Does Valmont Industries' (NYSE:VMI) CEO Salary Compare Well With The Performance Of The Company?

Steve Kaniewski became the CEO of Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI) in 2017, and we think it's a good time to look at the executive's compensation against the backdrop of overall company performance. This analysis will also assess whether Valmont Industries pays its CEO appropriately, considering recent earnings growth and total shareholder returns.

Check out our latest analysis for Valmont Industries

How Does Total Compensation For Steve Kaniewski Compare With Other Companies In The Industry?

According to our data, Valmont Industries, Inc. has a market capitalization of US$2.9b, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth US$4.9m over the year to December 2019. Notably, that's an increase of 10% over the year before. While we always look at total compensation first, our analysis shows that the salary component is less, at US$950k.

For comparison, other companies in the same industry with market capitalizations ranging between US$2.0b and US$6.4b had a median total CEO compensation of US$4.9m. This suggests that Valmont Industries remunerates its CEO largely in line with the industry average. Moreover, Steve Kaniewski also holds US$1.2m worth of Valmont Industries stock directly under their own name.

Talking in terms of the industry, salary represented approximately 20% of total compensation out of all the companies we analyzed, while other remuneration made up 80% of the pie. Our data reveals that Valmont Industries allocates salary more or less in line with the wider market. It's important to note that a slant towards non-salary compensation suggests that total pay is tied to the company's performance.

Valmont Industries, Inc.'s Growth

Valmont Industries, Inc. has reduced its earnings per share by 6.3% a year over the last three years. It saw its revenue drop 1.2% over the last year.

Few shareholders would be pleased to read that EPS have declined. And the impression is worse when you consider revenue is down year-on-year. It's hard to argue the company is firing on all cylinders, so shareholders might be averse to high CEO remuneration. 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 Valmont Industries, Inc. Been A Good Investment?

With a three year total loss of 11% for the shareholders, Valmont Industries, Inc. would certainly have some dissatisfied shareholders. So shareholders would probably want the company to be lessto generous with CEO compensation.

To Conclude...

As previously discussed, Steve is compensated close to the median for companies of its size, and which belong to the same industry. Meanwhile, EPS growth and shareholder returns have been in the red for the last three years. We'd stop short of saying compensation is inappropriate, but we would understand if shareholders had questions regarding a future raise.

While it is important to pay attention to CEO remuneration, investors should also consider other elements of the business. That's why we did some digging and identified 1 warning sign for Valmont Industries that you should be aware of before investing.

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

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. 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.

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