Pay is down for the head honchos at three big companies in town, but it’s still good to be the boss.
The executives running three of Richmond’s top public companies – Dominion Resources Inc., The Brink’s Co., and Media General Inc. – each saw their overall compensation drop in 2009 as a result of the bruising recession, according to proxy statements filed by the companies this week with the SEC.
Despite his total compensation declining sharply, Dominion CEO Thomas F. Farrell II, 55, was awarded a pay deal valued at $11.97 million. The utility company, which posted revenue of $15.13 billion, paid Farrell a $1.2 million salary, $3 million in stock awards and $5.532 million in performance-based cash awards, some of which was paid in 2008 but reported in 2009.
That’s down about 15.5 percent from the prior year, when it totaled $14.178 million.
Farrell could be eligible to receive about $17.4 million upon his retirement for participating in other supplemental retirement plans, either in a lump sum or as annuity payments.
Taking a bigger pay hit than Farrell, at least in percentage terms, is Michael T. Dan, the 59-year-old CEO of security company Brink’s. Dan saw his annual pay plummet nearly 28 percent, despite pocketing a total package worth more than $5.4 million. In 2008, Dan was awarded total compensation valued at $7.569 million.
Dan received a discretionary cash bonus of $900,000, payable in 2010, in addition to salary of $1.1 million, plus stocks and options worth a combined $1,647,490. In addition, Dan received a performance-based cash incentive of $983,400 relating to company financial goals during a three-year period that ended in 2009.
Like many top executives nationally, Dan’s pension plan took a hit, plummeting in value to slightly more than $329,000, compared to nearly $598,000 in 2008. Rounding out Dan’s 2009 pay package is deferred compensation worth more than $495,000.
Dan’s diminished compensation reflects an economic reality for Brink’s, which provides secure transportation, logistics, and cash management services. Revenues and operating profit fell in 2009 amid an environment that hammered customers, including financial firms, retailers and the diamond/jewelry sector. Brink’s posted organic revenue growth of 1 percent in 2009, well below the 11 percent surge it generated in 2008. For 2010, the company said it expects to boost revenue in the “low-to-mid-single digit” range.
Dan, who has spearheaded Brink’s since 1998, also has been buying lots of Brink’s stock, which some investors believe may be undervalued. Dan in February acquired 10,000 shares of Brink’s at $24.35 per share. That gives Dan control of 101,345 shares.
Dan also holds unvested and unexercised shares worth with an estimated market value of more than $747,000. Should he lose his job for reasons other than a justifiable firing, Dan is entitled to severance in excess of $24 million, including a cash payment of $5.21 million, along with $11.9 million in deferred compensation.
Elsewhere in Richmond, Media General remained profitable in 2009 largely as a result of severe cost cutting, including furloughs and layoffs. The publisher of the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Tampa Tribune, and 20 other daily newspapers slashed expenses 22 percent during the fourth quarter. The publishing giant in January said it anticipates $42 million in new revenue from sales of political advertising in connection with 2010 elections.
Media General President and CEO Marshall N. Morton, 64, received compensation worth more than $1.35 million, which includes his salary of $871, 635, more than $230,000 in company-paid benefits and defined contributions, stock awards valued at $37,469, and a retirement package worth nearly $211,000. By comparison, Morton’s total compensation topped $3.675 million in 2008.
Morton’s pay also consisted of nearly $20,000 in perks, including the “ascribed value of tickets and refreshments” related to company-leased luxury boxes at unspecified sporting arenas.
Morton’s long-term potential net worth is tied to 160,300 restricted shares of stock that vest upon his retirement or other “triggering event.” Those shares represent a present combined market value of $1.295 million.
Morton took over the top spot when longtime CEO J. Stewart Bryan III retired in 2008. Bryan, 71, remains as chairman of Media General’s board of directors, a position for which he was paid $225,000 in cash. Bryan additionally receives more than $400,000 in annual payments from two company retirement plans. Last March, Bryan received $68,000 in deferred compensation, which was the remaining balance from a supplemental 401(k) plan.
Pay is down for the head honchos at three big companies in town, but it’s still good to be the boss.
The executives running three of Richmond’s top public companies – Dominion Resources Inc., The Brink’s Co., and Media General Inc. – each saw their overall compensation drop in 2009 as a result of the bruising recession, according to proxy statements filed by the companies this week with the SEC.
