Our View On MVB Financial's (NASDAQ:MVBF) CEO Pay

Larry Mazza has been the CEO of MVB Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:MVBF) since 2009, and this article will examine the executive's compensation with respect to the overall performance of the company. This analysis will also evaluate the appropriateness of CEO compensation when taking into account the earnings and shareholder returns of the company.

Check out our latest analysis for MVB Financial

How Does Total Compensation For Larry Mazza Compare With Other Companies In The Industry?

According to our data, MVB Financial Corp. has a market capitalization of US$205m, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth US$1.8m over the year to December 2019. Notably, that's a decrease of 20% over the year before. We think total compensation is more important but our data shows that the CEO salary is lower, at US$740k.

In comparison with other companies in the industry with market capitalizations ranging from US$100m to US$400m, the reported median CEO total compensation was US$882k. This suggests that Larry Mazza is paid more than the median for the industry. Moreover, Larry Mazza also holds US$6.0m worth of MVB Financial stock directly under their own name, which reveals to us that they have a significant personal stake in the company.

Speaking on an industry level, nearly 43% of total compensation represents salary, while the remainder of 57% is other remuneration. Although there is a difference in how total compensation is set, MVB Financial more or less reflects the market in terms of setting the salary. If non-salary compensation dominates total pay, it's an indicator that the executive's salary is tied to company performance.

A Look at MVB Financial Corp.'s Growth Numbers

MVB Financial Corp.'s earnings per share (EPS) grew 41% per year over the last three years. Its revenue is up 28% over the last year.

This demonstrates that the company has been improving recently and is good news for the shareholders. The combination of strong revenue growth with medium-term EPS improvement certainly points to the kind of growth we like to see. Looking ahead, you might want to check this free visual report on analyst forecasts for the company's future earnings..

Has MVB Financial Corp. Been A Good Investment?

Given the total shareholder loss of 4.6% over three years, many shareholders in MVB Financial Corp. are probably rather dissatisfied, to say the least. Therefore, it might be upsetting for shareholders if the CEO were paid generously.

In Summary...

As we touched on above, MVB Financial Corp. is currently paying its CEO higher than the median pay for CEOs of companies belonging to the same industry and with similar market capitalizations. However, we must not forget that the EPS growth has been very strong, but shareholder returns — over the same period — have been disappointing. Although we don't think the CEO pay is too high, considering negative investor returns, it is more generous than modest.

We can learn a lot about a company by studying its CEO compensation trends, along with looking at other aspects of the business. We identified 4 warning signs for MVB Financial (2 are significant!) that you should be aware of before investing here.

Important note: MVB Financial is an exciting stock, but we understand investors may be looking for an unencumbered balance sheet and blockbuster returns. You might find something better in this list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.

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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