Notice of 2023 Annual Meeting of Shareholders APRIL 27, 2023
2023 ANNUAL MEETING INFORMATION:
DATE: Thursday, April 27, 2023
TIME: 9:00 A.M., Eastern Time
The Annual Meeting will be held in a virtual-only format and will be available via live webcast at
www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/RPT2023
To participate in the Annual Meeting, you will need the 16-digit control number included on your Notice or
proxy card (if you received a printed copy of the proxy materials), to enter the Annual Meeting. Instructions on how to attend and participate virtually, including on how to demonstrate proof of Share ownership, are posted at
www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/ RPT2023.
HOW TO VOTE:
Your vote is important. You are eligible to vote if you were a shareholder of record at the close of business on March 6, 2023.
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BY INTERNET PRIOR TO MEETING
www.proxyvote.com |
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BY INTERNET DURING MEETING |
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www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/
RPT2023 |
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BY PHONE
As indicated on your proxy card. |
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BY MAIL
Complete, sign and return the enclosed
proxy voting card. |
Your vote is important. Even if you plan to attend the Annual Meeting virtually via the Internet, we urge
you to vote promptly to save us the expense of additional solicitation. If you attend the Annual Meeting virtually via the Internet, you may revoke your proxy in accordance with the procedures set forth in the accompanying proxy statement and
vote during the Annual Meeting.
Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for Shareholder Meeting
to Be Held on April 27, 2023: The Proxy Statement, 2022 Annual Report to Shareholders and Proxy Card are available free of charge at www.proxyvote.com.
To the Shareholders of RPT Realty:
Notice is hereby given that the 2023 Annual Meeting of Shareholders (the “Annual
Meeting”) of RPT Realty (the “Trust”) will be held on Thursday, April 27, 2023 at 9:00 a.m., Eastern Time. You may attend the Annual Meeting virtually via the Internet at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/RPT2023
by using the control number included with your notice to log on to the Annual Meeting. The Annual Meeting will be held solely by means of remote communication in a virtual meeting format only. You will not be able to attend the Annual Meeting
physically. The agenda for the Annual Meeting is as follows:
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(1) |
Elect the seven trustees named in the accompanying proxy statement to serve until the 2024 annual meeting of shareholders and until
their successors are duly elected and qualify; |
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(2) |
Ratify the appointment of Grant Thornton LLP as the Trust’s independent registered public accounting firm for the year ending
December 31, 2023; |
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(3) |
Approve, on an advisory basis, the compensation of the Trust’s named executive officers; |
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(4) |
Approve, on an advisory basis, whether an advisory vote on the compensation of the Trust’s named executive officers should occur
every one, two or three years; and |
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(5) |
Transact such other business as may properly come before the Annual Meeting or any adjournment or postponement thereof. |
The Board of Trustees of the Trust recommends a vote FOR each of the trustee
nominees listed in the accompanying proxy statement, FOR the ratification of Grant Thornton LLP’s appointment, FOR the approval, on an advisory basis, of the compensation of the Trust’s named executive officers, and FOR
the approval, on an advisory basis, of an advisory vote on named executive officer compensation every year.
The accompanying proxy statement, which forms a part of this Notice of Annual
Meeting, contains additional information for your careful review. Shareholders of record of the Trust’s common shares of beneficial interest at the close of business on March 6, 2023 are entitled to receive notice of, and to vote at, the Annual
Meeting and any adjournment or postponement thereof.
By Order of the Board of Trustees
Heather Ohlberg
Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary
March 16, 2023
Your vote is important. Even if you plan to attend the Annual Meeting virtually
via the Internet, we urge you to vote promptly to save us the expense of additional solicitation. If you attend the Annual Meeting virtually via the Internet, you may revoke your proxy in accordance with the procedures set forth in the
accompanying proxy statement and vote during the Annual Meeting.
Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for Shareholder
Meeting to Be Held on April 27, 2023: The Proxy Statement, 2022 Annual Report to Shareholders and Proxy Card are available free of charge at www.proxyvote.com.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
3 |
Table of Contents
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
4 |
Proxy Summary
The following summary provides an overview of the information contained in this proxy statement. Please read this entire proxy statement for more information on each topic discussed in this summary before voting.
VOTING MATTERS
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Proposals
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Board
Voting
Recommendation
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Page Reference
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Proposal 1:
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Election of Richard L.
Federico, Arthur H. Goldberg, Brian L. Harper, Joanna T. Lau, David J. Nettina, Laurie M. Shahon and Andrea M. Weiss to serve as trustees until the 2024 annual meeting of shareholders and until their successors are duly elected and
qualify.
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FOR each nominee
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25
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Proposal 2:
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Ratification of the
appointment of Grant Thornton LLP as RPT Realty’s independent registered public accounting firm for the year ending December 31, 2023.
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FOR
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77
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Proposal 3:
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Approval, on a
non-binding basis, of the compensation of the Trust’s named executive officers.
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FOR
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78
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Proposal 4:
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Approval, on an advisory
basis, whether an advisory vote on the compensation of the Trust’s named executive officers should occur every one, two or three years.
