Yahoo Finance Is Plus500 Ltd.'s (LON:PLUS) CEO Overpaid Relative To Its Peers?
Asaf Elimelech became the CEO of Plus500 Ltd. (LON:PLUS) in 2016. First, this article will compare CEO compensation with compensation at similar sized 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. This process should give us an idea about how appropriately the CEO is paid.
Check out our latest analysis for Plus500
How Does Asaf Elimelech's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?
Our data indicates that Plus500 Ltd. is worth UK£975m, and total annual CEO compensation was reported as US$6.0m for the year to December 2018. We think total compensation is more important but we note that the CEO salary is lower, at US$327k. 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 selection of companies with market caps ranging from US$1.0b to US$3.2b, we found the median CEO total compensation was US$2.0m.
It would therefore appear that Plus500 Ltd. pays Asaf Elimelech 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.
You can see a visual representation of the CEO compensation at Plus500, below.
Is Plus500 Ltd. Growing?
Plus500 Ltd. has increased its earnings per share (EPS) by an average of 35% a year, over the last three years (using a line of best fit). It saw its revenue drop 44% over the last year.
This shows that the company has improved itself over the last few years. Good news for shareholders. The lack of revenue growth isn't ideal, but it is the bottom line that counts most in business. Shareholders might be interested in this free visualization of analyst forecasts.
Has Plus500 Ltd. Been A Good Investment?
I think that the total shareholder return of 238%, over three years, would leave most Plus500 Ltd. shareholders smiling. This strong performance might mean some shareholders don't mind if the CEO were to be paid more than is normal for a company of its size.
In Summary...
We examined the amount Plus500 Ltd. pays its CEO, and compared it to the amount paid by similar sized companies. As discussed above, we discovered that the company pays more than the median of that group.
However, the earnings per share growth over three years is certainly impressive. 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. If you think CEO compensation levels are interesting you will probably really like this free visualization of insider trading at Plus500.
If you want to buy a stock that is better than Plus500, this free list of high return, low debt companies is a great place to look.
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.
