Shareholders May Be More Conservative With TELA Bio, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:TELA) CEO Compensation For Now

Key Insights

• TELA Bio's Annual General Meeting to take place on 4th of June
• CEO Antony Koblish's total compensation includes salary of US$595.4k
• Total compensation is 269% above industry average
• TELA Bio's three-year loss to shareholders was 57% while its EPS grew by 4.5% over the past three years

In the past three years, the share price of TELA Bio, Inc. (NASDAQ:TELA) has struggled to grow and now shareholders are sitting on a loss. What is concerning is that despite positive EPS growth, the share price has not tracked the trend in fundamentals. The AGM coming up on the 4th of June could be an opportunity for shareholders to bring these concerns to the board's attention. Voting on resolutions such as executive remuneration and other matters could also be a way to influence management. We think shareholders might be reluctant to increase compensation for the CEO at the moment, according to our analysis below.

See our latest analysis for TELA Bio

Comparing TELA Bio, Inc.'s CEO Compensation With The Industry

At the time of writing, our data shows that TELA Bio, Inc. has a market capitalization of US$144m, and reported total annual CEO compensation of US$2.4m for the year to December 2023. Notably, that's an increase of 12% over the year before. We think total compensation is more important but our data shows that the CEO salary is lower, at US$595k.

On comparing similar-sized companies in the American Medical Equipment industry with market capitalizations below US$200m, we found that the median total CEO compensation was US$642k. Hence, we can conclude that Antony Koblish is remunerated higher than the industry median. Moreover, Antony Koblish also holds US$1.2m worth of TELA Bio stock directly under their own name.

Component	2023	2022	Proportion (2023)
Salary	US$595k	US$566k	25%
Other	US$1.8m	US$1.6m	75%
Total Compensation	US$2.4m	US$2.1m	100%

Talking in terms of the industry, salary represented approximately 25% of total compensation out of all the companies we analyzed, while other remuneration made up 75% of the pie. There isn't a significant difference between TELA Bio and the broader market, in terms of salary allocation in the overall compensation package. If non-salary compensation dominates total pay, it's an indicator that the executive's salary is tied to company performance.

A Look at TELA Bio, Inc.'s Growth Numbers

TELA Bio, Inc. has seen its earnings per share (EPS) increase by 4.5% a year over the past three years. It achieved revenue growth of 40% over the last year.

It's great to see that revenue growth is strong. And in that context, the modest EPS improvement certainly isn't shabby. We'd stop short of saying the business performance is amazing, but there are enough positives to justify further research, or even adding the stock to your watch-list. Moving away from current form for a second, it could be important to check this free visual depiction of what analysts expect for the future.

Has TELA Bio, Inc. Been A Good Investment?

The return of -57% over three years would not have pleased TELA Bio, Inc. shareholders. Therefore, it might be upsetting for shareholders if the CEO were paid generously.

In Summary...

Shareholders have not seen their shares grow in value, rather they have seen their shares decline. The fact that the stock price hasn't grown along with earnings may indicate that other issues may be affecting that stock. Shareholders would probably be keen to find out what are the other factors could be weighing down the stock. At the upcoming AGM, shareholders will get the opportunity to discuss any issues with the board, including those related to CEO remuneration and assess if the board's plan will likely improve performance in the future.

CEO pay is simply one of the many factors that need to be considered while examining business performance. That's why we did our research, and identified 2 warning signs for TELA Bio (of which 1 is potentially serious!) that you should know about in order to have a holistic understanding of the stock.

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. 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. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.