In This Article:
In 2001 E. Chestnut was appointed CEO of Crown Crafts, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWS). 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. The aim of all this is to consider the appropriateness of CEO pay levels.
See our latest analysis for Crown Crafts
How Does E. Chestnut's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?
At the time of writing, our data says that Crown Crafts, Inc. has a market cap of US$60m, and reported total annual CEO compensation of US$799k for the year to March 2019. We note that's an increase of 64% above last year. While we always look at total compensation first, we note that the salary component is less, at US$464k. We looked at a group of companies with market capitalizations under US$200m, and the median CEO total compensation was US$492k.
As you can see, E. Chestnut is paid more than the median CEO pay at companies of a similar size, in the same market. However, this does not necessarily mean Crown Crafts, Inc. is paying too much. We can better assess whether the pay is overly generous by looking into the underlying business performance.
You can see, below, how CEO compensation at Crown Crafts has changed over time.
Is Crown Crafts, Inc. Growing?
On average over the last three years, Crown Crafts, Inc. has shrunk earnings per share by 14% each year (measured with a line of best fit). It achieved revenue growth of 6.7% over the last year.
Unfortunately, earnings per share have trended lower over the last three years. And the modest revenue growth over 12 months isn't much comfort against the reduced earnings per share. So given this relatively weak performance, shareholders would probably not want to see high compensation for the CEO. You might want to check this free visual report on analyst forecasts for future earnings.
Has Crown Crafts, Inc. Been A Good Investment?
With a three year total loss of 29%, Crown Crafts, Inc. would certainly have some dissatisfied shareholders. It therefore might be upsetting for shareholders if the CEO were paid generously.
In Summary...
We compared the total CEO remuneration paid by Crown Crafts, Inc., and compared it to remuneration at a group of similar sized companies. We found that it pays well over the median amount paid in the benchmark group.
Earnings per share have not grown in three years, and the revenue growth fails to impress us. Just as bad, share price gains for investors have failed to materialize, over the same period. And we'd be remiss not to note that the CEO remuneration has increased on last year. Some might well form the view that the CEO is paid too generously! If you think CEO compensation levels are interesting you will probably really like this free visualization of insider trading at Crown Crafts.