Danaher Corp: board adds 2 directors; founder RSUs waived

What happened Danaher filed an 8-K on Oct 13, 2026, reporting that the board increased its size to 13 members and appointed Daniel L. Comas and Robert M. Hershberg, effective Oct 9, 2026. The filing also reported that Steven Rales and Mitchell P. Rales were granted Founder restricted stock units of 500,000 shares each and stock options, and that each waived their right to the Founder RSUs for no consideration on Oct 9, 2026.

Key details

• The board appointments are effective Oct 9, 2026; each director will serve until the company’s next annual meeting of shareholders and until a successor is elected or earlier death, resignation or removal.
• Daniel L. Comas, age 62, previously served as executive vice president through Dec 2020 and as a consultant through Sep 30, 2026; he earned $525,000 in 2025 and $393,750 in 2026 under the consulting agreement, which was mutually terminated effective Sep 30, 2026.
• Robert M. Hershberg, age 63, was appointed to the science and technology committee.
• Each new director will participate in the company’s non-employee director compensation program; cash compensation will be prorated and each will receive an equity award prorated to reflect the period from Oct 9, 2026, to May 15, 2027.
• Alan G. Spoon notified the company on Oct 9, 2026, that he will retire from the board effective at the 2027 annual meeting of shareholders and will not stand for re-election.
• The Founder RSUs were 500,000 shares for each of Steven and Mitchell Rales; both waived their rights to those RSUs for no consideration on Oct 9, 2026. The filing also notes awards of stock options to each.

Why it may matter This report covers Item 5.02 (departures and elections of directors; appointment of officers; compensatory arrangements of certain officers) and Item 8.01 (other events regarding Founder RSUs and option awards). The filing does not show why the insider traded or why the company acted.