As a component of its bonus arrangement, Kerry Group, a prominent food conglomerate, has recently allocated new share options to its high-ranking executives. The company’s CEO, Edmond Scanlon, received 8,650 shares estimated to be worth approximately €709,300 based on Kerry’s current share market price of nearly €82. Additionally, the company’s CFO, Marguerite Larkin, and Gerry Behan, the head of the taste and nutrition division, received 4,722 and 5,694 options respectively.
Based on the company’s current share price, once vested, Ms Larkin’s options would possess a value of roughly €387,204, and Mr Behan’s would be worth about €466,908. These options were disclosed recently in stock market filings.
The market value of Kerry’s shares has consistently depreciated over the past three years, peaking at €130 in July 2021. The company’s brief incentive scheme offers rewards to executives who achieve specific annual performance targets. Furthermore, the long-term incentive plan correlates with the company’s earnings-per-share ratio growth, return on capital utilisation, and other performance metrics.
In the year 2022, Mr Scanlon received a base salary of €1.2 million, complemented by share incentives worth nearly €2.3 million, which along with pension and other benefits gave him total compensation of around €3.9 million.
Ms Larkin received a basic pay of €797,000, which including share bonuses of approximately €1.2 million, brought her total remuneration package to about €2.2 million.
Mr Behan, who resides in the United States, received a total remuneration package of €2.8 million, of which $1.6 million consisted of share prizes.
Kerry Group reported a total revenue of €8 billion in 2023, exhibiting a decrease from its 2022 revenue of €8.7 billion. The company’s EBITDA (earnings before interest, depreciation, tax and amortisation) also declined from €1.2 billion in 2022 to €1.16 billion in the past year.
Shortly after revealing their results, the firm declared their intention to pay a final 80.8 pence per share dividend. This move sees their total for 2023 reaching 115.4 pence, indicating a more than 10 percent increase compared to the preceding year. On top of this, the business is planning another share buyback for this year, with specifics to be publicised upon completion of their running €300 million strategy, anticipated to culminate in April.
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