What Does Barry Callebaut's (VTX:BARN) CEO Pay Reveal?

Antoine de Saint-Affrique has been the CEO of Barry Callebaut AG (VTX:BARN) since 2015, and this article will examine the executive's compensation with respect to the overall performance of the company. This analysis will also assess whether Barry Callebaut pays its CEO appropriately, considering recent earnings growth and total shareholder returns.

View our latest analysis for Barry Callebaut

How Does Total Compensation For Antoine de Saint-Affrique Compare With Other Companies In The Industry?

According to our data, Barry Callebaut AG has a market capitalization of CHF11b, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth CHF5.3m over the year to August 2020. We note that's a decrease of 24% compared to last year. While we always look at total compensation first, our analysis shows that the salary component is less, at CHF1.6m.

In comparison with other companies in the industry with market capitalizations over CHF7.2b , the reported median total CEO compensation was CHF3.5m. Accordingly, our analysis reveals that Barry Callebaut AG pays Antoine de Saint-Affrique north of the industry median. What's more, Antoine de Saint-Affrique holds CHF11m worth of shares in the company in their own name, indicating that they have a lot of skin in the game.

Talking in terms of the industry, salary represented approximately 45% of total compensation out of all the companies we analyzed, while other remuneration made up 55% of the pie. Barry Callebaut pays a modest slice of remuneration through salary, as compared to the broader industry. If total compensation is slanted towards non-salary benefits, it indicates that CEO pay is linked to company performance.

A Look at Barry Callebaut AG's Growth Numbers

Over the past three years, Barry Callebaut AG has seen its earnings per share (EPS) grow by 4.1% per year. Its revenue is down 5.7% over the previous year.

We generally like to see a little revenue growth, but it is good to see a modest EPS growth at least. In conclusion we can't form a strong opinion about business performance yet; but it's one worth watching. Moving away from current form for a second, it could be important to check this free visual depiction of what analysts expect for the future.

Has Barry Callebaut AG Been A Good Investment?

With a total shareholder return of 7.4% over three years, Barry Callebaut AG has done okay by shareholders. But they would probably prefer not to see CEO compensation far in excess of the median.

In Summary...

As we noted earlier, Barry Callebaut pays its CEO higher than the norm for similar-sized companies belonging to the same industry. However, EPS growth is not moving in the right direction, and the returns to shareholders could have been better, over the last three years. Overall, although the company has delivered steady performance, we would like to see an improvement in key metrics before we can say the high CEO compensation is justified.

While it is important to pay attention to CEO remuneration, investors should also consider other elements of the business. That's why we did some digging and identified 1 warning sign for Barry Callebaut that investors should think about before committing capital to this stock.

Switching gears from Barry Callebaut, if you're hunting for a pristine balance sheet and premium returns, this free list of high return, low debt companies is a great place to look.

If you’re looking to trade Barry Callebaut, open an account with the lowest-cost* platform trusted by professionals, Interactive Brokers. Their clients from over 200 countries and territories trade stocks, options, futures, forex, bonds and funds worldwide from a single integrated account. Promoted

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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
^*Interactive Brokers Rated Lowest Cost Broker by StockBrokers.com Annual Online Review 2020

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.