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FOR every
ONE YEAR
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79
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BOARD NOMINEES
The Board of Trustees (the “Board”) of RPT Realty (“Trust,” “RPT,” “we,” “our” or “us”), based on the recommendation of the Nominating & Governance Committee of the Board, has nominated each of the following seven
nominees for election as trustees at the Annual Meeting:
COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP
Name
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Age
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Director Since
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Audit
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Compensation and
Human Capital
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Nominating
&
Governance
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Executive
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Richard L. Federico
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68
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2018
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X ($)
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X
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—
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—
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Arthur H. Goldberg
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80
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1988
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X ($)
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Chair
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—
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X
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Brian L. Harper
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47
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2018
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—
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—
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—
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X
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Joanna T. Lau
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64
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2019
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Chair ($)
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—
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X
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—
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David J. Nettina
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70
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2012
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X ($)
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—
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—
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Chair
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Laurie M. Shahon
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71
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2015
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X ($)
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X
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Chair
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X
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Andrea M. Weiss
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67
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2018
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—
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X
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X
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—
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Meetings in 2022
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5
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8
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5
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1
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($) Financial Expert
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
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PURPOSE AND CORE VALUES
RPT owns and operates a national portfolio of open-air shopping destinations principally located in top U.S. markets. We aspire to create a culture that attracts and retains talented employees with a shared passion
for innovation, transparency and excellence. By working with each of our stakeholders, we are realizing our corporate purpose of “Turning Commercial Ground into Common Ground.”
Our business is founded on the following core set of values which we believe will result in a long-term sustainable business model that creates value for our shareholders and equity with our stakeholders.
RPT Core Values
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
6 |
2022 PERFORMANCE SUMMARY
2022 was another successful year of execution
across each of our business units. Leasing volumes in 2022 increased 33% following a 49% increase in 2021, reflective of the portfolio quality improvements made over the past few years, the importance of a strong brick-and-mortar presence and the
lack of quality new retail supply. Rents on new leases signed in 2022 also continued to expand, with comparable new lease spreads of 42.6% on a trailing twelve-month basis. During the year, the Trust also continued to reshape the portfolio towards
higher growth and higher income markets. At the end of 2022, Boston, Miami, Tampa, Atlanta, Nashville and Austin represented 38% of our annualized base rent, with Boston now our second largest market and our three-mile average household income now
$122,000. As of December 31, 2022, our shopping center portfolio consisted of 44 wholly-owned shopping centers and 13 shopping centers owned through our grocery-anchored joint venture, located in high-income suburbs within the top 40 metropolitan
statistical areas (“MSAs”) in the United States as well as 48 retail properties owned through our net lease joint venture and one net lease retail property that was held for sale by RPT.
During the past year, RPT again demonstrated its proactive balance sheet management by issuing debt and equity in early 2022 when cost of capital was low and refinancing the Trust’s unsecured credit facility ahead of
the dislocation in the capital markets that occurred in the latter half of the year. At the end of 2022, the Trust had no debt maturing until 2025 and had fixed all remaining term loan debt through maturity, significantly reducing RPT’s exposure
to the impact of rising interest rates. The Trust also continued to invest in productivity enhancing data initiatives that provide greater real-time business visibility in the near and medium term and in Environmental, Social and Governance
(“ESG”) initiatives that we believe will create a more sustainable business over the long term. Additionally, the Trust increased the quarterly dividend rate by 8% for the first quarter of 2022 and by another 8% for the first quarter of 2023.
The following are highlights of RPT’s financial and operating performance in 2022, which represent information as of and for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, as applicable, that provide context for the
discussion of the compensation of RPT’s named executive officers (“NEOs”, and each, an “NEO”) included in this proxy statement. These include operating funds from operations (“Operating FFO”) per diluted share, same property net operating income
(“NOI”) and net debt to annualized adjusted EBITDA, which are non-GAAP financial measures for which reconciliations and other information are set forth on pages 48–51 of RPT’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022
and are included in Appendix A to this proxy statement, as applicable.
2022 PERFORMANCE HIGHLIGHTS
Although the Trust’s total shareholder return in 2022 was ahead of the broader REIT index, we were disappointed by our absolute return, which we believe did not reflect the many successes achieved across all aspects
of our business in 2022, as discussed below.
2022 Total Shareholder
Returns
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
7 |
2022 Selected Financial and Operational Highlights
18.7%
NET INCOME PER DILUTED
SHARE GROWTH
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9.5%
OPERATING FFO
PER DILUTED SHARE
GROWTH
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4.3%
SAME PROPERTY
NOI GROWTH
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93.8%
PRO-RATA
LEASED RATE
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42.6%
COMPARABLE NEW
RE-LEASING SPREAD
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Unless otherwise noted, we present certain financial information on a “pro-rata” basis or including “pro-rata” adjustments. Unless otherwise specified, pro-rata financial information includes our proportionate
economic ownership of each our unconsolidated joint ventures derived on an entity-by-entity basis by applying the ownership percentage interest used to arrive at our share of the net operations for the period consistent with the application of
the equity method of accounting to each of our unconsolidated joint ventures.
