Yahoo Finance Is The Hershey Company's (NYSE:HSY) CEO Being Overpaid?
In 2017 Michele Buck was appointed CEO of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY). This analysis aims first to contrast CEO compensation with other large companies. 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.
See our latest analysis for Hershey
How Does Michele Buck's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?
At the time of writing, our data says that The Hershey Company has a market cap of US$30b, and reported total annual CEO compensation of US$12m for the year to December 2018. We think total compensation is more important but we note that the CEO salary is lower, at US$1.1m. We further remind readers that the CEO may face performance requirements to receive the non-salary part of the total compensation. When we examined a group of companies with market caps over US$8.0b, we found that their median CEO total compensation was US$11m. (We took a wide range because the CEOs of massive companies tend to be paid similar amounts - even though some are quite a bit bigger than others).
So Michele Buck receives a similar amount to the median CEO pay, amongst 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 Hershey has changed over time.
Is The Hershey Company Growing?
On average over the last three years, The Hershey Company has grown earnings per share (EPS) by 24% each year (using a line of best fit). It achieved revenue growth of 2.5% over the last year.
This shows that the company has improved itself over the last few years. Good news for shareholders. It's nice to see a little revenue growth, as this is consistent with healthy business conditions. Shareholders might be interested in this free visualization of analyst forecasts.
Has The Hershey Company Been A Good Investment?
Most shareholders would probably be pleased with The Hershey Company for providing a total return of 42% over three years. 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...
Michele Buck is paid around what is normal the leaders of larger companies.
The company is growing earnings per share and total shareholder returns have been pleasing. Indeed, many might consider the pay rather modest, given the solid company performance! Shareholders may want to check for free if Hershey insiders are buying or selling shares.
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.
