By Eduardo Bacci, The Investigative Journal
Every week, thousands of documents land on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s EDGAR system. Most are routine. A handful reveal how money and power actually move inside American public companies. This week’s filings include a $75.5 million cash exit for a pharmaceutical executive, a $225 million bet by a retailer’s chairman on his own stock, a Japanese insurer edging toward a 30 percent position in a U.S. annuity giant, and two billionaire founders quietly handing back one million shares of stock awards. Below, TIJ reviews eight disclosures filed between October 6 and October 13, 2026, with direct links to the underlying records.
1. Bausch + Lomb: CEO departs with $75.5 million in cash, forfeits all equity
The week’s most consequential disclosure came from Bausch + Lomb Corporation (NYSE: BLCO). In a Form 8-K filed October 12, the eye-health company reported that Chief Executive Officer Brent Saunders and the board “mutually agreed” that he would depart the company and the board effective that same day. Thomas J. Appio, the company’s chairman, was named interim CEO. Appio simultaneously serves as CEO of Bausch Health Companies Inc., which the filing identifies as Bausch + Lomb’s controlling shareholder.
The financial terms are striking. According to the filing, a separation agreement dated October 11 provides Saunders with a lump-sum cash payment of $75.5 million, reimbursement of up to $50,000 in attorneys’ fees, and two years of continued group health plan eligibility. In exchange, the filing states, all of his outstanding equity awards were forfeited and cancelled, and he will receive no additional severance under his February 2023 employment agreement. Payment is contingent on his execution of a general release of claims. The filing states the departure “is not due to any dispute or disagreement” with the company.
Several features of this arrangement warrant scrutiny. First, a $75.5 million cash separation is unusually large by any measure; typical executive severance packages are structured as a multiple of salary and bonus, with the bulk of value delivered through equity that continues to vest. Here, records indicate the structure was inverted: equity was wiped out and replaced with cash. Second, the same filing disclosed that the company expects to raise its full-year 2026 adjusted EBITDA guidance, meaning the board parted with its CEO at a moment when the business, by its own account, was performing well. Third, control of the company now rests with the parent company’s chief executive. Trade publications Endpoints News and Fierce Pharma characterized the exit as abrupt, noting that Saunders had previously led Allergan through its $63 billion sale to AbbVie. Bausch + Lomb has not publicly explained the reasons for the change beyond the 8-K language. TIJ has not yet sought comment from the company; this report is based solely on the public filing.
2. Danaher: Founders waive 500,000-share awards each after board refresh
Danaher Corporation (NYSE: DHR) disclosed in an 8-K signed October 13 that co-founders Steven M. Rales, chairman of the board, and Mitchell P. Rales, chairman of the executive committee, each waived “for no consideration” restricted stock units covering 500,000 shares that had been granted to them on August 4, 2026. The filing notes that the original grants, which also included stock option awards, were disclosed in an August 3 8-K. The option awards are not described as waived.
The same filing reported that the board expanded to 13 members with the appointment of Daniel L. Comas, Danaher’s former chief financial officer, and Robert M. Hershberg, former CEO of HilleVax. Records show Comas had been paid $525,000 in 2025 and $393,750 in 2026 under a consulting agreement that was terminated September 30, 2026, in connection with his joining the board. Director Alan G. Spoon will retire at the 2027 annual meeting.
The waiver is notable because “Founder RSU” grants to non-executive chairmen of established, widely held companies are rare, and a million-share reversal two months after the grant suggests the awards drew pushback from somewhere. The filing does not say why the waiver occurred. The appointment of a former CFO who was until weeks earlier a paid consultant also raises a question about his independence classification, which the company’s next proxy statement should clarify.
3. Procter & Gamble: Say-on-pay passes, three shareholder proposals fail
The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE: PG) held its annual meeting October 13 and, according to an 8-K filed the same day, shareholders elected all 12 director nominees, ratified the auditor, and approved the advisory vote on executive compensation based on preliminary results. Three shareholder proposals, addressing special-meeting thresholds, shareholder-proposal eligibility, and charitable-contribution reporting, were voted down. The company’s proxy statement indicated the prior year’s say-on-pay vote received 92.2 percent support, a level consistent with what large-cap companies typically report. Final tallies will be reported on a subsequent 8-K; TIJ will review the exact percentages when filed, since support levels below 70 percent typically trigger engagement under proxy-advisor guidelines.
