Study: Companies Drop CFO Comp in 2002

October 7, 2003 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Chief financial officer (CFO) compensation packages were a good bit lighter in 2002 over the year before, according to a new study.

The Todd Organization survey found that average total CFO compensation last year dropped 14% to $1.39 million, from $1.61 million in 2001.   The Todd Organization is an executive benefits and consulting firm.

Hardest hit were CFOs at public companies with revenues of $250 million to $1 billion. There, according to the Todd Organization data, CFOs saw an average compensation giveback of 19.2%, to $826,352 in 2002 from just over $1 million in 2001. CFOs at mega-sized public companies didn’t feel the pinch quite as markedly with an average total dropoff of 14.9% to $2.8 million in 2002 from $3.29 million in 2001.

Companies in the middle – with revenues of $1 billion to $5 billion – were comparatively kind to their CFOs with an average total compensation reduction of only 7.7%, to $1.47 million in 2002 from $1.59 million 12 months earlier.

In other portions of the CFO pay package, the study found that:

  • the average CFO saw a $308,352-reduction in the value of annual compensation from stock options, with this amount falling to an average of $654,607 in 2002 from $962,959 in 2001.
  • CFOs got a hefty 24.9% increase in bonuses, with the average amount rising to $245,789 in 2002, from $196,775 in 2001.
  • the average amount of CFO compensation from restricted stock rose to $121,649 in 2002, a 13.3%-increase from $107,401 in 2001.

The study covered 823 large public companies with revenues of more than $250 million. For more information, go to  www.toddorg.com .

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