Dividend Highlights
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•
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Declared 2022
common dividends per common share of $0.52, an increase of 33% over the prior year
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•
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Declared a first
quarter 2023 common dividend of $0.14 per common share, an increase of 8% over the prior
quarterly rate
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Growing and
Well-Covered Dividend
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Quarterly Common Dividend per share |
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Operational Highlights
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•
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The Trust
diversified its tenant portfolio to align with the evolving retail landscape and executed 2.2 million square feet of leases for the full year 2022, an increase of 33% over 2021, which represented the highest annual leasing volume since
2014
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•
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As of December 31,
2022, the Trust had $11.2 million of signed not commenced rent and recovery income representing about $0.12 per share of visible future earnings growth
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•
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Ended 2022 with a
leased rate of 93.8% as of December 31, 2022, an increase of 70 basis points year-over-year
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•
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Generated comparable
new lease spreads of 24.3% and 42.6% during the fourth quarter of 2022 and on a trailing twelve-month basis, respectively, reflective of the strong embedded rental rate upside in the portfolio
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•
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69% of ABR is
derived from centers with a grocer or grocer component, including leases that have been signed but have not yet commenced, reflecting the essential nature of the Trust’s portfolio and the stability of its cash flows
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RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
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Strong Leasing
Volumes at Attractive Rents
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Total Leasing Volume (in millions)
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Re-leasing Spreads - New Leases - Comparable
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Balance Sheet Highlights
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• |
The Trust closed on the recast of an $810 million unsecured credit facility based on the
Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”), increasing the commitment on the revolving line of credit by $150 million to $500 million, extending debt duration, lowering the average credit spread on the $310 million term loan facility and
adding a sustainability-linked pricing component whereby the applicable interest rate margin can be reduced if the Trust meets certain sustainability performance targets |
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• |
The Trust opportunistically executed forward starting swaps covering $160 million of notional value
at a fixed rate of 3.04%, fixing the rate on all outstanding term loan debt though maturity, significantly reducing the Trust’s exposure to floating interest rate volatility |
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• |
The Trust, through its joint venture platforms, closed on new secured debt totaling approximately
$52.0 million at an attractive 2.88% fixed rate |
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• |
The Trust, through its joint venture platforms, closed on the recast of a $350 million, SOFR-based
secured credit facility, lowering the applicable interest rate margin by 65 basis points and increasing the commitment on the revolving line of credit by $110 million |
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• |
Net debt to annualized adjusted EBITDA was 6.9x as of December 31, 2022 |
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• |
As of December 31, 2022, the Trust had $465 million of unused capacity under its
unsecured line of credit, subject to compliance with certain covenants, and $6 million of consolidated cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash |
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• |
As of December 31, 2022, the Trust has no debt maturing until 2025 and a weighted
average debt maturity of 5.1 years |
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• |
The Trust maintained an investment grade rating of BBB- by Fitch Ratings, Inc. in 2022 which was also reaffirmed in February 2023
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Ample Liquidity and No Pending Debt Maturities
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RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
9 |
Investment Highlights
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•
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Grew assets under management by 11% year-over-year to $3.2
billion
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•
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Acquired $375 million of assets from third parties
through the Trust’s two joint venture platforms and on balance sheet
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•
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Acquired The Crossings and Brookline Village in the
Boston market
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•
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Acquired Mary Brickell Village in the heart of Miami’s
thriving financial district through the Trust’s grocery-anchored joint venture platform
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•
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Acquired seven properties through the Trust’s net lease
joint venture platform
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•
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Increased the Trust’s exposure to the Boston market by
4.1% versus 2021 to 11.5% of pro-rata annualized base rent
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•
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96.5% of annualized base rent stems from top 40 MSAs as
of December 31, 2022
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•
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Sold $98 million of assets to third parties and
contributed $185 million of assets into the Trust’s two joint venture platforms
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•
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Sold Rivertowne Square, Tel-Twelve and Mount Prospect Plaza
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•
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Contributed The Shops on Lane Avenue and Troy Marketplace
to the Trust’s grocery-anchored joint venture platform, retaining a 51.5% stake in each property
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•
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Contributed three single-tenant properties from the Trust’s
existing shopping centers into the Trust’s net lease joint venture platform, retaining a 6.4% stake in each property
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Growing Asset Base
and Improving Geographic Mix
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Assets Under
Management (in billions)
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Top 40 MSA Exposure (by annualized base rent)
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Digital
and Data Highlights
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•
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Automated numerous
legacy data processes using multi-dimensional cube-based reporting, significantly enhancing productivity
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•
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Continued transition
of legacy reporting into PowerBI-based dashboards, improving the visualization of and providing faster visibility into business trends
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•
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Automated the
Trust’s proprietary Asset Scoring model that is used to manage property level risk through the entire asset life cycle from acquisition through disposition and added a climate risk score to the framework
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Environmental, Social and Governance Highlights
We continue to advance our
commitment to sustainability with a focus on each of the ESG areas of sustainability. RPT’s Chief Executive Officer, who is also a trustee, is the executive sponsor of RPT’s ESG program. We believe that sustainability initiatives are a vital part
of supporting our primary goal to achieve a long-term sustainable business model that maximizes value for our shareholders and integrate ESG into our overall business practices. To that end, the ESG Committee, a cross-functional and diverse
committee comprised of employee representatives throughout RPT, reviews and coordinates RPT’s ESG initiatives and makes recommendations for approval by RPT’s Chief Executive Officer. In addition to the ESG Committee, RPT also has an ESG Steering
Committee, which reviews the plans created by the ESG Committee with a focus on ensuring that ESG proposals are fully integrated with the Company’s overall business strategy. The Board has designated the Nominating & Governance
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
10 |
Committee to oversee our
ESG-related efforts and receives periodic updates from management on ESG-related topics and provides high-level guidance to our management team on such topics. In July 2022, we published our second Corporate Sustainability Report which highlights
our 2021 ESG initiatives, goals and achievements.
