How much does a top leader in the marine business make on average? Whether professional chief executive officers (CEOs) or shipowners (who are often, if not always, the final decision-makers behind the scenes) are the best answer depends on the situation.
In the second group, profits don’t come from pay but from ownership. That is how the megarich in the shipping business get so rich. On Forbes’ “Richest in 2023” list, German shipowner Klaus-Michael Kuehn came in at number 39 with an estimated net worth of $39.1 billion. The owner of MSC, Gianluigi Aponte, was number 43 with $31.2 billion. At number 127 ($14 billion), Idan Ofer of Israel came in. John Fredriksen, a shipping tycoon, was #130 ($13.7 billion) on the list.
Not all openly traded shipping companies tell the public how much their CEOs make.
Usually, by the end of April, CEO pay information for the previous year is made public at annual general meetings (AGMs). Zim is the only company this year that hasn’t shared its pay information yet. On Tuesday, it did so for an AGM in October.
In 2022, the top 11 CEOs in the ocean shipping business whose wages were made public made an average of $4.7 million, which was up 19% from the year before. On average, 50% of their pay came in the form of cash and 50% in the form of stock. All of these CEOs ran businesses that did very well the year before.
Shipping CEO compensation ranking
Gary Vogel, Eagle Bulk 2022 compensation: $7.004 million
The ratio of shares to cash is 0.73. Since 2021, the company has grown by 78%. Eagle Bulk has a fleet of dry bulk ships that are about the same size. Vogel’s pay was in the middle of the pack in 2021, but when he got more stock awards, he went to the top. The company made $248 million in net income in 2022, up from $185 million the year before. This year’s first half brought in a net profit of $21 million.
David Grzebinski, Kirby Corporation 2022 compensation: $6.168 million
64 percent cash and 36 percent stock. The price will go up by 6% in 2021. No other company in the United States has as many tank boats as Kirby. In addition to its marine activities, the company also has a non-maritime part that sells and fixes engines and other equipment. In 2022, Kirby had a net gain of $122 million. The year before, it had lost $247 million. In the first half of the year, it made $98 million.
Soren Skou, AP Moller-Maersk. 2022 compensation: 43.605 million Danish kroner ($6.162 million)
71% in actual cash and 29% in stocks and options. 7 percentage points less than what it was in 2021. Maersk is the second-largest container shipping company in the world. Skou stepped down as CEO at the end of 2022. He had led Maersk to its best year ever. The net gain for the year went up from $17.9 billion in 2021 to $29.3 billion. Under the present CEO, Vincent Clerc, Maersk’s net income for the first half of 2023 was $3.8 billion.
Matt Cox, Matson 2022 compensation: $6.028 million
45 percent in cash, 55 percent in shares The increase from 2021 is 1%. Matson is a specialized container line that provides both Jones Act service and premium service between Asia and the West Coast. According to Alphaliner, it is the 28th biggest airline in the world, yet it barely accounts for 0.2% of worldwide capacity. On the profits front, though, Matson has more than held its own, posting $1.06 billion in net income in 2022, up from $927 million the year before. In the first half of 2023, the company made $115 million in profit.
Eli Glickman, Zim. 2022 compensation: $6.005 million
Put together, 43% of the total is cash, and 57% is stock. The gap between now and 2021 is 39%. In 2021, Glickman was paid $9.9 million, which was more than any other CEO in the world. This amount was more than what the CEOs of much bigger companies made. But a lot of it was stock, which was worth the market price at the time. Since Zim’s stock price has dropped a lot from its boom-time highs, Glickman’s pay is now on par with that of other CEOs of carriers. The tenth largest ocean carrier, Zim, made a net profit of $4.629 billion in 2022, which was just a little less than its high profit of $4.649 billion in 2021. The airline lost $271 million in the first half of 2023.
Lois Zabrocky, International Seaways 2022 compensation: $5.409 million
45% was in cash, and the other 65% was in shares. 78% is the change from 2021. International Seaways owns a fleet of oil and product ships. A big part of Zabrocky’s salary growth from year to year was due to stock awards. In 2022, the business made $388 million more than it did the year before, when it lost $134 million. This year, the trend of rising income has kept going. International Seaways had a net income of $326 million for the first six months of the year.
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Overall, the total compensation of the top 11 ocean shipping CEOs whose figures were disclosed averaged $4.7 million in 2022, up 19% from 2021, with an average of 50% paid in cash and 50% in stock. Lading Logistics is dedicated to staying up-to-date with the latest developments in the trucking industry. They offer a wide range of services, including:
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