In 2015 Adam Chase was appointed CEO of Chase Corporation (NYSEMKT:CCF). First, this article will compare CEO compensation with compensation at similar sized companies. Then we'll look at a snap shot of the business growth. Third, we'll reflect on the total return to shareholders over three years, as a second measure of business performance. This method should give us information to assess how appropriately the company pays the CEO.
See our latest analysis for Chase
How Does Adam Chase's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?
Our data indicates that Chase Corporation is worth US$1.0b, and total annual CEO compensation is US$1.6m. (This is based on the year to August 2018). We think total compensation is more important but we note that the CEO salary is lower, at US$500k. When we examined a selection of companies with market caps ranging from US$400m to US$1.6b, we found the median CEO total compensation was US$2.7m.
Most shareholders would consider it a positive that Adam Chase takes less total compensation than the CEOs of most similar size companies, leaving more for shareholders. While this is a good thing, you'll need to understand the business better before you can form an opinion.
You can see, below, how CEO compensation at Chase has changed over time.
Is Chase Corporation Growing?
On average over the last three years, Chase Corporation has grown earnings per share (EPS) by 5.4% each year (using a line of best fit). Its revenue is up 4.7% over last year.
I would argue that the improvement in revenue isn't particularly impressive, but the modest improvement in EPS is good. Considering these factors I'd say performance has been pretty decent, though not amazing. We don't have analyst forecasts, but you might want to assess this data-rich visualization of earnings, revenue and cash flow.
Has Chase Corporation Been A Good Investment?
Most shareholders would probably be pleased with Chase Corporation for providing a total return of 75% over three years. This strong performance might mean some shareholders don't mind if the CEO were to be paid more than is normal for a company of its size.
In Summary...
It appears that Chase Corporation remunerates its CEO below most similar sized companies.
Adam Chase is paid less than what is normal at similar size companies, and the total shareholder return has been pleasing over the last three years. So, while it might be nice to have better EPS growth, on our analysis the CEO compensation is quite modest. Whatever your view on compensation, you might want to check if insiders are buying or selling Chase shares (free trial).