Environmental
We strive to become a model environmental steward by implementing measures at our properties that will substantially reduce our carbon footprint and consumption of natural resources. Our environmental sustainability
initiatives aim to safeguard the environment and improve the energy efficiency of our portfolio and corporate office locations, while lowering operating costs. We continue to make meaningful progress against our established long-term targets to
mitigate our environmental impact through initiatives such as our LED lighting conversions, management of smart irrigation systems and landscaping, and furthering our electric vehicle charging stations initiatives. We also partner with our
tenants to achieve our sustainability goals through initiatives such as green lease provisions. We incorporate environmental and climate risk assessments as part of our capital allocation decisions and our asset scoring model for acquisitions and
dispositions. Environmental highlights for 2022 include:
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•
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Increased Global
Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (“GRESB”) Real Estate Assessment score by 33% from 2021 to 2022
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•
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Recognized by Green
Lease Leaders as a “Gold Green Lease Leader”
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•
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Installed LED
lighting at five shopping centers
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•
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Installed irrigation
controls at six shopping centers
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•
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Aim to reduce
electricity consumption in landlord-controlled areas by 25% by the end of 2026 (using 2018 as our baseline)
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•
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Aim to divert 35% of
all landlord-controlled shopping center waste from landfills by the end of 2023(1)
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•
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Aim to reduce
landlord-controlled scope 1 and scope 2 green-house gas emissions at our shopping centers by 25% by the end of 2026 (using 2019 as our baseline)
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•
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Aim to reduce
common area water consumption by 20% by the end of 2024 (using 2019 as our baseline)
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Social and
Human Capital Management
Our commitment to ESG
principles starts with our employees. We strive to create an environment for our employees that results in high levels of employee satisfaction by focusing on diversity, equity and inclusion, health and safety, well-being programs, employee
development and training at all levels and equitable and competitive pay practices. Our employees are also passionate about giving back to the communities in which we operate and take part in charitable giving and volunteer opportunities.
Diversity,
Equity
and Inclusion
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•
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RPT’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
(“DE&I”) Committee continues its advocacy efforts focusing on the following five pillars: talent, culture, community outreach, business integration and industry
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•
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Diversity and inclusion practices are
incorporated throughout all employment phases, including recruitment, training and development
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•
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In 2022, 41% of new hires were racially
and/or ethnically diverse, resulting in a 5% increase in racial and/or ethnic diversity of RPT’s workforce in 2022 from 2021
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•
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56% of RPT’s workforce is female and
37% of executive and senior management is female
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•
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24% of RPT’s workforce is racially
and/or ethnically diverse
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•
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52% of promotions were women and 21%
were racially and/or ethnically diverse employees
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•
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Training and educational programs,
include annual unconscious bias trainings, round table discussions and lunch and learns on a variety of topics aimed to reduce cultural distance and bring awareness
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•
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Partnered with charitable organizations
that align with its DE&I efforts
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•
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Annually, all employees of the Trust
complete discrimination, harassment and retaliation prevention training
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•
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Partnered with several organizations to provide mentorships
to people of diverse backgrounds
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(1) The waste diversion rate excludes any single-tenant properties held our net lease joint venture.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
11 |
Wellbeing |
|
•
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Comprehensive medical and wellness
benefits offered that are specific to the needs of our workforce and focus on preventative measures with virtual care options
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•
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Work life balance emphasized through
competitive time off policies, flex time, Summer Fridays, mental health days and paid family leave policies
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|
•
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Health and wellbeing programs and
initiatives focused on the importance of total wellbeing which includes physical, mental, financial, and social wellness
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Training and Development |
|
•
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We provide ongoing training programs which underscore the
Trust’s commitment to invest in the long-term success of our team members, our most important asset. Training programs are offered that target areas of leadership, enhanced skills, best practices, including annual team specific
development, and training
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Engagement |
|
• |
Participation in our 2022 annual engagement survey was 91%.
Results included an 85% positive rating for overall employee satisfaction and a 98% positive rating for commitment to the company and company engagement by employees |
|
• |
Town Halls are conducted by the Chief Executive Officer where teams are given the
opportunity to present ongoing team-sponsored initiatives |
|
• |
Companywide quarterly meetings are held by the Chief Executive Officer to discuss
post-earnings call highlights |
|
• |
The Trust received the following recognitions: |
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|
• |
2022 Green Star by GRESB |
|
|
• |
2022 Top Workplaces Detroit Free Press |
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|
• |
2022 Best and Brightest in Wellness |
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|
• |
2022 Globe St. Real Estate Forum Best Places to Work |
Philanthropy
and
Communities
|
•
|
The
Trust supports philanthropic initiatives and partners with organizations that are committed to improving the overall quality of life in our communities
|
|
•
|
Local
events are held at our shopping centers to foster a sense of community and togetherness
|
|
•
|
Various
organizations are supported annually through charitable and corporate giving thorough our “Act Locally Give Globally” program
|
|
•
|
Volunteerism
is encouraged throughout the year and supported with paid time off. In 2022, RPT challenged its employees to commit to 550 hours of hands on volunteering in the communities where we live and work. The goal was surpassed by over fifty
percent
|
Benefits |
|
•
|
Our compensation
package includes competitive base salaries, annual bonuses, share awards and matching 401(k) contributions. We provide a comprehensive benefits package that includes medical, prescription, dental and visions insurance coverage that is
cost-shared and we offer life and disability insurance at no cost to employees
|
|
•
|
The Company
contributes to Health Savings or Flexible Savings Accounts
|
|
•
|
To address the
prevalent need of convenient and flexible health care, we offer an enhanced Employee Assistance Program and a concierge virtual health care platform
|
|
|
|
|
|
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
12 |
Governance
“Executing with
Integrity” is one of our core values. We believe that good corporate governance will yield long-term success and create a culture of uncompromising integrity in all levels of our Company’s business, relationships and transactions.
