KWS SAAT SE & Co. KGaA's (ETR:KWS) CEO Will Probably Find It Hard To See A Huge Raise This Year

Key Insights

• KWS SAAT SE KGaA's Annual General Meeting to take place on 13th of December
• Salary of €421.9k is part of CEO Felix Büchting's total remuneration
• Total compensation is similar to the industry average
• KWS SAAT SE KGaA's EPS grew by 7.4% over the past three years while total shareholder loss over the past three years was 16%

The underwhelming share price performance of KWS SAAT SE & Co. KGaA (ETR:KWS) in the past three years would have disappointed many shareholders. What is concerning is that despite positive EPS growth, the share price has not tracked the trend in fundamentals. Shareholders may want to question the board on the future direction of the company at the upcoming AGM on 13th of December. They could also influence management through voting on resolutions such as executive remuneration. Here's our take on why we think shareholders may want to be cautious of approving a raise for the CEO at the moment.

Check out our latest analysis for KWS SAAT SE KGaA

How Does Total Compensation For Felix Büchting Compare With Other Companies In The Industry?

According to our data, KWS SAAT SE & Co. KGaA has a market capitalization of €1.7b, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth €1.1m over the year to June 2023. Notably, that's an increase of 9.8% over the year before. While this analysis focuses on total compensation, it's worth acknowledging that the salary portion is lower, valued at €422k.

For comparison, other companies in the Germany Food industry with market capitalizations ranging between €927m and €3.0b had a median total CEO compensation of €1.1m. This suggests that KWS SAAT SE KGaA remunerates its CEO largely in line with the industry average.

Component	2023	2022	Proportion (2023)
Salary	€422k	€375k	38%
Other	€680k	€629k	62%
Total Compensation	€1.1m	€1.0m	100%

Talking in terms of the industry, salary represented approximately 56% of total compensation out of all the companies we analyzed, while other remuneration made up 44% of the pie. In KWS SAAT SE KGaA's case, non-salary compensation represents a greater slice of total remuneration, in comparison to the broader industry. It's important to note that a slant towards non-salary compensation suggests that total pay is tied to the company's performance.

KWS SAAT SE & Co. KGaA's Growth

KWS SAAT SE & Co. KGaA has seen its earnings per share (EPS) increase by 7.4% a year over the past three years. It achieved revenue growth of 15% over the last year.

We think the revenue growth is good. And the improvement in EPSis modest but respectable. Although we'll stop short of calling the stock a top performer, we think the company has potential. Looking ahead, you might want to check this free visual report on analyst forecasts for the company's future earnings..

Has KWS SAAT SE & Co. KGaA Been A Good Investment?

Since shareholders would have lost about 16% over three years, some KWS SAAT SE & Co. KGaA investors would surely be feeling negative emotions. So shareholders would probably want the company to be less generous with CEO compensation.

In Summary...

The fact that shareholders are sitting on a loss on the value of their shares in the past few years is certainly disconcerting. The fact that the stock price hasn't grown along with earnings may indicate that other issues may be affecting that stock. Shareholders would probably be keen to find out what are the other factors could be weighing down the stock. The upcoming AGM will be a chance for shareholders to question the board on key matters, such as CEO remuneration or any other issues they might have and revisit their investment thesis with regards to the company.

It is always advisable to analyse CEO pay, along with performing a thorough analysis of the company's key performance areas. We did our research and identified 2 warning signs (and 1 which shouldn't be ignored) in KWS SAAT SE KGaA we think you should know about.

Important note: KWS SAAT SE KGaA is an exciting stock, but we understand investors may be looking for an unencumbered balance sheet and blockbuster returns. You might find something better in this list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.