4. GameStop: Ryan Cohen adds $23 million, holds 9.1 percent
GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME) chairman and CEO Ryan Cohen filed Amendment No. 21 to his Schedule 13D on October 13, reporting open-market purchases that day of 67,130 shares at $26.75 and 777,000 shares at $27.00, roughly $22.8 million in total. The filing states Cohen beneficially owns 46,227,436 shares, or approximately 9.1 percent of the class, including 3,734,784 shares underlying warrants received through a warrant dividend. Records show the aggregate purchase price of his 42,492,652 directly held shares is approximately $225.4 million. The filing notes the shares were purchased with personal funds “which may, at any given time, include margin loans.” Executive open-market purchases of this scale are uncommon; the margin-loan language, standard in Cohen’s filings, is nonetheless a disclosure investors should weigh given the stock’s historical volatility.
5. Corebridge Financial: Nippon Life reaches 28.4 percent
Nippon Life Insurance Company disclosed in a Schedule 13D/A filed October 6 that it purchased 4,614,523 shares of Corebridge Financial, Inc. (NYSE: CRBG) between September 9 and October 2 for approximately $158.2 million under a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The Japanese insurer now beneficially owns 126,604,050 shares, or 28.4 percent of the retirement and life insurer, based on 445.8 million shares outstanding. The steady accumulation through a pre-set trading plan suggests a deliberate march toward a larger stake. Any crossing of the 30 percent level, or changes to the stockholder’s agreement governing Nippon Life’s board rights, would be a material governance event for a company that was only spun out of AIG in 2022.
6. Empire State Realty Trust: Activist takes 5.8 percent, seeks strategic review
Erez Asset Management LLC and founder Bruce Schanzer, a former REIT chief executive, filed a Schedule 13D disclosing 10,000,000 Class A shares of Empire State Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: ESRT), or 5.8 percent of the class, with the triggering event dated October 1. The choice of a 13D rather than a passive 13G signals intent to influence the company. According to the filing, the investors have communicated with the board about capital allocation and “a potential strategic review of some or all” of the company’s assets, which include the Empire State Building, and intend to engage on board composition, capital structure, buybacks, and executive compensation. The filing does not disclose any current plan for a takeover bid or merger.
7. Charter Communications: Chief commercial officer exits with enhanced vesting
Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTR) reported in an 8-K filed October 13 that Adam Ray ceased serving as executive vice president and chief commercial officer effective October 12 and will remain in a non-executive advisory capacity through December 31. Subject to a release agreement, Ray receives termination-without-cause severance plus a notable sweetener: time-vesting restricted stock units and options that would otherwise be forfeited will continue vesting on their original schedule, and vested options remain exercisable for up to 60 months after the later of his departure date and the vesting date. Continued vesting after separation is a benefit typically reserved for retirement-eligible executives; the filing cites Ray’s 21 years of service but does not quantify the value of the accelerated awards.
8. Peloton: Chief accounting officer steps down without severance
Peloton Interactive, Inc. (NASDAQ: PTON) disclosed in an 8-K dated October 8 that Saqib Baig, its chief accounting officer and principal accounting officer, notified the company he would step down to “pursue an external opportunity,” remaining through November 27, 2026. The filing states the departure is not the result of any disagreement on financial disclosures or accounting matters, and that Baig will receive no severance. Prior filings indicate Baig served as interim CFO earlier in 2026 before the company appointed a permanent CFO in May. Departures of principal accounting officers are closely watched because that officer certifies the integrity of the books; the company says a search for a successor is under way.
What warrants deeper TIJ investigation
Three disclosures this week merit follow-up. The Bausch + Lomb separation stands out most: a $75.5 million cash payment under an agreement dated the day before the CEO’s departure, coupled with the parent company’s CEO assuming interim control of a subsidiary with minority public shareholders, raises questions about how the independent directors evaluated the arrangement and what the Bausch Health relationship means for Bausch + Lomb’s minority holders. The Exhibit 10.1 separation agreement and the company’s next proxy statement will be essential reading. Danaher’s reversal of one million founder RSUs invites inquiry into what prompted the August grants and the October waivers, and whether proxy advisors or large holders intervened. Finally, Nippon Life’s methodical accumulation of Corebridge stock through a 10b5-1 plan should be tracked against the thresholds in its stockholder’s agreement.
Right of reply: This report is based entirely on public SEC filings and company press releases linked above. None of the companies named has been asked for comment on this specific article; TIJ welcomes responses from any party referenced and will update this report accordingly.
Sources
- Bausch + Lomb Corp., Form 8-K, Oct. 12, 2026
- Danaher Corp., Form 8-K, event date Oct. 9, 2026
- Procter & Gamble Co., Form 8-K, Oct. 13, 2026
- GameStop Corp., Schedule 13D/A (Ryan Cohen), Amendment No. 21, Oct. 13, 2026
- Corebridge Financial, Schedule 13D/A (Nippon Life), Amendment No. 5, Oct. 6, 2026
- Empire State Realty Trust, Schedule 13D (Erez Asset Management), Oct. 2026
- Charter Communications, Form 8-K, Oct. 13, 2026
- Peloton Interactive, Form 8-K, Oct. 13, 2026