Market Loop - CEO pay jumps by nearly a quarter

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7th November 2022

Bite-sized business news from the UK and beyond

Good morning The Powerball lottery in the US has reached a record $1.9bn jackpot as of Sunday, shattering the previous one of $1.6bn in 2016. The odds of winning are ridiculously low at 1 in 292m, so you’re more likely to sink a hole in one, get struck by lightning, become President of the United States than you do guessing all six numbers correctly.

Today's stories

CEO pay jumps by nearly a quarter
Liverpool FC owners mull sale

CORPORATE
CEO pay jumps by nearly a quarter

What happened?
New analysis by PwC revealed that chief executive pay climbed by nearly a quarter in the FTSE 100 this year, at a time when millions of average workers are fighting for inflation matching pay rises.

How did we get here?
During the first year of the pandemic executive pay took a hit as lockdown restrictions hit economic activity and dampened company profits.

This led to lower CEO lower bonuses with many taking the decision to freeze their pay. The average pay of CEOs was £3.2m in 2020-21 and £3.1m in 2019-20 compared to £3.6m in 2018-19.

But pay has bounced back strongly with companies boosted by the reopening of the world and demand returning after the pandemic.

The average pay of FTSE 100 bosses increased to £3.9m in 2022 driven by soaring bonus payments.

Average annual bonuses this year increased to 86% of the maximum opportunity, which is above pre-covid levels. The increase is partly because of a post-pandemic boom in some sectors, and in some cases, due to performance targets which were conservatively set in 2021 to reflect greater market uncertainty.

Only 5% of FTSE 100 CEOs received no bonus this year, down from 22% the year before.

The gap between CEO and worker pay is widening
This year research carried out for the Guardian found that the average UK CEO collects 109x the amount paid to the average worker, up from 79x in 2020. Trade unions say the growing discrepancy between pay at the top and that paid to workers is fuelling the cost of living crisis.

Looking ahead: Amid a cost of living and looming recession, shareholders are likely to scrutinise bumper CEO pay more especially if average worker wages are not also increasing.

Other stories to keep you in the loop

Facebook’s parent Meta prepares to slash thousands of jobs
Ryanair half-year profits soar to record £1.2bn amid strong flight demand
Apple warns of iPhone delays as China imposes Covid restrictions on factory
Twitter asks some laid off workers to come back
BrewDog slammed for ‘disingenuous’ gesture giving profits to charity
Air fryer sales up 3,000% as consumers seek to cut energy costs

SPORT
Liverpool FC owners mull sale

What happened?
Yesterday reports emerged that the US owners of Liverpool Football Club have put the team up for sale after 12 years of ownership. Fenway Sports Group said it’s committed to the club but would be ‘open to new shareholders’. The group is reportedly being advised by Wall Street giants Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley.

How did we get here?
Fenway bought Liverpool in 2010 for £300m adding to their portfolio of sports teams including Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox and the National Hockey League's Pittsburgh Penguins.

Under Fenway’s ownership Liverpool won their first Premier League title in 2020, which was also their first championship for 30 years. They also captured the FA Cup, Carabao Cup and the Champions League. The group have also invested nearly £200m in transforming the club’s stadium Anfield, with a new stand and expansion to boost capacity by 16,000 to around 61,000.

How much could Liverpool be worth?
In May Forbes magazine valued the club at £3.9bn, the fourth most valuable football team in the world behind only Real Madrid, Barcelona and Man United.
However the sale of Chelsea earlier this year for £4.3bn to an American consortium is the most recent comparable English club sale and it’s likely Liverpool would have a similar price tag.

There’s big investor demand for European clubs especially from across the pond
Nine clubs in the Premier League have American investors following a US-ownership boom in the last 20 years. Chelsea attracted more than 200 bids during its sale process. Soon after Italian side AC Milan and French team Olympique Lyonnais sold for record sums to US owners.

Stat of the day

25% of UK adults have £100 or less in savings, according to a recent survey

Interesting links from around the web

The workers who went viral applying for jobs
How to be a good-enough home cook
7 simple tips for getting more out of a daily walk

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Market Loop - CEO pay jumps by nearly a quarter

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