571. Filing ↗machine: r2 · c24 · span 308767–308777