We Think Some Shareholders May Hesitate To Increase Helios Towers plc's (LON:HTWS) CEO Compensation

Simply Wall St · 4d ago

Key Insights

  • Helios Towers to hold its Annual General Meeting on 15th of May
  • Salary of US$803.8k is part of CEO Tom Greenwood's total remuneration
  • The total compensation is 136% higher than the average for the industry
  • Over the past three years, Helios Towers' EPS grew by 56% and over the past three years, the total shareholder return was 1.5%

CEO Tom Greenwood has done a decent job of delivering relatively good performance at Helios Towers plc (LON:HTWS) recently. This is something shareholders will keep in mind as they cast their votes on company resolutions such as executive remuneration in the upcoming AGM on 15th of May. However, some shareholders may still want to keep CEO compensation within reason.

Check out our latest analysis for Helios Towers

How Does Total Compensation For Tom Greenwood Compare With Other Companies In The Industry?

At the time of writing, our data shows that Helios Towers plc has a market capitalization of UK£1.2b, and reported total annual CEO compensation of US$2.5m for the year to December 2024. We note that's an increase of 18% above last year. While this analysis focuses on total compensation, it's worth acknowledging that the salary portion is lower, valued at US$804k.

For comparison, other companies in the the United Kingdom Telecom industry with market capitalizations ranging between UK£751m and UK£2.4b had a median total CEO compensation of US$1.1m. Hence, we can conclude that Tom Greenwood is remunerated higher than the industry median. Moreover, Tom Greenwood also holds UK£6.3m worth of Helios Towers stock directly under their own name, which reveals to us that they have a significant personal stake in the company.

Component 2024 2023 Proportion (2024)
Salary US$804k US$792k 32%
Other US$1.7m US$1.4m 68%
Total Compensation US$2.5m US$2.2m 100%

Speaking on an industry level, nearly 62% of total compensation represents salary, while the remainder of 38% is other remuneration. Helios Towers sets aside a smaller share of compensation for 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.

ceo-compensation
LSE:HTWS CEO Compensation May 10th 2025

Helios Towers plc's Growth

Helios Towers plc's earnings per share (EPS) grew 56% per year over the last three years. In the last year, its revenue is up 9.8%.

Overall this is a positive result for shareholders, showing that the company has improved in recent years. It's good to see a bit of revenue growth, as this suggests the business is able to grow sustainably. Looking ahead, you might want to check this free visual report on analyst forecasts for the company's future earnings..

Has Helios Towers plc Been A Good Investment?

With a total shareholder return of 1.5% over three years, Helios Towers plc has done okay by shareholders, but there's always room for improvement. In light of that, investors might probably want to see an improvement on their returns before they feel generous about increasing the CEO remuneration.

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. Still, not all shareholders might be in favor of a pay raise to the CEO, seeing that they are already being paid higher than the industry.

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 Helios Towers that investors should think about before committing capital to this stock.

Important note: Helios Towers is an exciting stock, but we understand investors may be looking for an unencumbered balance sheet and blockbuster returns. You might find something better in this list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.