IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/mgtdec/v42y2021i1p143-155.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Does CEO compensation matter in boosting firm performance? Evidence from listed French firms

Author

Listed:
  • Faten Zoghlami

Abstract

The paper investigates the impact of chief executive officer (CEO) compensation on firm performance from a sample of 155 listed French companies on SBF 120, over 2009–2018. Findings suggest that an increase in CEO compensation seems to improve the accounting‐based firm performance, nevertheless it hurts the firm stock market value. More pronounced results are reported when we control for sector compensation interactions. We argue that attractive compensation may improve the executive services in achieving shareholders' objectives, but investors seem to not appreciate a CEO compensation increase. Based on the agency theory, it might be argued that investors fear possible executive opportunistic behavior encouraging them to enjoy overcompensation.

Suggested Citation

  • Faten Zoghlami, 2021. "Does CEO compensation matter in boosting firm performance? Evidence from listed French firms," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 42(1), pages 143-155, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:mgtdec:v:42:y:2021:i:1:p:143-155
    DOI: 10.1002/mde.3219
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/mde.3219
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/mde.3219?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Ramzi Benkraiem & Amal Hamrouni & Faten Lakhal & Nadia Ben Farhat Toumi, 2017. "Board independence, gender diversity and CEO compensation," Post-Print hal-01590712, HAL.
    2. Dan Lin & Hsien-Chang Kuo & Lei-Huey Wang, 2013. "Chief Executive Compensation: An Empirical Study of Fat Cat CEOs," The International Journal of Business and Finance Research, The Institute for Business and Finance Research, vol. 7(2), pages 27-42.
    3. Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W, 1997. "A Survey of Corporate Governance," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 52(2), pages 737-783, June.
    4. Ali Dardour & Jocelyn Husser & Xavier Hollandts, 2015. "CEO compensation and board diversity : evidence from french listed companies," Post-Print hal-01839997, HAL.
    5. Neslihan Ozkan, 2011. "CEO Compensation and Firm Performance: an Empirical Investigation of UK Panel Data," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 17(2), pages 260-285, March.
    6. Bengt Holmstrom, 1979. "Moral Hazard and Observability," Bell Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 10(1), pages 74-91, Spring.
    7. Collins G. Ntim & Sarah Lindop & Kofi A. Osei & Dennis A. Thomas, 2015. "Executive Compensation, Corporate Governance and Corporate Performance: A Simultaneous Equation Approach," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 36(2), pages 67-96, March.
    8. Lionel Almeida, 2014. "The level and structure of CEO compensation: Does ownership matter?," Revue d'économie politique, Dalloz, vol. 124(4), pages 653-666.
    9. Jonathan S. Leonard, 1990. "Executive Pay and Firm Performance," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 43(3), pages 13, April.
    10. Broye, Géraldine & François, Abel & Moulin, Yves, 2017. "The cost of CEO duality: Evidence from French leadership compensation," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 35(3), pages 336-350.
    11. Ramzi Benkraiem & Amal Hamrouni & Faten Lakhal & Nadia Ben Farhat Toumi, 2017. "Board independence, gender diversity and CEO compensation," Post-Print hal-02521391, HAL.
    12. Lucian Arye Bebchuk & Jesse M. Fried, 2003. "Executive Compensation as an Agency Problem," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 17(3), pages 71-92, Summer.
    13. Duffhues, Pieter & Kabir, Rezaul, 2008. "Is the pay-performance relationship always positive: Evidence from the Netherlands," Journal of Multinational Financial Management, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 45-60, February.
    14. Arijit Ghosh, 2006. "Determination of Executive Compensation in an Emerging Economy. Evidence from India," Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 42(3), pages 66-90, May.
    15. Conyon, Martin J. & He, Lerong, 2011. "Executive compensation and corporate governance in China," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 17(4), pages 1158-1175, September.
    16. Basu, Sudipta & Hwang, Lee-Seok & Mitsudome, Toshiaki & Weintrop, Joseph, 2007. "Corporate governance, top executive compensation and firm performance in Japan," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 15(1), pages 56-79, January.
    17. Brian J. Hall & Jeffrey B. Liebman, 1998. "Are CEOs Really Paid Like Bureaucrats?," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 113(3), pages 653-691.
    18. Muhammad Fayyaz Sheikh & Syed Zulfiqar Ali Shah & Saeed Akbar, 2018. "Firm performance, corporate governance and executive compensation in Pakistan," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 50(18), pages 2012-2027, April.
    19. Arya, Anil & Glover, Jonathan & Mittendorf, Brian & Narayanamoorthy, Ganapathi, 2005. "Unintended consequences of regulating disclosures: The case of Regulation Fair Disclosure," Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, Elsevier, vol. 24(3), pages 243-252.
    20. Bebchuk, Lucian A. & Fried, Jesse M., 2003. "Executive Compensation as an Agency Problem," Berkeley Olin Program in Law & Economics, Working Paper Series qt81q3136r, Berkeley Olin Program in Law & Economics.
    21. Lucian A. Bebchuk & Jesse M. Fried, 2005. "Pay Without Performance: Overview of the Issues," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 17(4), pages 8-23, September.
    22. Marianne Bertrand & Sendhil Mullainathan, 2001. "Are CEOs Rewarded for Luck? The Ones Without Principals Are," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 116(3), pages 901-932.
    23. Fernandes, Nuno, 2008. "EC: Board compensation and firm performance: The role of "independent" board members," Journal of Multinational Financial Management, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 30-44, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Jebreel Mohammad Al-Al-Msiedeen & Fawzi A. Al Sawalqa, 2021. "Ownership Structure and CEO Compensation: Evidence from Jordan," Asian Economic and Financial Review, Asian Economic and Social Society, vol. 11(5), pages 365-383, May.
