How Much is The GEO Group, Inc.'s (NYSE:GEO) CEO Getting Paid?
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George Zoley became the CEO of The GEO Group, Inc. (NYSE:GEO) in 1994. 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. This method should give us information to assess how appropriately the company pays the CEO.
View our latest analysis for GEO Group
How Does George Zoley's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?
Our data indicates that The GEO Group, Inc. is worth US$2.5b, and total annual CEO compensation is US$7.0m. (This number is for the twelve months until December 2018). That's less than last year. We think total compensation is more important but we note that the CEO salary is lower, at US$1.1m. As part of our analysis we looked at companies in the same jurisdiction, with market capitalizations of US$2.0b to US$6.4b. The median total CEO compensation was US$5.1m.
As you can see, George Zoley is paid more than the median CEO pay at companies of a similar size, in the same market. However, this does not necessarily mean The GEO Group, Inc. is paying too much. We can get a better idea of how generous the pay is by looking at the performance of the underlying business.
You can see, below, how CEO compensation at GEO Group has changed over time.
Is The GEO Group, Inc. Growing?
Over the last three years The GEO Group, Inc. has shrunk its earnings per share by an average of 3.0% per year (measured with a line of best fit). Its revenue is up 4.4% over last year.
Few shareholders would be pleased to read that earnings per share are lower over three years. The modest increase in revenue in the last year isn't enough to make me overlook the disappointing change in earnings per share. 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 GEO Group, Inc. Been A Good Investment?
With a total shareholder return of 18% over three years, The GEO Group, Inc. shareholders would, in general, be reasonably content. But they probably wouldn't be so happy as to think the CEO should be paid more than is normal, for companies around this size.
In Summary...
We compared the total CEO remuneration paid by The GEO Group, Inc., and compared it to remuneration at a group of similar sized companies. We found that it pays well over the median amount paid in the benchmark group.
We think many shareholders would be underwhelmed with the business growth over the last three years.
While shareholder returns are acceptable, they don't delight. So we doubt many shareholders would consider the CEO pay to be particularly modest! CEO compensation is one thing, but it is also interesting to check if the CEO is buying or selling GEO Group (free visualization of insider trades).
If you want to buy a stock that is better than GEO Group, this free list of high return, low debt companies is a great place to look.
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.
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. Thank you for reading.
