Should You Worry About Wolverine World Wide, Inc.'s (NYSE:WWW) CEO Pay?

Blake Krueger became the CEO of Wolverine World Wide, Inc. (NYSE:WWW) in 2007. This report will, first, examine the CEO compensation levels in comparison to CEO compensation at companies of similar size. Then we'll look at a snap shot of the business growth. Third, we'll reflect on the total return to shareholders over three years, as a second measure of business performance. This process should give us an idea about how appropriately the CEO is paid.

Check out our latest analysis for Wolverine World Wide

How Does Blake Krueger's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?

At the time of writing, our data says that Wolverine World Wide, Inc. has a market cap of US$2.5b, and reported total annual CEO compensation of US$8.9m for the year to December 2018. While we always look at total compensation first, we note that the salary component is less, at US$1.2m. 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$2.0b to US$6.4b, and discovered that the median CEO total compensation of that group was US$5.1m.

As you can see, Blake Krueger is paid more than the median CEO pay at companies of a similar size, in the same market. However, this does not necessarily mean Wolverine World Wide, 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 a visual representation of the CEO compensation at Wolverine World Wide, below.

Is Wolverine World Wide, Inc. Growing?

Wolverine World Wide, Inc. has increased its earnings per share (EPS) by an average of 39% a year, over the last three years (using a line of best fit). In the last year, its revenue changed by just 0.3%.

This demonstrates that the company has been improving recently. A good result. It's good to see a bit of revenue growth, as this suggests the business is able to grow sustainably. You might want to check this free visual report on analyst forecasts for future earnings.

Has Wolverine World Wide, Inc. Been A Good Investment?

Most shareholders would probably be pleased with Wolverine World Wide, Inc. for providing a total return of 39% over three years. As a result, some may believe the CEO should be paid more than is normal for companies of similar size.

In Summary...

We examined the amount Wolverine World Wide, Inc. 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 we must not forget that the EPS growth has been very strong over three years. On top of that, in the same period, returns to shareholders have been great. Considering this fine result for shareholders, we daresay the CEO compensation might be apt. If you think CEO compensation levels are interesting you will probably really like this free visualization of insider trading at Wolverine World Wide.

Important note: Wolverine World Wide may not be the best stock to buy. You might find something better in this list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.

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.

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