CtW Investment Group is leveling Electronics Arts execs with payment complaints. The group is urging shareholders about bonuses paid to EA’s top executives.
The same Electronic Arts investment group pushed for a similar complaint against Activision. CtW pushed against Activision CEO Bobby Kotick and urged investors to act. Now, EA investors are receiving notes about CFO Blake Jorgensen and CTO Kenneth Moss.
CtW Investment Group attacks CFO and CTO special awards
In a letter to company shareholders, CtW is telling them of the many issues with EA execs. They note about the millions of dollars paid off to both Jorgensen and Moss.
During the same time, the letter claims that EA shares underperformed. Employee layoffs happened while both execs received “special equity awards” in 2017. These payments went on top of their existing compensation from the company.
Jorgensen received a hefty $10 million on special equities, on top of his $6.5 million annually. Moss received a separate $7 million, on top of another $5.5 million. These are concerning details, considering equity compensation is problematic.
Equity compensation is a non-cash payment, usually in the form of stocks or shares. These are payments that usually go to execs to encourage them to stay.
Two years later, in November 2019, both execs received more equities. Jorgensen received another $7.5 million over his existing $7.5 million. Moss, at the same time, received another $5.5 million.
CtW informed that this money came before the performance period for the last grants elapsed. This vista looks fishy, as it seems EA is trying to cover up some lost income.
“It is extremely rare that a company grants a special performance award while another special award performance period is still ongoing,” said Dieter Waizenegger, CtW Investment Group’s executive director. “These two executives now have two special awards outstanding at the same time, in addition to annual equity grant tranches. Shareholders have increasingly expressed dissatisfaction with large awards granted in addition to the company’s ordinary course executive pay program.”
Investment group urges shareholders to vote nay
CtW Investment Group likes to focus on criticizing and removing bad practices. They attack “irresponsible and unethical corporate behavior and excessive executive pay.” Their voice carries weight too, especially in investments like Electronic Arts.
The group works with pension funds sponsored by labor union federation Change to Win. They use their members’ Taft-Hartley pension plans and invest them in different companies. The group holds a backing of over $250 billion in assets.
CtW is urging Electronic Arts shareholders to vote against the “Say to Pay” proposal. It will come out at the company’s stockholders’ meeting next month. This strategy was similar to what they did with Activision last June.
Featured image courtesy of Electronic Arts/Youtube Screenshot