Sorrell's $30M Pay Cut Calms Investors but One-Fifth Still Revolt
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At today’s annual meeting, more than 20% of WPP shareholders were opposed to CEO Martin Sorrell’s $62.2 million pay package, even though it had been cut from $91.1 million the previous year. They were much angrier at him five years ago, when 60% of shareholders were against Sorrell’s perennially high pay at the 2012 meeting.
This year, the $30 million pay cut did have an impact. A total of 21.3% of shareholders either voted against Sorrell’s pay or abstained this year, compared to 33% last year. That’s the lowest level of protest against Sorrell’s pay in more than five years. After the 2012 shareholders’ revolt, 26% of shareholders voted against or abstained on the pay package issue, followed by 30% in 2014 and 22% in 2015. ,.
Richard Greening, speaking on behalf of the Local Authority Pension Fund Forum, which owns more than 1% of WPP shares, fueled the annual shareholders’ revolt by describing Sorrell’s pay as “excessive” and asked whether it was about retention or succession planning.
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