Shareholders will be pleased by the impressive results for Semler Scientific, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMLR) recently and CEO Doug Murphy-Chutorian has played a key role. At the upcoming AGM on 21 October 2021, they would be interested to hear about the company strategy going forward and get a chance to cast their votes on resolutions such as executive remuneration and other company matters. Let's take a look at why we think the CEO has done a good job and we'll present the case for a bump in pay.

View our latest analysis for Semler Scientific

How Does Total Compensation For Doug Murphy-Chutorian Compare With Other Companies In The Industry?

According to our data, Semler Scientific, Inc. has a market capitalization of US$958m, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth US$722k over the year to December 2020. Notably, that's a decrease of 38% over the year before. We note that the salary of US$400.0k makes up a sizeable portion of the total compensation received by the CEO.

On examining similar-sized companies in the industry with market capitalizations between US$400m and US$1.6b, we discovered that the median CEO total compensation of that group was US$2.8m. That is to say, Doug Murphy-Chutorian is paid under the industry median. Moreover, Doug Murphy-Chutorian also holds US$3.9m worth of Semler Scientific stock directly under their own name, which reveals to us that they have a significant personal stake in the company.

Talking in terms of the industry, salary represented approximately 22% of total compensation out of all the companies we analyzed, while other remuneration made up 78% of the pie. Semler Scientific pays out 55% of remuneration in the form of a salary, significantly higher than the industry average. If total compensation veers towards salary, it suggests that the variable portion - which is generally tied to performance, is lower.

A Look at Semler Scientific, Inc.'s Growth Numbers

Semler Scientific, Inc.'s earnings per share (EPS) grew 99% per year over the last three years. In the last year, its revenue is up 49%.

This demonstrates that the company has been improving recently and is good news for the shareholders. It's great to see that revenue growth is strong, too. These metrics suggest the business is growing strongly. Looking ahead, you might want to check this free visual report on analyst forecasts for the company's future earnings..

Has Semler Scientific, Inc. Been A Good Investment?

We think that the total shareholder return of 294%, over three years, would leave most Semler Scientific, Inc. shareholders smiling. As a result, some may believe the CEO should be paid more than is normal for companies of similar size.

To Conclude...

Seeing that the company has put in a relatively good performance, the CEO remuneration policy may not be the focus at the AGM. Instead, investors might be more interested in discussions that would help manage their longer-term growth expectations such as company business strategies and future growth potential.

We can learn a lot about a company by studying its CEO compensation trends, along with looking at other aspects of the business. We did our research and identified 3 warning signs (and 1 which is a bit concerning) in Semler Scientific we think you should know about.

Switching gears from Semler Scientific, if you're hunting for a pristine balance sheet and premium returns, this free list of high return, low debt companies is a great place to look.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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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