In 2016, Clive Dix was appointed CEO of C4X Discovery Holdings plc (LON:C4XD). First, this article will compare CEO compensation with compensation at similar sized companies. Next, we'll consider growth that the business demonstrates. Third, we'll reflect on the total return to shareholders over three years, as a second measure of business performance. This method should give us information to assess how appropriately the company pays the CEO.
Check out our latest analysis for C4X Discovery Holdings
How Does Clive Dix's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?
Our data indicates that C4X Discovery Holdings plc is worth UK£17m, and total annual CEO compensation was reported as UK£159k for the year to July 2019. Notably, the salary of UK£159k is the vast majority of the CEO compensation. We looked at a group of companies with market capitalizations under UK£157m, and the median CEO total compensation was UK£268k.
Pay mix tells us a lot about how a company functions versus the wider industry, and it's no different in the case of C4X Discovery Holdings. On an industry level, roughly 49% of total compensation represents salary and 51% is other remuneration. On a company level, C4X Discovery Holdings prefers to reward its CEO through a salary, opting not to pay Clive Dix through non-salary benefits.
This would give shareholders a good impression of the company, since most similar size companies have to pay more, leaving less for shareholders. However, before we heap on the praise, we should delve deeper to understand business performance. The graphic below shows how CEO compensation at C4X Discovery Holdings has changed from year to year.
Is C4X Discovery Holdings plc Growing?
On average over the last three years, C4X Discovery Holdings plc has seen earnings per share (EPS) move in a favourable direction by 9.0% each year (using a line of best fit). The trailing twelve months of revenue was pretty much the same as the prior period.
I would argue that the lack of revenue growth in the last year is less than ideal, but the improvement in EPS is good. These two metric are moving in different directions, so while it's hard to be confident judging performance, we think the stock is worth watching. It could be important to check this free visual depiction of what analysts expect for the future.
Has C4X Discovery Holdings plc Been A Good Investment?
Since shareholders would have lost about 82% over three years, some C4X Discovery Holdings plc shareholders would surely be feeling negative emotions. It therefore might be upsetting for shareholders if the CEO were paid generously.
In Summary...
It looks like C4X Discovery Holdings plc pays its CEO less than similar sized companies.
It's well worth noting that while Clive Dix is paid less than most company leaders (at similar sized companies), performance has been somewhat uninspiring, and total returns have been lacking. Many shareholders would probably like to see improvements, but our analysis does not suggest that CEO compensation is too generous. Shifting gears from CEO pay for a second, we've spotted 5 warning signs for C4X Discovery Holdings you should be aware of, and 2 of them are potentially serious.
Arguably, business quality is much more important than CEO compensation levels. So check out this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.
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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. Thank you for reading.