What Did Haverty Furniture Companies, Inc.'s (NYSE:HVT) CEO Take Home Last Year?

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In 2003 Clarence Smith was appointed CEO of Haverty Furniture Companies, Inc. (NYSE:HVT). This report will, first, examine the CEO compensation levels in comparison to CEO compensation at companies of similar size. After that, we will consider the growth in the business. 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.

See our latest analysis for Haverty Furniture Companies

How Does Clarence Smith's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?

At the time of writing our data says that Haverty Furniture Companies, Inc. has a market cap of US$384m, and is paying total annual CEO compensation of US$1.7m. (This figure is for the year to December 2018). That's a modest increase of 2.6% on the prior year year. While this analysis focuses on total compensation, it's worth noting the salary is lower, valued at US$660k. We examined companies with market caps from US$200m to US$800m, and discovered that the median CEO total compensation of that group was US$1.7m.

That means Clarence Smith receives fairly typical remuneration for the CEO of a company that size. This doesn't tell us a whole lot on its own, but looking at the performance of the actual business will give us useful context.

You can see, below, how CEO compensation at Haverty Furniture Companies has changed over time.

Is Haverty Furniture Companies, Inc. Growing?

Earnings per share at Haverty Furniture Companies, Inc. are much the same as they were three years ago, albeit slightly lower, based on the trend. It saw its revenue drop -1.6% over the last year.

Unfortunately there is a complete lack of earnings per share improvement, over three years. This is compounded by the fact revenue is actually down on last year. So given this relatively weak performance, shareholders would probably not want to see high compensation for the CEO. It could be important to check this free visual depiction of what analysts expect for the future.

Has Haverty Furniture Companies, Inc. Been A Good Investment?

With a total shareholder return of 23% over three years, Haverty Furniture Companies, Inc. shareholders would, in general, be reasonably content. But they probably don't want to see the CEO paid more than is normal for companies around the same size.

In Summary...

Clarence Smith is paid around the same as most CEOs of similar size companies.

The company isn't growing earnings per share, and nor have the total returns inspired us. We wouldn't say the CEO pay is too high, but one might argue that the company should improve returns to shareholders before increasing it. If you think CEO compensation levels are interesting you will probably really like this free visualization of insider trading at Haverty Furniture Companies.

If you want to buy a stock that is better than Haverty Furniture Companies, 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 [email protected]. 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.