AGM alert: Smiths Group, Dunelm, Hays

New Dunelm Group (LSE:DNLM) boss Clo Moriarty has been hired on a salary significantly higher than that paid to predecessor Nick Wilkinson, the retailer has disclosed ahead of its AGM next month.

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The former Sainsbury’s chief retail and technology officer, who started on 1 October, gets base pay of £825,000 plus annual bonus and long-term incentive opportunities worth 150% and 225% of salary respectively.

Wilkinson, who guided the group through the pandemic and led a step-change in its digital offer during seven years in charge, was on a base salary of £627,905. His total remuneration for the 2024/25 financial year amounted to just under £1.5 million.

Dunelm points out that Moriarty’s pay is positioned around the median compared to the largest 50 companies in the FTSE 250. It also takes into account her package at her former employer and that her salary will not be reviewed until August 2027.

The company, which is due to hold its AGM on 19 November, has agreed to buy out incentives that she will forfeit from her former employer.

The annual report also reveals she will receive a travel and accommodation allowance of 5% of salary and up £50,000 towards the cost of purchasing and furnishing a home near the company’s Leicester headquarters. This is on the understanding that the majority of any furnishings should be purchased from Dunelm!

Smiths Group

When: 11am, Wednesday 19 November.

Where: Freshfields, 100 Bishopsgate, London, EC2P 2SR.

How to participate: The deadline for the return of proxy voting instructions is 11am, Monday 17 November. Questions in advance of the Smiths Group (LSE:SMIN) meeting should be submitted by 6pm, Wednesday 12 November. More AGM details can be found here. 

Who’s in the chair? Steve Williams, the former chief executive of Suncor Energy who previously held senior leadership roles at ExxonMobil in the UK, was appointed in September 2023. 

How did the company do in the year to 31 July? Group revenue of £3.34 billion rose 8.9% on an organic basis, well ahead of original guidance. An operating margin of 17.4% was at the top of its guidance range, up 60 basis points on a year earlier. Operating profit rose 13.1% to £580 million and earnings by 14.8% to 121.2p per share. The group also reported progress on its strategic actions to focus Smiths as a high-performance industrial engineering business, including through the separation of Smiths Interconnect and Smiths Detection. A final dividend of 31.77p is due to be paid on 21 November, resulting in a 5.1% increase in the total for the year to 46p. The company has made a dividend distribution for 74 years in a row.

How have shares performed? Up 32% to 2,352p (2,366p on Thursday). The values of £100 investments in the FTSE 100 and Smiths shares in the 10 years to 31 July were £198.52 and £270.67 respectively.

How much is the boss paid? Roland Carter, who was appointed in March 2024, received total remuneration of £4.4 million, the highest sum paid to the company’s chief executive in the past decade. Predecessor Paul Keel got £4.3 million in 2023. Last year’s total included cash and deferred shares worth £1.9 million, equivalent to 85.4% of the annual bonus opportunity. The 88% vesting of long-term incentives contributed £1.4 million to the overall figure.

What about future pay arrangements? Enhanced long-term incentive awards equivalent to 50% of salary were awarded to the CEO and chief financial officer in April. These are linked to “stretching” total shareholder return targets and cover the three years of a “critical phase” for the company. The maximum annual bonus opportunity for Carter in the current financial year is up from 230% to 250% of salary, while he has been granted 190,000 shares under the 2026 long-term incentive scheme. Carter’s base pay for this year is up 3.5% to £1 million.

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How was variable pay determined? Near-maximum performance on revenue and operating profit made up just over half the chief executive’s annual bonus outturn, with the rest based on operating cash conversion and non-financial metrics such as energy reduction. The vesting outcome on long-term incentives was reduced from 91.7% in order to reflect a balance sheet overstatement at Flex-Tek.

How much is the new finance boss paid? Julian Fagge was appointed in February with an annual base salary of £625,000, below that of his predecessor Claire Scherrer. His annual bonus opportunity is 180% of salary.

How did last year’s AGM go? The new three-year remuneration policy was approved with 92.3% of votes in favour, while the annual remuneration report got 95.2% support.

How’s the company doing on diversity? The retirement of Clare Scherrer in January and the appointment of two male directors means the board no longer meets the UK Listing Rule requirement to have at least 40% female representation. The percentage is set to be 25% following the 2025 AGM. At least one director is from an ethnic minority background.