Accordingly, during 2022, we:
|
|
•
|
Established a Vendor Diversity and
Audit Policy
|
|
•
|
Enhanced the Trust’s
current Vendor Contractor Code of Conduct and ESG Sustainability Policy by creating a new Vendor Policy Rider for vendor contracts which outlines the ESG standards we expect from our vendors
|
|
•
|
Implemented an
enhanced Crisis Management Plan, Crisis Communication Plan and Emergency Response Plan
|
|
|
• |
Conducted quarterly risk assessments in connection with the Trust’s Enterprise Risk Management (“ERM”) program with the goal of giving the Company a greater ability to manage and prioritize risks |
|
|
• |
Established the Data Governance Council that aligns business strategy and data analytics and establishes data management and quality control standards |
|
• |
We continue to enhance our robust cybersecurity program through a “Prevent, Detect and Respond” approach. Accordingly, during 2022, we: |
|
|
• |
Conducted ongoing cybersecurity awareness training, phishing exercises and testing |
|
|
• |
Engaged in testing and monitoring by internal employees and third parties, including cyber assessments and annual penetration testing |
We also realize the importance of having a diverse Board comprised of different skill sets, viewpoints, experiences, ages, ethnicity and gender:
|
•
|
50% of the Trust’s independent trustees
are women and 17% of the independent trustees are racially and/or ethnically diverse
|
|
•
|
One of only a select few real estate
investment trusts with equal representation of women and men as independent trustees
|
|
•
|
Average trustee tenure is 9 years
|
|
•
|
Two (2) female committee chairs
|
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
13 |
Board of Trustees at a Glance
Board Average Age
|
Diversity
(Independent Trustees)
|
|
|
|
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Tenure of the Board
|
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Combined Skills
& Experience
|
|
|
|
|
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
14 |
Corporate Governance
Profile
|
Board Structure
|
• Diversity in trustee composition
• Gender
balance
• Separate
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer positions
• 6 of 7
independent trustees
• Independent
trustees regularly engage in meetings without management
|
|
Shareholder Rights
|
• Board is not staggered, with each of our trustees subject to re-election annually
• Majority
voting resignation policy for trustees
• Annual
Say-on-Pay advisory vote
• Robust
shareholder outreach program
|
|
Oversight
|
• Code of Business Conduct and Ethics governing conduct of trustees, officers and employees
• Annual Committee and Board Evaluations
• Structured
risk oversight by the Board and Committees
• Oversight of
ESG strategy and initiatives by the Nominating and Governance Committee
• Oversight of
cybersecurity and the ERM program by the Audit Committee
• Talent and
culture is now overseen by the Compensation and Human Capital Committee, which is a newly added oversight function for such committee
|
|
Compensation
|
• Clawback policy with respect to incentive payments
• Anti-hedging
and pledging policies
• Trustee and
NEO have ownership requirements
• Annual NEO
compensation based upon corporate financial and operational results and achievement of ESG goals approved by the Compensation and Human Capital Committee at the beginning of each year
• Pay a
significant percentage of total compensation for our CEO and other named executive officers in equity
• A significant
percentage of NEO long-term incentives is based on relative shareholder return
• Engagement of
independent compensation consultant to advise the Compensation and Human Capital Committee
• No payment of
dividends or distributions on unvested equity awards
• No excise tax
gross-up provisions
• Compensation
and Human Capital Committee consisting solely of independent trustees approves NEO compensation
|
Shareholder
Outreach
The Trust values the
insight of shareholders and actively engages with investors in order to maintain open lines of communication. In 2022, the Trust hosted 110 engagements with 104 unique investors through calls, meetings, conferences, property tours and visits to
the Trust’s headquarters.
Additionally, the Trust
provides periodic governance and ESG updates and solicits feedback from its largest shareholders. In spring 2022, we reached out to shareholders representing approximately 74% of our outstanding common shares to discuss our 2022 Proxy and
executive compensation plans. Our Compensation and Human Capital Committee (“Compensation and Human Capital Committee”) Chair and Head of Investor Relations participated in these calls. Shareholder feedback was shared and discussed with the
Board.
In fall 2022, we engaged
with the stewardship teams of shareholders representing approximately 83% of our outstanding common shares to provide a business update and to discuss governance and ESG topics. Our Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer and Head of
Investor Relations participated in these calls. Learnings and feedback from these calls were shared and discussed with the Board.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
15 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Who we
engaged
|
|
Discussion
Topics
|
|
Results
of Engagement
|
|
|
Spring 2022
|
|
• Reached out to shareholders representing approximately 74% of outstanding common shares
• Engaged with shareholders representing approximately 29% of outstanding common shares
|
|
• 2022 Proxy
• Executive compensation
• ISS and Glass Lewis recommendations
|
|
• Feedback shared with senior management and the Board
• Expanded the Fall 2022 stewardship shareholder outreach program
|
|
|
Fall 2022
|
|
• Reached out to shareholders representing approximately 83% of outstanding common shares
• Engaged with
shareholders representing approximately 46% of outstanding common shares
|
|
• ESG
• Preferred ESG
frameworks
• Ideas on
additional information to include in future corporate sustainability reports
• Science-based
targets
• Corporate
governance
• Board
construction and oversite
• Executive
compensation
|
|
• Feedback reported to senior management and the Board
• Incorporated
additional disclosures in this proxy statement and planned for future corporate sustainability reports
|
|
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
16 |
19 W
44TH STREET, SUITE 1002
NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10036
Proxy Statement
2023 Annual
Meeting of Shareholders
The Board of Trustees (the
“Board”) of RPT Realty (the “Trust,” “RPT,” “Company,” “we,” “our,” or “us”) is soliciting proxies for use at the 2023 annual meeting of shareholders (the “Annual Meeting”) of the Trust and any adjournment or postponement thereof. The Annual
Meeting will be held virtually via the Internet at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/RPT2023, on Thursday, April 27, 2023 at 9:00 a.m., Eastern Time. The Annual Meeting will be held solely by means of remote communication in a virtual meeting
format only. Shareholders will not be able to attend the Annual Meeting physically.
