Is Hydrogen Group Plc's (LON:HYDG) CEO Pay Fair?
In 2015 Ian Temple was appointed CEO of Hydrogen Group Plc (LON:HYDG). 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. Third, we'll reflect on the total return to shareholders over three years, as a second measure of business performance. This method should give us information to assess how appropriately the company pays the CEO.
View our latest analysis for Hydrogen Group
How Does Ian Temple's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?
At the time of writing, our data says that Hydrogen Group Plc has a market cap of UK£16m, and reported total annual CEO compensation of UK£420k for the year to December 2018. While we always look at total compensation first, we note that the salary component is less, at UK£232k. We took a group of companies with market capitalizations below UK£153m, and calculated the median CEO total compensation to be UK£250k.
It would therefore appear that Hydrogen Group Plc pays Ian Temple more than the median CEO remuneration at companies of a similar size, in the same market. However, this fact alone doesn't mean the remuneration is too high. We can get a better idea of how generous the pay is by looking at the performance of the underlying business.
The graphic below shows how CEO compensation at Hydrogen Group has changed from year to year.
Is Hydrogen Group Plc Growing?
Over the last three years Hydrogen Group Plc has grown its earnings per share (EPS) by an average of 82% per year (using a line of best fit). Its revenue is down 4.7% over last year.
This demonstrates that the company has been improving recently. A good result. The lack of revenue growth isn't ideal, but it is the bottom line that counts most in business. It could be important to check this free visual depiction of what analysts expect for the future.
Has Hydrogen Group Plc Been A Good Investment?
I think that the total shareholder return of 40%, over three years, would leave most Hydrogen Group Plc shareholders smiling. 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...
We compared total CEO remuneration at Hydrogen Group Plc with the amount paid at companies with a similar market capitalization. As discussed above, we discovered that the company pays more than the median of that group.
However we must not forget that the EPS growth has been very strong over three years. Even better, returns to shareholders have been plentiful, over the same time period. As a result of this good performance, the CEO remuneration may well be quite reasonable. CEO compensation is one thing, but it is also interesting to check if the CEO is buying or selling Hydrogen Group (free visualization of insider trades).
Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.
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.
