How Should Investors React To Pieris Pharmaceuticals' (NASDAQ:PIRS) CEO Pay?

Steve Yoder became the CEO of Pieris Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:PIRS) in 2014, and we think it's a good time to look at the executive's compensation against the backdrop of overall company performance. This analysis will also look to assess whether the CEO is appropriately paid, considering recent earnings growth and investor returns for Pieris Pharmaceuticals.

Check out our latest analysis for Pieris Pharmaceuticals

Comparing Pieris Pharmaceuticals, Inc.'s CEO Compensation With the industry

According to our data, Pieris Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a market capitalization of US$165m, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth US$1.6m over the year to December 2019. That's a notable decrease of 39% on last year. While this analysis focuses on total compensation, it's worth acknowledging that the salary portion is lower, valued at US$515k.

In comparison with other companies in the industry with market capitalizations ranging from US$100m to US$400m, the reported median CEO total compensation was US$1.6m. This suggests that Pieris Pharmaceuticals remunerates its CEO largely in line with the industry average.

On an industry level, around 23% of total compensation represents salary and 77% is other remuneration. Pieris Pharmaceuticals is paying a higher share of its remuneration through a salary in comparison to the overall industry. It's important to note that a slant towards non-salary compensation suggests that total pay is tied to the company's performance.

A Look at Pieris Pharmaceuticals, Inc.'s Growth Numbers

Pieris Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has reduced its earnings per share by 1.8% a year over the last three years. It achieved revenue growth of 53% over the last year.

Investors would be a bit wary of companies that have lower earnings But on the other hand, revenue growth is strong, suggesting a brighter future. It's hard to reach a conclusion about business performance right now. This may be one to watch. Looking ahead, you might want to check this free visual report on analyst forecasts for the company's future earnings..

Has Pieris Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Been A Good Investment?

With a three year total loss of 33% for the shareholders, Pieris Pharmaceuticals, Inc. would certainly have some dissatisfied shareholders. This suggests it would be unwise for the company to pay the CEO too generously.

To Conclude...

As we touched on above, Pieris Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is currently paying a compensation that's close to the median pay for CEOs of companies belonging to the same industry and with similar market capitalizations. Still, the company is logging healthy revenue growth over the last year. In contrast, over the same time span, shareholder returns are negative. EPS is also not growing, undoubtedly leading to further headaches. We'd say CEO compensation isn't unfair, but shareholders may be wary of a bump in pay before the company substantially improves overall performance.

We can learn a lot about a company by studying its CEO compensation trends, along with looking at other aspects of the business. We identified 3 warning signs for Pieris Pharmaceuticals (1 shouldn't be ignored!) that you should be aware of before investing here.

Switching gears from Pieris Pharmaceuticals, 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. 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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