In 2012 David C. Craven was appointed CEO of DCD Media Plc (LON:DCD). This report will, first, examine the CEO compensation levels in comparison to CEO compensation at companies of similar size. 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. The aim of all this is to consider the appropriateness of CEO pay levels.
Check out our latest analysis for DCD Media
How Does David C. Craven's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?
At the time of writing our data says that DCD Media Plc has a market cap of UK£7.0m, and is paying total annual CEO compensation of UK£100k. (This number is for the twelve months until December 2018). Notably, the salary of UK£100k is the vast majority of the CEO compensation. We took a group of companies with market capitalizations below UK£162m, and calculated the median CEO total compensation to be UK£256k.
Most shareholders would consider it a positive that David C. Craven takes less total compensation than the CEOs of most similar size companies, leaving more for shareholders. However, before we heap on the praise, we should delve deeper to understand business performance.
You can see, below, how CEO compensation at DCD Media has changed over time.
Is DCD Media Plc Growing?
Over the last three years DCD Media Plc has grown its earnings per share (EPS) by an average of 121% per year (using a line of best fit). In the last year, its revenue is down -31%.
This demonstrates that the company has been improving recently. A good result. The lack of revenue growth isn't ideal, but it is the bottom line that counts most in business. We don't have analyst forecasts, but shareholders might want to examine this detailed historical graph of earnings, revenue and cash flow.
Has DCD Media Plc Been A Good Investment?
DCD Media Plc has served shareholders reasonably well, with a total return of 12% over three years. But they would probably prefer not to see CEO compensation far in excess of the median.
In Summary...
It looks like DCD Media Plc pays its CEO less than similar sized companies. Since the business is growing, many would argue this suggests the pay is modest. While returns over the last few years haven't been top notch, there is nothing to suggest to us that David C. Craven is overcompensated.
Few would complain about reasonable CEO remuneration when the business is growing earnings per share. But it would be nice if insiders were also buying shares. CEO compensation is one thing, but it is also interesting to check if the CEO is buying or selling DCD Media (free visualization of insider trades).