Despite his total compensation declining sharply, Dominion CEO Thomas F. Farrell II, 55, was awarded a pay deal valued at $11.97 million. The utility company, which posted revenue of $15.13 billion, paid Farrell a $1.2 million salary, $3 million in stock awards and $5.532 million in performance-based cash awards, some of which was paid in 2008 but reported in 2009.
That’s down about 15.5 percent from the prior year, when it totaled $14.178 million.
Farrell could be eligible to receive about $17.4 million upon his retirement for participating in other supplemental retirement plans, either in a lump sum or as annuity payments.
Taking a bigger pay hit than Farrell, at least in percentage terms, is Michael T. Dan, the 59-year-old CEO of security company Brink’s. Dan saw his annual pay plummet nearly 28 percent, despite pocketing a total package worth more than $5.4 million. In 2008, Dan was awarded total compensation valued at $7.569 million.
Dan received a discretionary cash bonus of $900,000, payable in 2010, in addition to salary of $1.1 million, plus stocks and options worth a combined $1,647,490. In addition, Dan received a performance-based cash incentive of $983,400 relating to company financial goals during a three-year period that ended in 2009.
Like many top executives nationally, Dan’s pension plan took a hit, plummeting in value to slightly more than $329,000, compared to nearly $598,000 in 2008. Rounding out Dan’s 2009 pay package is deferred compensation worth more than $495,000.
Dan’s diminished compensation reflects an economic reality for Brink’s, which provides secure transportation, logistics, and cash management services. Revenues and operating profit fell in 2009 amid an environment that hammered customers, including financial firms, retailers and the diamond/jewelry sector. Brink’s posted organic revenue growth of 1 percent in 2009, well below the 11 percent surge it generated in 2008. For 2010, the company said it expects to boost revenue in the “low-to-mid-single digit” range.
Dan, who has spearheaded Brink’s since 1998, also has been buying lots of Brink’s stock, which some investors believe may be undervalued. Dan in February acquired 10,000 shares of Brink’s at $24.35 per share. That gives Dan control of 101,345 shares.
Dan also holds unvested and unexercised shares worth with an estimated market value of more than $747,000. Should he lose his job for reasons other than a justifiable firing, Dan is entitled to severance in excess of $24 million, including a cash payment of $5.21 million, along with $11.9 million in deferred compensation.
Elsewhere in Richmond, Media General remained profitable in 2009 largely as a result of severe cost cutting, including furloughs and layoffs. The publisher of the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Tampa Tribune, and 20 other daily newspapers slashed expenses 22 percent during the fourth quarter. The publishing giant in January said it anticipates $42 million in new revenue from sales of political advertising in connection with 2010 elections.
Media General President and CEO Marshall N. Morton, 64, received compensation worth more than $1.35 million, which includes his salary of $871, 635, more than $230,000 in company-paid benefits and defined contributions, stock awards valued at $37,469, and a retirement package worth nearly $211,000. By comparison, Morton’s total compensation topped $3.675 million in 2008.
Morton’s pay also consisted of nearly $20,000 in perks, including the “ascribed value of tickets and refreshments” related to company-leased luxury boxes at unspecified sporting arenas.
Morton’s long-term potential net worth is tied to 160,300 restricted shares of stock that vest upon his retirement or other “triggering event.” Those shares represent a present combined market value of $1.295 million.
Morton took over the top spot when longtime CEO J. Stewart Bryan III retired in 2008. Bryan, 71, remains as chairman of Media General’s board of directors, a position for which he was paid $225,000 in cash. Bryan additionally receives more than $400,000 in annual payments from two company retirement plans. Last March, Bryan received $68,000 in deferred compensation, which was the remaining balance from a supplemental 401(k) plan.
I wonder if they wiil be able to make ends meet. Dominion doing okay but Media Gen is a dead end business ?
I was reading today’s article “CEO Pay Takes a Hit” and wanted to provide a different perspective. One of the most important things to look at in executive compensation among corporate issuers, is how the company performed relative to its peers over the same time period. If the company didn’t perform well, was in the bottom half of its peer group, and CEO pay went up, then institutional investors may focus on corporate governance practices to send a message to the company. By that, they may withhold votes from the board’s compensation committee, and make the director election process more… Read more »
I wouldn’t be so quick to write off Media General. What started out as a newspaper company is now a media holding company. I think this recession is going to cause another evolution of the company, not its ultimate demise.