Is Plover Bay Technologies Limited (HKG:1523) Excessively Paying Its CEO?

Kit Wai Chau has been the CEO of Plover Bay Technologies Limited (HKG:1523) since 2015. First, this article will compare CEO compensation with compensation at similar sized companies. Then we'll look at a snap shot of the business growth. And finally we will reflect on how common stockholders have fared in the last few years, as a secondary measure of performance. This method should give us information to assess how appropriately the company pays the CEO.

View our latest analysis for Plover Bay Technologies

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

At the time of writing our data says that Plover Bay Technologies Limited has a market cap of HK$1.1b, and is paying total annual CEO compensation of US$247k. (This figure is for the year to December 2018). While this analysis focuses on total compensation, it's worth noting the salary is lower, valued at US$216k. We looked at a group of companies with market capitalizations under US$200m, and the median CEO total compensation was US$248k.

So Kit Wai Chau receives a similar amount to the median CEO pay, amongst the companies we looked at. While this data point isn't particularly informative alone, it gains more meaning when considered with business performance.

The graphic below shows how CEO compensation at Plover Bay Technologies has changed from year to year.

SEHK:1523 CEO Compensation, September 20th 2019
SEHK:1523 CEO Compensation, September 20th 2019

Is Plover Bay Technologies Limited Growing?

Plover Bay Technologies Limited has increased its earnings per share (EPS) by an average of 25% a year, over the last three years (using a line of best fit). Its revenue is up 13% over last year.

Overall this is a positive result for shareholders, showing that the company has improved in recent years. It's a real positive to see this sort of growth in a single year. That suggests a healthy and growing business. Shareholders might be interested in this free visualization of analyst forecasts.

Has Plover Bay Technologies Limited Been A Good Investment?

Boasting a total shareholder return of 183% over three years, Plover Bay Technologies Limited has done well by shareholders. This strong performance might mean some shareholders don't mind if the CEO were to be paid more than is normal for a company of its size.

In Summary...

Remuneration for Kit Wai Chau is close enough to the median pay for a CEO of a similar sized company .

Few would be critical of the leadership, since returns have been juicy and earnings per share are moving in the right direction. Although the pay is a normal amount, some shareholders probably consider it fair or modest, given the good performance of the stock. If you think CEO compensation levels are interesting you will probably really like this free visualization of insider trading at Plover Bay Technologies.

If you want to buy a stock that is better than Plover Bay Technologies, 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.