Thursday 29 August 2019 5:29 pm

Dixons Carphone faces investor backlash over CEO share award

Electrical goods retailer Dixons Carphone is facing an investor backlash over a share award handed to its chief executive despite a fall in the company’s share price.

An estimated 15 per cent of the company’s investors are expected to oppose the remuneration report following a recommendation from shareholder adviser Institutional Shareholder Services, Sky News reported.

Chief executive Alex Baldock was awarded almost 1.2m shares with a value of £2.34m under the company’s long-term incentive plan.

The previous year Baldock was handed 783,000 shares with an approximately equal face value.

The company’s remuneration report states that detailed consideration was given to whether the award should be reduced “in response to the fall in share price”.

“However, it also took into consideration the fact that this fall is partly a reflection of the challenges in the retail sector, and also that the new management team has only recently been appointed,” the report continued.

ISS said “support for the remuneration report is not considered warranted” due to the award which has been “maintained at proposed levels despite a significant fall in the company’s share price.

It said: “Given the continued decline in the company’s share price, the number of shares granted for the FY 2019/20 award is significantly larger than the number granted in FY2018/19.

“In line with best practice, remuneration committees should consider reducing the size of LTIP awards at the time of grant when there has been a material decline in a company’s share price.”

Earlier this year Baldock and finance chief Jonny Mason deferred their bonus payments for two years and requested that the payments are made in shares.

In the company’s annual report the remuneration committee said the decision was made to be “mindful” that the results of the turnaround plan “are not yet reflected in the share price”.

Dixons Carphone declined to comment.