Is Xcel Brands, Inc.’s (NASDAQ:XELB) CEO Paid At A Competitive Rate?
Robert D’Loren has been the CEO of Xcel Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:XELB) since 2011. This analysis aims first to contrast CEO compensation with other companies that have similar market capitalization. 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. The aim of all this is to consider the appropriateness of CEO pay levels.
View our latest analysis for Xcel Brands
How Does Robert D’Loren’s Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?
According to our data, Xcel Brands, Inc. has a market capitalization of US$31m, and pays its CEO total annual compensation worth US$1.9m. (This number is for the twelve months until December 2017). While we always look at total compensation first, we note that the salary component is less, at US$873k. We examined a group of similar sized companies, with market capitalizations of below US$200m. The median CEO compensation in that group is US$416k.
It would therefore appear that Xcel Brands, Inc. pays Robert D’Loren more than the median CEO remuneration at companies of a similar size, in the same market. However, this fact alone doesn’t mean the remuneration 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 Xcel Brands, below.
Is Xcel Brands, Inc. Growing?
Over the last three years Xcel Brands, Inc. has shrunk its earnings per share by an average of 103% per year (measured with a line of best fit). In the last year, its revenue is up 3.0%.
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. These factors suggest that the business performance wouldn’t really justify a high pay packet for the CEO. You might want to check this free visual report on analyst forecasts for future earnings.
Has Xcel Brands, Inc. Been A Good Investment?
Since shareholders would have lost about 68% over three years, some Xcel Brands, Inc. shareholders would surely be feeling negative emotions. This suggests it would be unwise for the company to pay the CEO too generously.
In Summary…
We compared total CEO remuneration at Xcel Brands, Inc. with the amount paid at companies with a similar market capitalization. Our data suggests that it pays above the median CEO pay within that group.
Neither earnings per share nor revenue have been growing sufficiently fast to impress us, over the last three years.
Over the same period, investors would have come away with nothing in the way of share price gains. In our opinion the CEO might be paid too generously! Shareholders may want to check for free if Xcel Brands insiders are buying or selling shares.
If you want to buy a stock that is better than Xcel Brands, this free list of high return, low debt companies is a great place to look.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.
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. Thank you for reading.
