Dawson Geophysical Company's (NASDAQ:DWSN) CEO Compensation Looks Acceptable To Us And Here's Why

Shareholders may be wondering what CEO Stephen Jumper plans to do to improve the less than great performance at Dawson Geophysical Company (NASDAQ:DWSN) recently. One way they can exercise their influence on management is through voting on resolutions, such as executive remuneration at the next AGM, coming up on 11 May 2021. It has been shown that setting appropriate executive remuneration incentivises the management to act in the interests of shareholders. We think CEO compensation looks appropriate given the data we have put together.

View our latest analysis for Dawson Geophysical

How Does Total Compensation For Stephen Jumper Compare With Other Companies In The Industry?

According to our data, Dawson Geophysical Company has a market capitalization of US$55m, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth US$508k over the year to December 2020. Notably, that's a decrease of 21% over the year before. In particular, the salary of US$478.6k, makes up a huge portion of the total compensation being paid to the CEO.

For comparison, other companies in the industry with market capitalizations below US$200m, reported a median total CEO compensation of US$849k. In other words, Dawson Geophysical pays its CEO lower than the industry median. Furthermore, Stephen Jumper directly owns US$579k worth of shares in the company.

Component	2020	2019	Proportion (2020)
Salary	US$479k	US$600k	94%
Other	US$29k	US$44k	6%
Total Compensation	US$508k	US$644k	100%

Speaking on an industry level, nearly 23% of total compensation represents salary, while the remainder of 77% is other remuneration. Dawson Geophysical is paying a higher share of its remuneration through a salary in comparison to the overall industry. If total compensation veers towards salary, it suggests that the variable portion - which is generally tied to performance, is lower.

Dawson Geophysical Company's Growth

Dawson Geophysical Company has seen its earnings per share (EPS) increase by 32% a year over the past three years. Its revenue is down 41% over the previous year.

Overall this is a positive result for shareholders, showing that the company has improved in recent years. It's always a tough situation when revenues are not growing, but ultimately profits are more important. 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 Dawson Geophysical Company Been A Good Investment?

With a total shareholder return of -68% over three years, Dawson Geophysical Company shareholders would by and large be disappointed. Therefore, it might be upsetting for shareholders if the CEO were paid generously.

To Conclude...

The loss to shareholders over the past three years is certainly concerning. This contrasts to the strong EPS growth recently however, and suggests that there may be other factors at play driving down the share price. There needs to be more focus by management and the board to examine why the share price has diverged from fundamentals. The upcoming AGM will provide shareholders the opportunity to raise their concerns and evaluate if the board’s judgement and decision-making is aligned with their expectations.

While it is important to pay attention to CEO remuneration, investors should also consider other elements of the business. That's why we did some digging and identified 2 warning signs for Dawson Geophysical that you should be aware of before investing.

Switching gears from Dawson Geophysical, 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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