The Compensation For Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation's (NASDAQ:GLDD) CEO Looks Deserved And Here's Why

We have been pretty impressed with the performance at Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (NASDAQ:GLDD) recently and CEO Lasse Petterson deserves a mention for their role in it. The pleasing results would be something shareholders would keep in mind at the upcoming AGM on 05 May 2021. The focus will probably be on the future company strategy as shareholders cast their votes on resolutions such as executive remuneration and other matters. We think the CEO has done a pretty decent job and we discuss why the CEO compensation is appropriate.

See our latest analysis for Great Lakes Dredge & Dock

Comparing Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation's CEO Compensation With the industry

According to our data, Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation has a market capitalization of US$1.0b, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth US$3.3m over the year to December 2020. That's a notable decrease of 13% on last year. We think total compensation is more important but our data shows that the CEO salary is lower, at US$725k.

On examining similar-sized companies in the industry with market capitalizations between US$400m and US$1.6b, we discovered that the median CEO total compensation of that group was US$3.3m. So it looks like Great Lakes Dredge & Dock compensates Lasse Petterson in line with the median for the industry. What's more, Lasse Petterson holds US$12m worth of shares in the company in their own name, indicating that they have a lot of skin in the game.

Component	2020	2019	Proportion (2020)
Salary	US$725k	US$700k	22%
Other	US$2.6m	US$3.1m	78%
Total Compensation	US$3.3m	US$3.8m	100%

On an industry level, roughly 21% of total compensation represents salary and 79% is other remuneration. Our data reveals that Great Lakes Dredge & Dock allocates salary more or less in line with the wider market. If total compensation is slanted towards non-salary benefits, it indicates that CEO pay is linked to company performance.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation's Growth

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation has seen its earnings per share (EPS) increase by 84% a year over the past three years. In the last year, its revenue is up 3.1%.

Shareholders would be glad to know that the company has improved itself over the last few years. It's nice to see revenue heading northwards, as this is consistent with healthy business conditions. Looking ahead, you might want to check this free visual report on analyst forecasts for the company's future earnings..

Has Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation Been A Good Investment?

Boasting a total shareholder return of 227% over three years, Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation has done well by shareholders. As a result, some may believe the CEO should be paid more than is normal for companies of similar size.

To Conclude...

The company's solid performance might have made most shareholders happy, possibly making CEO remuneration the least of the matters to be discussed in the AGM. In fact, strategic decisions that could impact the future of the business might be a far more interesting topic for investors as it would help them set their longer-term expectations.

While CEO pay is an important factor to be aware of, there are other areas that investors should be mindful of as well. That's why we did some digging and identified 2 warning signs for Great Lakes Dredge & Dock that you should be aware of before investing.

Switching gears from Great Lakes Dredge & Dock, 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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