Fannie Mae stock had a respectable year, up 17 percent, a big move for a company with a stock market value of around $69 billion.
But over the last five years, Fannie stockholders would have been better off putting their cash in a savings account. A $100 investment five years ago grew to $104 by Dec. 31, assuming you invested Fannie Mae's healthy dividends. The total return, even including generous dividends, is back to around zero now, because as of Friday the stock is down almost $4 a share for the year.
2003 compensation for XM executives Hugh Panero, top, and Gary Parsons, below, was relatively modest.
(Xm Satellite Radio)
|
_____Compensation Report_____
•
The Region's Highest-Paid Executives (The Washington Post, Aug 16, 2004)
•
Lucrative Cash Package Came as Fairchild Reported $53.2 Million Loss (The Washington Post, Aug 16, 2004)
•
Board Members, Executives and Family Members Can Still Benefit (The Washington Post, Aug 16, 2004)
•
Expense Issue Draws Mixed Views From Companies (The Washington Post, Aug 16, 2004)
•
Survey Estimates Values of Options, Excludes Exercises (The Washington Post, Aug 16, 2004)
_____Charts_____
•
Top Compensation Packages
•
Top Salaries
•
Superlatives
•
Trends
_____Industries_____
•
Aerospace
•
Biotechnology
•
Information Technology
•
Telecommunications
|
| |
_____Live Discussion_____
•
Monday, 3 p.m. ET: Washington Post staff writer David Hilzenrath and editor Mike Flagg will be online to discuss the 2004 executive compensation survey.
|
| |
_____Previous Columns_____
•
Education Stocks Offer a Lesson In Unfairness (The Washington Post, Aug 9, 2004)
•
A Cold Summer For Biotech Stocks (The Washington Post, Aug 2, 2004)
•
Forecasters Look For Hints of Election Results (The Washington Post, Jul 26, 2004)
•
Penny-Stock Lawyer Nears Day of Reckoning (The Washington Post, Jul 19, 2004)
•
Playing It Safe In a Sluggish Market (The Washington Post, Jul 12, 2004)
•
More Washington Investing Columns
|
| |
|
Along with Raines, four other Fannie Mae executives show up on the list of the 100 highest paid executives, pulling down pay of $1.2 million to $2 million in cash and $7.4 million to $11.9 million in total compensation.
"Fannie Mae's executive compensation philosophy is based upon pay for performance," the company said in a statement issued in response to questions about the issue.
"Performance is assessed against financial, mission and strategic goals," the statement said, ticking off a list of accomplishments, including doubling earnings per share over the past five years (from $3.23 to $7.91), a 68 percent increase in total business and helping provide affordable housing. Conspicuously absent from the lists are any mention of what Raines and Fannie have done for shareholders.
Fannie's stock was doing pretty well until Freddie Mac's accounting scandal two years ago, but since has been tarred by the sins of its twin, a spokesman noted.
But if Fannie Mae executives want to take credit for its impressive earnings and for boosting homeownership, they should also take some responsibility for their shareholders getting stiffed.
That's part of what "pay for performance" means.
