Yahoo Finance Is Weis Markets, Inc.'s (NYSE:WMK) CEO Pay Justified?
Jonathan Weis became the CEO of Weis Markets, Inc. (NYSE:WMK) in 2013. 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 process should give us an idea about how appropriately the CEO is paid.
View our latest analysis for Weis Markets
How Does Jonathan Weis's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?
At the time of writing, our data says that Weis Markets, Inc. has a market cap of US$1.0b, and reported total annual CEO compensation of US$5.9m for the year to December 2018. While we always look at total compensation first, we note that the salary component is less, at US$1.0m. 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$400m to US$1.6b, and discovered that the median CEO total compensation of that group was US$2.6m.
It would therefore appear that Weis Markets, Inc. pays Jonathan Weis 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 better assess whether the pay is overly generous by looking into the underlying business performance.
You can see, below, how CEO compensation at Weis Markets has changed over time.
Is Weis Markets, Inc. Growing?
Weis Markets, Inc. has increased its earnings per share (EPS) by an average of 1.4% a year, over the last three years (using a line of best fit). It achieved revenue growth of 1.2% over the last year.
I would argue that the improvement in revenue isn't particularly impressive, but I'm happy with the modest EPS growth. Considering these factors I'd say performance has been pretty decent, though not amazing. Although we don't have analyst forecasts you might want to assess this data-rich visualization of earnings, revenue and cash flow.
Has Weis Markets, Inc. Been A Good Investment?
Since shareholders would have lost about 25% over three years, some Weis Markets, Inc. shareholders would surely be feeling negative emotions. This suggests it would be unwise for the company to pay the CEO too generously.
In Summary...
We compared the total CEO remuneration paid by Weis Markets, Inc., and compared it to remuneration at a group of similar sized companies. As discussed above, we discovered that the company pays more than the median of that group.
Over the last three years, shareholder returns have been downright disappointing, and the underlying business has failed to impress us. Shareholders may wish to consider further research. Although we don't think the CEO pay is too high, it is probably more on the generous side of things. If you think CEO compensation levels are interesting you will probably really like this free visualization of insider trading at Weis Markets.
If you want to buy a stock that is better than Weis Markets, this free list of high return, low debt companies is a great place to look.
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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.
