Wai Lee has been the CEO of ASM Pacific Technology Limited (HKG:522) since 2007. This analysis aims first to contrast CEO compensation with other companies that have similar market capitalization. Next, we'll consider growth that the business demonstrates. And finally - as a second measure of performance - we will look at the returns shareholders have received over the last few years. The aim of all this is to consider the appropriateness of CEO pay levels.

View our latest analysis for ASM Pacific Technology

How Does Wai Lee's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?

According to our data, ASM Pacific Technology Limited has a market capitalization of HK$43b, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth HK$23m over the year to December 2018. We think total compensation is more important but we note that the CEO salary is lower, at HK$20m. As part of our analysis we looked at companies in the same jurisdiction, with market capitalizations of HK$31b to HK$93b. The median total CEO compensation was HK$4.8m.

Thus we can conclude that Wai Lee receives more in total compensation than the median of a group of companies in the same market, and of similar size to ASM Pacific Technology Limited. However, this doesn't necessarily mean the pay is too high. We can get a better idea of how generous the pay is by looking at the performance of the underlying business.

You can see a visual representation of the CEO compensation at ASM Pacific Technology, below.

Is ASM Pacific Technology Limited Growing?

Over the last three years ASM Pacific Technology Limited has shrunk its earnings per share by an average of 9.0% per year (measured with a line of best fit). Its revenue is down 15% over last year.

Few shareholders would be pleased to read that earnings per share are lower over three years. And the fact that revenue is down year on year arguably paints an ugly picture. So given this relatively weak performance, shareholders would probably not want to see high compensation for the CEO. It could be important to check this free visual depiction of what analysts expect for the future.

Has ASM Pacific Technology Limited Been A Good Investment?

ASM Pacific Technology Limited has generated a total shareholder return of 23% over three years, so most shareholders would be reasonably content. But they would probably prefer not to see CEO compensation far in excess of the median.

In Summary...

We examined the amount ASM Pacific Technology Limited pays its CEO, and compared it to the amount paid by similar sized companies. As discussed above, we discovered that the company pays more than the median of that group.

Neither earnings per share nor revenue have been growing sufficiently to impress us, over the last three years. While shareholder returns are acceptable, they don't delight. So we doubt many shareholders would consider the CEO pay to be particularly modest! So you may want to check if insiders are buying ASM Pacific Technology shares with their own money (free access).

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. 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. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.

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