Buckingham's Richard Clark made $24 million in 2010

Recently retired Merck & Co. CEO Richard Clark of Buckingham earned $24.6 million in total compensation in 2010, according to a regulatory filing the company made Wednesday.

His total compensation was $15.8 million in 2009 and $22.3 million in 2008. The fluctuation was mostly due to changes in the valuation of the stock, a company spokesman said Thursday.

Clark, a Buckingham resident, remains company chairman. He retired as CEO on Jan. 1 before he reached the mandatory retirement age of 65 in March. He has been the company chairman since 2007.

Kenneth C. Frazier of Upper Makefield replaced him as CEO. Frazier, 56, received compensation totaling $7.6 million in 2010, when he served part of the year as president.

Clark's 2010 pay included a 3 percent increase in salary to nearly $1.9 million and a performance-related bonus of $3.3 million. But the bulk of his compensation came from stock and option awards, the combined total value of which more than doubled to about $12.7 million.

Merck said its board gave Clark a salary increase last year "to reflect his accomplishments, contributions and strong leadership during 2009, as well as the fact that (his) base salary had not been adjusted since 2008."

Clark steered Merck through its $49.6 billion acquisition of Schering-Plough in 2009. The deal made Merck the world's second-biggest drug-maker, gave it product diversity and bolstered its portfolio of drugs in late-stage development.

Merck's revenue climbed 68 percent to $45.99 billion last year after the acquisition. But the company's net income sank 93 percent in 2010 to $861 million from $12.9 billion, largely related to increased costs due to the acquisition of Schering-Plough.

The company's annual meeting will be held May 24 at Raritan Valley Community College in North Branch, N.J.