Does Digimarc Corporation's (NASDAQ:DMRC) CEO Salary Compare Well With Others?
Bruce Davis has been the CEO of Digimarc Corporation (NASDAQ:DMRC) since 2008. This report will, first, examine the CEO compensation levels in comparison to CEO compensation at companies of similar size. Next, we'll consider growth that the business demonstrates. And finally we will reflect on how common stockholders have fared in the last few years, as a secondary measure of performance. This process should give us an idea about how appropriately the CEO is paid.
Check out our latest analysis for Digimarc
How Does Bruce Davis's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?
According to our data, Digimarc Corporation has a market capitalization of US$354m, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth US$2.2m over the year to December 2018. We think total compensation is more important but we note that the CEO salary is lower, at US$747k. We further remind readers that the CEO may face performance requirements to receive the non-salary part of the total compensation. We examined companies with market caps from US$200m to US$800m, and discovered that the median CEO total compensation of that group was US$1.7m.
As you can see, Bruce Davis is paid more than the median CEO pay at companies of a similar size, in the same market. However, this does not necessarily mean Digimarc Corporation is paying too much. We can better assess whether the pay is overly generous by looking into the underlying business performance.
You can see, below, how CEO compensation at Digimarc has changed over time.
Is Digimarc Corporation Growing?
Over the last three years Digimarc Corporation has shrunk its earnings per share by an average of 8.1% per year (measured with a line of best fit). Its revenue is up 10.0% over last year.
Unfortunately, earnings per share have trended lower over the last three years. And the modest revenue growth over 12 months isn't much comfort against the reduced earnings per share. It's hard to argue the company is firing on all cylinders, so shareholders might be averse to high CEO remuneration. Shareholders might be interested in this free visualization of analyst forecasts.
Has Digimarc Corporation Been A Good Investment?
Digimarc Corporation has served shareholders reasonably well, with a total return of 14% over three years. But they would probably prefer not to see CEO compensation far in excess of the median.
In Summary...
We examined the amount Digimarc Corporation pays its CEO, and compared it to the amount paid by similar sized companies. Our data suggests that it pays above the median CEO pay within that group.
Neither earnings per share nor revenue have been growing sufficiently to impress us, over the last three years. While shareholder returns are acceptable, they don't delight. So we think more research is needed, but we don't think the CEO underpaid. Shareholders may want to check for free if Digimarc insiders are buying or selling shares.
Important note: Digimarc 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.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
