Does Lakeland Industries, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:LAKE) CEO Pay Compare Well With Peers?

Christopher Ryan has been the CEO of Lakeland Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:LAKE) since 2003. This analysis aims first to contrast CEO compensation with other companies that have similar market capitalization. Next, we'll consider growth that the business demonstrates. And finally - as a second measure of performance - we will look at the returns shareholders have received over the last few years. This process should give us an idea about how appropriately the CEO is paid.

View our latest analysis for Lakeland Industries

How Does Christopher Ryan's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?

Our data indicates that Lakeland Industries, Inc. is worth US$89m, and total annual CEO compensation was reported as US$771k for the year to January 2019. While we always look at total compensation first, we note that the salary component is less, at US$400k. We examined a group of similar sized companies, with market capitalizations of below US$200m. The median CEO total compensation in that group is US$493k.

Thus we can conclude that Christopher Ryan receives more in total compensation than the median of a group of companies in the same market, and of similar size to Lakeland Industries, Inc.. However, this doesn't necessarily mean the pay is too high. A closer look at the performance of the underlying business will give us a better idea about whether the pay is particularly generous. You might want to check this free visual report on analyst forecasts for future earnings.

You can see, below, how CEO compensation at Lakeland Industries has changed over time.

Is Lakeland Industries, Inc. Growing?

Lakeland Industries, Inc. has reduced its earnings per share by an average of 79% a year, over the last three years (measured with a line of best fit). It achieved revenue growth of 2.2% over the last year.

Unfortunately, earnings per share have trended lower over the last three years. The fairly low revenue growth fails to impress given that the earnings per share is down. So given this relatively weak performance, shareholders would probably not want to see high compensation for the CEO.

Has Lakeland Industries, Inc. Been A Good Investment?

Lakeland Industries, Inc. has generated a total shareholder return of 9.6% over three years, so most shareholders wouldn't be too disappointed. But they would probably prefer not to see CEO compensation far in excess of the median.

In Summary...

We compared the total CEO remuneration paid by Lakeland Industries, 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.

Neither earnings per share nor revenue have been growing sufficiently to impress us, over the last three years. While shareholder returns are acceptable, they don't delight. So we think more research is needed, but we don't think the CEO underpaid. Shareholders may want to check for free if Lakeland Industries 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.

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.