LPL CEO’s Pay Rises 77%
Despite the pay bump, Dan Arnold’s pay is considerably less than CEOs at rival firms including Morgan Stanley.
The total compensation of Dan Arnold, LPL Financial’s CEO and president, rose 77.4% to $12.9 million in 2021, according to the annual proxy filing the independent broker-dealer filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday.
Arnold’s base salary increased only 5% to $892,308. But the value of his stock awards soared 105.4% to $8.6 million, while his non-equity incentive plan compensation jumped 53.5% to $3.4 million and all other compensation grew 8.5% to $39,250.
The raise followed a 5.4 decrease in Arnold’s total compensation in 2020 from 2019 and a 0.91% increase in salary.
In the filing, the LPL board of directors’ compensation committee praised Arnold’s “strategic vision and leadership of the Company in delivering strong core business results, navigating a changing industry landscape and advancing the Company’s cultural transformation.”
LPL, meanwhile, “delivered solid business and financial results in 2021,” the firm said in the filing. The company’s total advisory and brokerage assets “reached a new high of $1.2 trillion at year-end, which represented an increase of 34% year-over-year,” it pointed out.
That increase was “driven by continued organic growth in both traditional and new markets, the Company’s acquisition of Waddell & Reed’s wealth management business … and equity market appreciation,” according to LPL. “Total organic net new assets were $119 billion for the year, translating to a 13% growth rate, up from 7% in 2020.”
Despite the huge increase in Arnold’s total compensation for 2021, his pay lags at least a few of the CEOs who lead his largest BD and wirehouse rivals.
For example, Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman’s total 2021 compensation grew to $34.9 million from $29.6 million, according to its proxy statement, filed in January. His compensation included a base salary of $1.5 million (the same as the prior two years) and cash bonus of $8.4 million in addition to stock and other awards.
Meanwhile, the total 2021 compensation of James Cracchiolo, Ameriprise CEO and chairman, inched up 2.1% to $21.2 million, that BD’s proxy filing showed. The total compensation of Paul Reilly, Raymond James’ CEO and chairman, rose 11.7% to $13.9 million in 2021. And Edward Jones’ top executive, Managing Partner Penny Pennington, received a 25.3% pay bump to $22.6 million.
(Pictured: LPL CEO Dan Arnold; Image: LPL Financial)