Hilton Food Group plc's (LON:HFG) CEO Compensation Is Looking A Bit Stretched At The Moment

CEO Philip Heffer has done a decent job of delivering relatively good performance at Hilton Food Group plc (LON:HFG) recently. In light of this performance, CEO compensation will probably not be the main focus for shareholders as they go into the AGM on 24 May 2021. However, some shareholders will still be cautious of paying the CEO excessively.

Check out our latest analysis for Hilton Food Group

Comparing Hilton Food Group plc's CEO Compensation With the industry

Our data indicates that Hilton Food Group plc has a market capitalization of UK£1.0b, and total annual CEO compensation was reported as UK£1.8m for the year to January 2021. That's a notable increase of 13% on last year. We think total compensation is more important but our data shows that the CEO salary is lower, at UK£496k.

On examining similar-sized companies in the industry with market capitalizations between UK£708m and UK£2.3b, we discovered that the median CEO total compensation of that group was UK£1.0m. Accordingly, our analysis reveals that Hilton Food Group plc pays Philip Heffer north of the industry median. Moreover, Philip Heffer also holds UK£80m worth of Hilton Food Group stock directly under their own name, which reveals to us that they have a significant personal stake in the company.

Component	2021	2019	Proportion (2021)
Salary	UK£496k	UK£487k	28%
Other	UK£1.3m	UK£1.1m	72%
Total Compensation	UK£1.8m	UK£1.6m	100%

Talking in terms of the industry, salary represented approximately 70% of total compensation out of all the companies we analyzed, while other remuneration made up 30% of the pie. Hilton Food Group sets aside a smaller share of compensation for salary, in comparison to the overall industry. If non-salary compensation dominates total pay, it's an indicator that the executive's salary is tied to company performance.

A Look at Hilton Food Group plc's Growth Numbers

Over the past three years, Hilton Food Group plc has seen its earnings per share (EPS) grow by 14% per year. Its revenue is up 52% over the last year.

Shareholders would be glad to know that the company has improved itself over the last few years. Most shareholders would be pleased to see strong revenue growth combined with EPS growth. This combo suggests a fast growing business. Historical performance can sometimes be a good indicator on what's coming up next but if you want to peer into the company's future you might be interested in this free visualization of analyst forecasts.

Has Hilton Food Group plc Been A Good Investment?

Most shareholders would probably be pleased with Hilton Food Group plc for providing a total return of 42% over three years. So they may not be at all concerned if the CEO were to be paid more than is normal for companies around the same size.

To Conclude...

Given that the company's overall performance has been reasonable, the CEO remuneration policy might not be shareholders' central point of focus in the upcoming AGM. Still, not all shareholders might be in favor of a pay raise to the CEO, seeing that they are already being paid higher than the industry.

CEO compensation can have a massive impact on performance, but it's just one element. We did our research and spotted 1 warning sign for Hilton Food Group that investors should look into moving forward.

Switching gears from Hilton Food Group, 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.

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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.
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