Halliburton shareholders vote against executive compensation plan

Halliburton Co’s (HAL.N) shareholders voted against the oilfield services provider’s proposed executive compensation plan in an advisory motion, the company said on Thursday.

Halliburton Chief Executive Officer Jeff Miller said the company was “disappointed by the shareholder advisory vote” and that it had led its peers in shareholder returns despite challenges stemming from the coronavirus pandemic and a supply and demand imbalance in oil markets.

Halliburton did not provide vote tallies. The company revised its executive compensation program in 2019 and received 91% approval of the plan from shareholders last year.

Shares of Halliburton are up about 18% year-to-date to $22.38 as oilfield activity has slowly returned amid higher prices.

Miller and other executives pledged to cut salaries last year after the pandemic crippled the oil market and set off a wave of layoffs in the industry.

Although Miller cut his base salary by $200,000 between 2019 and 2020, he received some $9.7 million in stock awards, versus $3.6 million the previous year. Overall, his compensation was 293 times the median compensation for Halliburton employees, the company said in an April filing. read more

Chief Financial Officer Lance Loeffler’s base salary jumped from $650,000 to $709,000 between 2019 and 2020, and his earnings were also bolstered by stock awards.

Halliburton in April said the sharp increase in 2020 compensation was due to changes to the plan and reporting.

Companies are not required to comply with advisory votes.