On or about March 16, 2023,
the Trust mailed to its shareholders of record of the Trust’s common shares of beneficial interest, $0.01 par value per share (the “Shares”), other than shareholders who previously requested e-mail or paper delivery of proxy materials, a notice
(the “Notice”) containing instructions on how to access this proxy statement and the Trust’s 2021 annual report to shareholders through the Internet. Beneficial owners received a similar notice from their broker, bank or other nominee. In
addition, on or about March 16, 2023, the Trust and brokers, banks and other nominees began mailing or e-mailing the proxy materials to shareholders of record who previously requested such delivery. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in
this proxy statement, the Trust may send certain shareholders of record a full set of proxy materials by paper delivery instead of the Notice or in addition to sending the Notice.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
17 |
About the
Meeting
What is the purpose
of the Annual Meeting?
At the Annual Meeting, shareholders
will be asked to vote on the matters outlined in the Notice, including:
•
|
the election of the
seven trustees named in this proxy statement to serve until the 2024 annual meeting of shareholders and until their successors are duly elected and qualify;
|
•
|
the ratification of
the appointment of Grant Thornton LLP (“Grant Thornton”) as the Trust’s independent registered public accounting firm for the year ending December 31, 2023; and
|
•
|
the approval, on an
advisory basis, of the compensation of our named executive officers.
|
•
|
the approval, on
an advisory basis, whether an advisory vote on the compensation of the Trust’s named executive officers should occur every one, two or three years.
|
The Board recommends a vote
FOR each of the trustee nominees listed in this proxy statement, FOR the ratification of Grant Thornton’s appointment, FOR the approval, on an advisory basis, of the compensation of our named executive officers, and FOR
the approval, on an advisory basis, of EVERY “ONE YEAR” as to the frequency of future advisory votes on the compensation of our named executive officers.
We are not aware of any
other matters that will be brought before the shareholders for a vote at the Annual Meeting. If any other matter is properly brought before the Annual Meeting, your signed proxy card gives authority to your proxies to vote on such matter in their
best judgment. The proxy holders named in the proxy card will vote as the Board recommends or, if the Board gives no recommendation, in their own discretion.
In addition, the Trust
expects that representatives of Grant Thornton will be present at the Annual Meeting and will be available to respond to questions. Such representatives will also have an opportunity to make a statement.
How can I attend the
Annual Meeting?
You can attend the Annual
Meeting virtually via the Internet or by proxy. The Annual Meeting will be held solely by means of remote communication in a virtual meeting format only. You will not be able to attend the Annual Meeting physically.
Attending and
Participating Online. The Annual Meeting will take place virtually via the Internet at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/RPT2023. Shareholders may vote and submit questions while attending the Annual Meeting virtually via the Internet. You
will need the 16-digit control number included on your Notice or proxy card (if you received a printed copy of the proxy materials), to enter the Annual Meeting via the Internet. Instructions on how to attend and participate virtually via the
Internet, including how to demonstrate proof of Share ownership, are posted at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/RPT2023.
Attending by Proxy.
Please see “How can I vote my Shares without attending the Annual Meeting virtually via the Internet?” below.
Who is entitled to
vote?
Only record holders of
Shares at the close of business on March 6, 2023, which we refer to as the record date, are entitled to receive notice of the Annual Meeting and to vote the Shares that they held at the close of business on the record date at the Annual
Meeting. Each outstanding Share, as of the record date, is entitled to one vote on each matter to be voted upon at the Annual Meeting.
What constitutes a
quorum?
The presence at the
Annual Meeting, virtually via the Internet or by proxy, of shareholders entitled to cast, on the record date, a majority of all the votes entitled to be cast at the Annual Meeting will constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at the
Annual Meeting. As
of the record date, 86,614,790 Shares were issued and outstanding. Broker non-votes and proxies marked
with abstentions or withhold votes, will be counted as present in determining whether or not there is a quorum. A “broker non-vote” occurs when a nominee (such as a custodian or bank) holding Shares for a beneficial owner returns a signed proxy
but does not vote on a particular proposal because the nominee does not have discretionary voting power with respect to that item and has not received voting instructions from the beneficial owner.
What is the difference between holding Shares as a shareholder of record and as a beneficial owner?
Shareholders of Record.
If your Shares are registered directly in your name with the Trust’s transfer agent, American
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
18 |
Stock Transfer &
Trust Company, you are considered the shareholder of record with respect to those Shares and the applicable proxy materials are being sent directly to you by the Trust. As the shareholder of record, you have the right to grant your voting proxy
directly to the Trust through the enclosed proxy card, through the Internet or by telephone, or to vote in person at the Annual Meeting.
Beneficial Owners.
Many of the Trust’s shareholders hold their Shares through a broker, bank or other nominee rather than directly in their own name. If your Shares are so held, you are considered the beneficial owner of those Shares, and the applicable proxy
materials are being forwarded to you by your broker, bank or other nominee who is considered the shareholder of record with respect to those Shares. As the beneficial owner, you have the right to direct your broker, bank or other nominee on how
to vote and are also invited to attend the Annual Meeting. However, since you are not the shareholder of record, you cannot directly vote these Shares at the Annual Meeting unless you obtain a proxy from your broker, bank or other nominee. Your
broker, bank or other nominee has enclosed voting instructions for you to use in directing the broker, bank or other nominee on how to vote your Shares. Please see “How can I vote my Shares at the Annual Meeting?” below.
