Is Viking Line ABP (HEL:VIK1V) Overpaying Its CEO?

Jan Hanses has been the CEO of Viking Line ABP (HEL:VIK1V) since 2014. This report will, first, examine the CEO compensation levels in comparison to CEO compensation at companies of similar size. Next, we'll consider growth that the business demonstrates. 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.

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How Does Jan Hanses's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?

At the time of writing our data says that Viking Line ABP has a market cap of €157m, and is paying total annual CEO compensation of €323k. (This figure is for the year to 2016). We think total compensation is more important but we note that the CEO salary is lower, at €278k. We examined companies with market caps from €88m to €351m, and discovered that the median CEO compensation of that group was €406k.

So Jan Hanses is paid around the average of the companies we looked at. Although this fact alone doesn't tell us a great deal, it becomes more relevant when considered against the business performance.

You can see a visual representation of the CEO compensation at Viking Line ABP, below.

Is Viking Line ABP Growing?

Over the last three years Viking Line ABP has shrunk its earnings per share by an average of 73% per year. In the last year, its revenue changed by just -0.7%.

Few shareholders would be pleased to read that earnings per share are lower over three years. And the flat revenue is seriously uninspiring. So given this relatively weak performance, shareholders would probably not want to see high compensation for the CEO.

We don't have analyst forecasts, but you could get a better understanding of its growth by checking out this more detailed historical graph of earnings, revenue and cash flow.

Has Viking Line ABP Been A Good Investment?

Since shareholders would have lost about 30% over three years, some Viking Line ABP shareholders would surely be feeling negative emotions. So shareholders would probably think the company shouldn't be too generous with CEO compensation.

In Summary...

Remuneration for Jan Hanses is close enough to the median pay for a CEO of a similar sized company .

The company isn't growing EPS, and shareholder returns have been disappointing. Most would consider it prudent for the company to hold off any CEO pay rise until performance improves. CEO compensation is one thing, but it is also interesting to check if the CEO is buying or selling Viking Line ABP (free visualization of insider trades).

Or you might prefer this data-rich interactive visualization of historic revenue and earnings.

To help readers see past the short term volatility of the financial market, we aim to bring you a long-term focused research analysis purely driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis does not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements.

The author is an independent contributor and at the time of publication had no position in the stocks mentioned. For errors that warrant correction please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com.

Simply Wall St analyst Simply Wall St and Simply Wall St have no position in any of the companies mentioned. This article 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.