    2. Clement Olalekan Olaniyi & Ademola Obafemi Young & Xuan Vinh Vo & Mamdouh Abdulaziz Saleh Al‐Faryan, 2022. "Do institutional framework and its threshold matter in the sensitivity of CEO pay to firm performance? Fresh insights from an emerging market economy," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 43(8), pages 3386-3403, December.
    3. Grey, Colette & Flynn, Antoinette & Adu, Douglas A., 2024. "An examination of how executive remuneration and firm performance are influenced by Chair-CEO diversity attributes," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    4. Mohit Pathak & Arti Chandani, 2023. "Board composition, executive compensation, and financial performance: panel evidence from India," International Journal of Disclosure and Governance, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 20(4), pages 359-373, December.
    5. Tutun Mukherjee & Som Sankar Sen, 2022. "Impact of CEO attributes on corporate reputation, financial performance, and corporate sustainable growth: evidence from India," Financial Innovation, Springer;Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, vol. 8(1), pages 1-50, December.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Grey, Colette & Flynn, Antoinette & Adu, Douglas A., 2024. "An examination of how executive remuneration and firm performance are influenced by Chair-CEO diversity attributes," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    2. Clement Olalekan Olaniyi & Olaolu Richard Olayeni, 2020. "A new perspective into the relationship between CEO pay and firm performance: evidence from Nigeria’s listed firms," Journal of Social and Economic Development, Springer;Institute for Social and Economic Change, vol. 22(2), pages 250-277, December.
    3. Sun, Sophia Li & Habib, Ahsan, 2020. "Determinants and consequences of tournament incentives: A survey of the literature in accounting and finance," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    4. Kuo, Hsien-Chang & Lin, Dan & Lien, Donald & Wang, Lie-Huey & Yeh, Li-Jen, 2014. "Is there an inverse U-shaped relationship between pay and performance?," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 347-357.
    5. Manika Kohli, 2018. "Impact of Ownership Type and Board Characteristics on the Pay–Performance Relationship: Evidence from India," Indian Journal of Corporate Governance, , vol. 11(1), pages 1-34, June.
    6. Muhammad Fayyaz Sheikh & Syed Zulfiqar Ali Shah & Saeed Akbar, 2018. "Firm performance, corporate governance and executive compensation in Pakistan," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 50(18), pages 2012-2027, April.
    7. Catuogno, Simona & Arena, Claudia & Cirillo, Alessandro & Pennacchio, Luca, 2018. "Exploring the relation between family ownership and incentive stock options: The contingency of family leadership, board monitoring and financial crisis," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 9(1), pages 59-72.
    8. Sohail Ahmad Javeed & Lin Lefen, 2019. "An Analysis of Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Performance with Moderating Effects of CEO Power and Ownership Structure: A Case Study of the Manufacturing Sector of Pakistan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-25, January.
    9. Andrea Melis & Silvia Carta & Silvia Gaia, 2012. "Executive remuneration in blockholder-dominated firms. How do Italian firms use stock options?," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 16(3), pages 511-541, August.
    10. Rebitzer, James B. & Taylor, Lowell J., 2011. "Extrinsic Rewards and Intrinsic Motives: Standard and Behavioral Approaches to Agency and Labor Markets," Handbook of Labor Economics, in: O. Ashenfelter & D. Card (ed.), Handbook of Labor Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 8, pages 701-772, Elsevier.
    11. Yaowen Shan & Terry Walter, 2016. "Towards a Set of Design Principles for Executive Compensation Contracts," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 52(4), pages 619-684, December.
    12. Miguel Antón & Florian Ederer & Mireia Giné & Martin Schmalz, 2023. "Common Ownership, Competition, and Top Management Incentives," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 131(5), pages 1294-1355.
    13. Kuang, Y. & Qin, B., 2006. "Performance-vested Stock Options and Pay-Performance Sensitivity," Other publications TiSEM 13484e72-b9cf-4c3a-8fc5-3, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    14. Page, T. Beau, 2018. "CEO attributes, compensation, and firm value: Evidence from a structural estimation," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 128(2), pages 378-401.
    15. Fernando Núñez & Ángel Arcos-Vargas & Carlos Usabiaga & Pablo Álvarez-de-Toledo, 2022. "On directors’ compensation: a multilevel analysis of Spanish listed companies," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 63(4), pages 2173-2207, October.
    16. Kuang, Y. & Qin, B., 2006. "Performance-vested Stock Options and Pay-Performance Sensitivity," Discussion Paper 2006-123, Tilburg University, Center for Economic Research.
    17. Lucian A. Bebchuk & Michael S. Weisbach, 2012. "The State of Corporate Governance Research," Springer Books, in: Sabri Boubaker & Bang Dang Nguyen & Duc Khuong Nguyen (ed.), Corporate Governance, edition 127, pages 325-346, Springer.
    18. Claudine Salgado & Guilherme Schneider & Cristiano M. Costa, 2022. "Does board interlock affect CEO compensation? Evidence from companies listed in the Brazilian stock exchange," International Journal of Disclosure and Governance, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 19(4), pages 444-465, December.
    19. Douglas A. Adu & Basil Al‐Najjar & Thitima Sitthipongpanich, 2022. "Executive compensation, environmental performance, and sustainable banking: The moderating effect of governance mechanisms," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(4), pages 1439-1463, May.
    20. Gerwin Laan & Hans Ees & Arjen Witteloostuijn, 2010. "Is pay related to performance in The Netherlands? An analysis of Dutch executive compensation, 2002–2006," De Economist, Springer, vol. 158(2), pages 123-149, June.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wly:mgtdec:v:42:y:2021:i:1:p:143-155. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/jhome/7976 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.