Why did some
shareholders receive a Notice in the mail regarding the Internet availability of proxy materials?
The Trust has elected to
furnish proxy materials to you primarily through the Internet, which expedites the receipt of materials, lowers our expenses and conserves natural resources. Therefore, certain of our shareholders may receive the Notice, which was sent to
shareholders on or about March 16, 2023, containing instructions on how to access this proxy statement and the 2022 annual report to shareholders through the Internet. Shareholders who receive the Notice by mail will not receive a printed copy
of our proxy materials unless requested in the manner described in the Notice. The Notice explains how to access and review this proxy statement and the 2022 annual report to shareholders, and how you may vote by proxy. Please do not mail in
the Notice, as it is not intended to serve as a voting instrument. For more information on attending the meeting virtually via the Internet, please see “How can I attend the Annual Meeting?” above.
How can I access
the Trust’s proxy materials and Annual Report on Form 10-K?
The “Investors—Financial
Reports—SEC Filings” section of the Trust’s website, www.rptrealty.com, provides access, free of charge, to Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) reports as soon as reasonably practicable after the Trust electronically files such reports
with, or furnishes such reports to, the SEC, including proxy materials, Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and amendments to these reports. In addition, a copy of the Trust’s Annual Report
on Form 10-K for the year
ended December 31, 2022 will be sent to any shareholder, without charge, upon written request sent to: Investor Relations, RPT Realty, 19 W 44th Street, 10th Floor, Suite 1002, New York, New York 10036 or by contacting the Trust at (212)
221-1261. Further, the SEC maintains a website that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC, including the Trust, at www.sec.gov.
As noted above, most
shareholders will receive a Notice with instructions on how to view the proxy materials and 2022 annual report to shareholders through the Internet
(at www.proxyvote.com). The Notice includes a control number (which is the same control number as that used to attend the Annual Meeting virtually via the Internet) that must be entered on the Internet in order to view the proxy
materials. The Notice also describes how to receive the proxy materials by paper delivery or e-mail. You can elect to receive future proxy materials by e-mail at no charge if you vote using the Internet and, when prompted, indicate you agree to
receive or access shareholder communications electronically in future years. You may also request additional paper copies without charge by sending a written request to Investor Relations, RPT Realty, 19 W 44th Street, 10th Floor, Suite 1002,
New York, New York 10036.
The references to the
website addresses of the Trust and the SEC in this proxy statement are not intended to function as a hyperlink and, except as specified herein, the information contained on such websites is not part of this proxy statement and is not
incorporated herein.
How can I vote my
Shares at the Annual Meeting?
If you attend the Annual
Meeting virtually via the Internet, the Trust encourages you to vote your Shares prior to the Annual Meeting. To vote your Shares before the Annual Meeting through the Internet or by attending the Annual Meeting virtually via the Internet, you
will need to demonstrate proof of your Share ownership pursuant to the instructions on how to do so as set forth in your Notice or proxy card, as applicable. We reserve the right to determine the validity of any purported proof of Share
ownership.
Shareholders of Record.
If you are a shareholder of record and attend the Annual Meeting virtually via the Internet, you can deliver your completed proxy card as discussed in the next question below or vote during the Annual Meeting by ballot in accordance with the
instructions on how to participate virtually via the Internet which are posted at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/RPT2023.
Beneficial Owners.
If you hold your Shares through a broker, bank or other nominee and want to vote such Shares virtually via the Internet at the Annual Meeting, you should follow the instructions at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/RPT2023.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
19 |
How can I vote my
Shares without attending the Annual Meeting virtually via the Internet?
If you are a shareholder
of record with respect to some or all of your Shares, you can vote those Shares virtually via the Internet at the Annual Meeting as described above or by proxy without attending the Annual Meeting by any of the following methods:
By Mail. If you
received these proxy materials by paper delivery, you may vote your Shares by completing, signing and returning the enclosed proxy card or voting instruction card. Please do not mail in the Notice as it is not intended to serve as a voting
instrument.
By Telephone. If
you received these proxy materials by paper delivery, you may vote by telephone as indicated on your enclosed proxy card or voting instruction card.
Through the Internet.
You may vote before or during the Annual Meeting through the Internet as instructed on your Notice, proxy card, voting instruction card, or e-mail notification. In order to vote through the Internet, you must enter the control number set forth
in your Notice, proxy card, voting instruction card, or e-mail notification. If you do not have any of these materials and are a shareholder of record, you may contact RPT Investor Relations (telephone number: 212-221-1261) to request a proxy
card (which will include your control number) to be mailed to your address on record or an e-mail with your control number to be sent to your e-mail address on record. If you do not have any of these materials and are a beneficial owner, you
must contact your broker, bank or other nominee to obtain your control number.
If you are the beneficial
owner of some or all of your Shares you must either direct the bank, broker or other nominee as to how to vote your Shares or obtain a proxy from the bank, broker or other nominee to vote at the Annual Meeting. Please refer to the voter
instruction cards used by your bank, broker or other nominee for specific instructions on methods of voting, including using the Internet or by telephone.
Can I revoke my
proxy or change my vote?
Shareholders of Record.
You can revoke your proxy or change your vote at any time before the Shares it represents are voted by (1) filing with the Secretary of the Trust either a written notice revoking the proxy, (2) properly submitting a new proxy that is dated
later than the original proxy (which automatically revokes the earlier proxy) or (3) virtually attending the Annual Meeting and voting by ballot at the Annual Meeting. If you attend the Annual Meeting, you may vote virtually whether or not you
previously have given a proxy, but your virtual presence (without further action) at the Annual Meeting will not constitute revocation of a previously given proxy. Unless you have received a legal proxy to vote the Shares, if you hold your
Shares through a bank, broker or other nominee, only that bank, broker or other nominee can revoke your proxy on your behalf.
