Does The Buckle, Inc.'s (NYSE:BKE) CEO Pay Compare Well With Peers?
Dennis Nelson has been the CEO of The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) since 1997. This analysis aims first to contrast CEO compensation with other companies that have similar market capitalization. Then we'll look at a snap shot of the business growth. And finally we will reflect on how common stockholders have fared in the last few years, as a secondary measure of performance. The aim of all this is to consider the appropriateness of CEO pay levels.
Check out our latest analysis for Buckle
How Does Dennis Nelson's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?
According to our data, The Buckle, Inc. has a market capitalization of US$1.2b, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth US$3.0m over the year to February 2019. While we always look at total compensation first, we note that the salary component is less, at US$1m. We note that more than half of the total compensation is not the salary; and performance requirements may apply to this non-salary portion. When we examined a selection of companies with market caps ranging from US$1.0b to US$3.2b, we found the median CEO total compensation was US$3.8m.
So Dennis Nelson is paid around the average of the companies we looked at. While this data point isn't particularly informative alone, it gains more meaning when considered with business performance.
You can see, below, how CEO compensation at Buckle has changed over time.
Is The Buckle, Inc. Growing?
On average over the last three years, The Buckle, Inc. has shrunk earnings per share by 1.9% each year (measured with a line of best fit). In the last year, its revenue changed by just 1.0%.
Unfortunately there is a complete lack of earnings per share improvement, over three years. And the flat revenue hardly impresses. These factors suggest that the business performance wouldn't really justify a high pay packet for the CEO. Shareholders might be interested in this free visualization of analyst forecasts.
Has The Buckle, Inc. Been A Good Investment?
Boasting a total shareholder return of 77% over three years, The Buckle, Inc. has done well by shareholders. So they may not be at all concerned if the CEO were to be paid more than is normal for companies around the same size.
In Summary...
Dennis Nelson is paid around what is normal the leaders of comparable size companies.
The company isn't growing earnings per share, but shareholder returns have been strong over the last three years. So we think most shareholders wouldn't be too worried about CEO compensation, which is close to the median for similar sized companies. If you think CEO compensation levels are interesting you will probably really like this free visualization of insider trading at Buckle.
Important note: Buckle may not be the best stock to buy. You might find something better in this list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.
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