Key Insights

• Coca-Cola Consolidated's Annual General Meeting to take place on 14th of May
• Total pay for CEO J. Harrison includes US$1.32m salary
• The total compensation is 804% higher than the average for the industry
• Over the past three years, Coca-Cola Consolidated's EPS grew by 29% and over the past three years, the total shareholder return was 257%

Performance at Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc. (NASDAQ:COKE) has been reasonably good and CEO J. Harrison has done a decent job of steering the company in the right direction. In light of this performance, CEO compensation will probably not be the main focus for shareholders as they go into the AGM on 14th of May. However, some shareholders will still be cautious of paying the CEO excessively.

Comparing Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc.'s CEO Compensation With The Industry

At the time of writing, our data shows that Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc. has a market capitalization of US$9.5b, and reported total annual CEO compensation of US$20m for the year to December 2023. We note that's an increase of 35% above last year. We think total compensation is more important but our data shows that the CEO salary is lower, at US$1.3m.

On comparing similar companies from the American Beverage industry with market caps ranging from US$4.0b to US$12b, we found that the median CEO total compensation was US$2.2m. This suggests that J. Harrison is paid more than the median for the industry. What's more, J. Harrison holds US$1.0b worth of shares in the company in their own name, indicating that they have a lot of skin in the game.

Speaking on an industry level, nearly 13% of total compensation represents salary, while the remainder of 87% is other remuneration. In Coca-Cola Consolidated's case, non-salary compensation represents a greater slice of total remuneration, in comparison to the broader industry. If non-salary compensation dominates total pay, it's an indicator that the executive's salary is tied to company performance.

A Look at Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc.'s Growth Numbers

Over the past three years, Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc. has seen its earnings per share (EPS) grow by 29% per year. It achieved revenue growth of 4.9% over the last year.

Shareholders would be glad to know that the company has improved itself over the last few years. It's also good to see modest revenue growth, suggesting the underlying business is healthy. We don't have analyst forecasts, but you could get a better understanding of its growth by checking out this more detailed historical graph of earnings, revenue and cash flow.

Has Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc. Been A Good Investment?

Most shareholders would probably be pleased with Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc. for providing a total return of 257% over three years. 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.

To Conclude...

Given that the company's overall performance has been reasonable, the CEO remuneration policy might not be shareholders' central point of focus in the upcoming AGM. However, any decision to raise CEO pay might be met with some objections from the shareholders given that the CEO is already paid higher than the industry average.

While CEO pay is an important factor to be aware of, there are other areas that investors should be mindful of as well. That's why we did some digging and identified 1 warning sign for Coca-Cola Consolidated that investors should think about before committing capital to this stock.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking at a different set of stocks. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.