Doral Sees Sixfold Market Value Surge, Proposes Second CEO Pay Raise in Seven Months
Since June 2023, when Yoni Hantsis took over as CEO of renewable energy company Doral, the firm's market value has surged sixfold. Reflecting this growth, Doral is now seeking shareholder approval to increase Hantsis's maximum annual compensation from 4.2 million shekels, approved in January, to 7.4 million shekels, a 78% rise. This marks the second pay raise request for Hantsis within seven months. Concurrently, Doral aims to raise the maximum annual remuneration for chairman and co-controller Dori Dadovich from 3.3 million to 6 million shekels.
Hantsis began his tenure on May 30, 2023. In the year before his appointment, Doral's stock rose 31%, slightly below the 37% gain of the TA-125 index. Since his arrival, the stock has jumped 396%, far outpacing the TA-125's 53% increase. Consequently, the company's market capitalization soared from 2.6 billion to nearly 16 billion shekels.
The new proposal sets Hantsis's monthly gross salary at 143,000 shekels, a 30% increase over the January-approved salary, totaling about 2.3 million shekels annually. Additionally, his annual bonus could start at up to 12 monthly salaries (approximately 1.7 million shekels) and rise to 18 monthly salaries (around 2.6 million shekels) by the third year, compared to a previous maximum bonus of nine monthly salaries. Doral also plans to grant Hantsis 138,000 stock options and 21,500 restricted stock units valued at 6.2 million shekels, with an exercise price 11% above the current share price, meaning these options will only be profitable if the stock price rises further.
This new equity package supplements an earlier grant approved in January, which included 344,000 options and 103,000 restricted shares valued at 7.6 million shekels. Those options have an exercise price well below the current share price, positioning them deep in the money.
Doral justified the pay increases by citing Hantsis's and Dadovich's contributions to the company's performance, including significant market value growth, business development, improved financial results, operational complexity, successful strategy execution, and investor confidence. The company’s ready capacity increased from 4.6 gigawatts and 3.8 gigawatt-hours of storage at Hantsis's start to 8 gigawatts and 5.6 gigawatt-hours by March’s end. Revenues in Q1 rose 52% year-over-year.
However, the company did not address the broader renewable energy sector's strong momentum, with the TA Cleantech index rising 124% since Hantsis’s appointment, outperforming the TA-125. Competitors Enlight and Nofar Energy saw stock gains of 302% and 130%, respectively. Questions also arise about Doral’s claim that the stock options and restricted shares align management’s interests with the company’s, as restricted shares have no exercise price and are not tied to stock price increases.