Dunelm

When: 11.30am, Wednesday 19 November.

Where: Watermead Business Park, Syston, Leicester, Leicestershire, LE7 1AD.

How to participate: The deadline for the return of proxy voting instructions is 11.30am, Monday 17 November. More AGM details can be found here.

Who’s in the chair? Former Whitbread boss Alison Brittain was appointed in January 2023.

How did the company do in the year to 28 June? Sales of £1.77 billion rose 3.8% on a year earlier, with digital representing 40% of the total compared with 37% the year before. The gross margin rose to 52.4% from 51.8%, resulting in a 2.7% improvement in annual pre-tax profit to £211 million. A 28p a share dividend is due on 25 November, lifting the total for the year by 1p to 79.5p when including the unchanged special dividend of 35p a share paid in April.

How have shares performed? Up 11% to 1,173p (1,119p on Thursday). They traded in the range of 837p to 1,279p during the year.

How much was the boss paid? Nick Wilkinson, who stepped down at the end of September, got a total of £1.48 million for 2024/25. This compared with the previous year’s £1.7 million and £3.75 million for 2021, which was the peak during his seven years in charge. The 2024/25 figure included an annual bonus of £529,000, which was based on 56.3% of the maximum opportunity. The 15% vesting of long-term incentives contributed £256,000 to the overall figure.

How was variable pay determined? The bonus scorecard was 75% linked to the financial metrics of pre-tax profit and sales, with the rest tied to personal and strategic targets. A figure of £211 million accounted for 58.90% of the maximum opportunity under the pre-tax profit measure, with sales of £1.7 billion at 44.25%. The long-term incentive outcome was 80% linked to diluted earnings per share, which at 76.8p was below the minimum threshold of 83.4p.

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How much is the new boss paid? Clo Moriarty, who started as chief executive on 1 October, receives a base salary of £825,000. This is higher than Wilkinson’s £627,905 but is positioned around median compared to the largest 50 companies in the FTSE 250 and takes into account her package at former employer Sainsbury’s and that her salary will not be reviewed until August 2027. Her annual bonus and long-term opportunity is at 150% and 225% of salary respectively, pro-rated to reflect her joining date. The company agreed to buy out incentives that she will forfeit from her former employer, where she held the role of chief retail and technology officer. Further details will be in next year’s annual report.

How did last year’s AGM go? The annual remuneration report was approved with 99.29% of votes in favour.

How’s the company doing on diversity? Moriarty’s appointment means female directors hold 50% of board roles and three of the four senior positions. At least one director is from an ethnic minority background.

Hays

When: 12 noon, Wednesday 19 November.

Where: BNP Paribas, 7 Harewood Ave, London, NW1 6JB.

How to participate: Proxy voting instructions should be returned no later than 12 noon, Monday 17 November. More AGM details can be found here.

Who’s in the chair? Michael Findlay, who spent his executive career in corporate broking and investment banking, joined the Hays (LSE:HAS) board at the start of 2025.

How did the company do in the year to 30 June? Net fees of £972.4 million represented an 11% like-for-like decline, driven by weakness in permanent recruitment. Operating profit fell 57% to £45.6 million. Cash conversion, which is the sum generated by operations divided by operating profit, was ahead of target at 281%. The company achieved £35 million a year of cost savings and is targeting a further £45 million by 2029. A final dividend of 0.29p a share is due to be paid on 26 November, resulting in a 59% decline in the total for the year to 1.24p a share.

How have shares performed? Down 23% to 71.35p (58.1p on Thursday).

How much is the boss paid? Dirk Hahn’s total remuneration for 2024/25 amounted to £1.14 million, which includes £354,000 in cash and deferred shares after the annual bonus scheme paid 37% of the maximum opportunity. Hahn, who was appointed in September 2023, was not a participant in the 2022 long-term incentive plan. His base salary has increased 3% to £657,758. 

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How was variable pay determined? Although profit targets were not met, cash conversion was significantly ahead of the top-end target. Personal and strategic objectives accounted for 20% of the bonus scorecard, with Hahn achieving 85% of the maximum under this element.

How did last year’s AGM go? The three-year remuneration policy was approved with 93.20% of votes in favour. The annual remuneration report got 98.02% support.

How’s the company doing on diversity? Female directors account for 44% of board roles, including one senior position. Two members of the board are from minority ethnic backgrounds.