Beneficial Owners.
If you hold your Shares through a bank, broker or other nominee, you should contact such person prior to the time such voting instructions are exercised.
What does it mean
if I receive more than one proxy card or voting instruction card?
If you receive more than
one proxy card or voting instruction card, it means that you have multiple accounts with banks, brokers, other nominees and/or the Trust’s transfer agent. Please take action with respect to each proxy card and voting instruction card that you
receive.
What if I do not
vote for some of the items listed on my proxy card or voting instruction card?
Shareholders of Record.
Proxies that are properly executed without voting instructions on certain matters will be voted in accordance with the recommendations of the Board on such matters.
Beneficial Owners. If you
hold your Shares in street name through a broker, bank or other nominee and do not provide voting instructions for any or all matters, such nominee will determine if it has the discretionary authority to vote your Shares. Under applicable law
and New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) rules and regulations, brokers have the discretion to vote on routine matters, but do not have discretion to vote on non-routine matters. If you return a signed proxy but do not provide voting instructions
with regard to any non-routine proposals, your Shares will be considered “broker non-votes” because the broker will not have discretionary authority to vote thereon. Therefore, it is very important for you to vote your Shares for each proposal.
What vote
is required to approve each proposal
assuming a quorum is present?
Proposal
1—Election of Trustees
The seven trustee
nominees who receive the most votes cast “FOR” at the Annual Meeting will be elected as trustees. The Board’s slate of nominees consists of Richard L. Federico, Arthur H. Goldberg, Brian L. Harper, Joanna T. Lau, David J. Nettina, Laurie M.
Shahon and Andrea M. Weiss, each nominated for a one-year term ending at the 2024 annual meeting of shareholders. Withheld votes and broker non-votes, if any, will not be counted as votes cast at the Annual Meeting and will have no effect on
the outcome of the vote.
Proposal
2—Ratification of Appointment of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
The affirmative vote of a
majority of the votes cast at the Annual Meeting will be necessary to ratify the appointment of Grant Thornton as the Trust’s independent registered public accounting firm for the year ending December 31, 2023. Abstentions, if any, will not be
counted as votes cast at the Annual Meeting and will have no effect on the outcome of the vote.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
20 |
Proposal
3—Advisory Approval of the Compensation of Our Named Executive Officers
The affirmative vote of a
majority of the votes cast at the Annual Meeting will be necessary to approve, on an advisory basis, the compensation of our named executive officers. Abstentions and broker non-votes, if any, will not be counted as votes cast at the Annual
Meeting and will have no effect on the outcome of the vote.
Proposal
4—Advisory Vote on the Frequency of an Advisory Vote on Named Executive Officer Compensation.
The option of one year,
two years or three years that receives the highest number of votes cast at the Annual Meeting will be deemed the shareholder recommendation as to the frequency of having an advisory vote on the compensation of our named
executive officers.
Abstentions and broker non-votes, if any, will not be counted as votes cast at the Annual Meeting and will have no effect on the outcome of the vote.
Other Matters
If any other matter is
properly submitted to the shareholders at the Annual Meeting, its adoption will generally require the affirmative vote of a majority of the votes cast at the Annual Meeting. The Board does not propose to conduct any business at the Annual
Meeting other than as stated above.
How do I find out
the voting results?
We intend to disclose the
final voting results in a current report on Form 8-K within four business days of the Annual Meeting and may announce preliminary voting results at the Annual Meeting.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
21 |
Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management
Common Shares of Beneficial Interest
The following table sets forth information as of March 6, 2023, except as otherwise noted, regarding the number and percentage of Shares beneficially owned by (1) each trustee, nominee for trustee and named executive
officer, (2) all of our trustees and executive officers as a group and (3) to our knowledge, each beneficial owner of more than 5% of the outstanding Shares. Unless otherwise indicated, each owner has sole voting and investment powers with
respect to the Shares listed below.
|
Trustees,
Nominees
for Trustee and Named Executive Officers(1)
|
|
Number
of
Shares Beneficially Owned(2)
|
|
Percent
of
Shares
|
|
|
Brian L. Harper
|
|
752,569
|
|
*
|
|
|
Richard L. Federico
|
|
54,366
|
|
*
|
|
|
Arthur H. Goldberg
|
|
86,383(3)
|
|
*
|
|
|
Joanna T. Lau
|
|
44,662
|
|
*
|
|
|
David J. Nettina
|
|
114,849(4)
|
|
*
|
|
|
Laurie M. Shahon
|
|
65,157
|
|
*
|
|
|
Andrea M. Weiss
|
|
49,793
|
|
*
|
|
|
Michael P. Fitzmaurice
|
|
205,545
|
|
*
|
|
|
Timothy Collier
|
|
101,236
|
|
*
|
|
|
Raymond J. Merk
|
|
46,868
|
|
*
|
|
|
Heather R. Ohlberg
|
|
60,203
|
|
*
|
|
|
All Trustees and
Executive Officers as a Group (11 Persons)
|
|
1,581,641(5)
|
|
1.8%
|
|
|
More Than 5%
Shareholders:
|
|
|
BlackRock, Inc.
|
|
16,986,327(6)
|
|
19.6%
|
|
|
55 East 52nd Street
New York, NY 10055
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Vanguard Group
|
|
14,055,513(7)
|
|
16.2%
|
|
|
100 Vanguard Blvd.
Malvern, PA 19355
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Macquarie Group Limited
|
|
7,476,868(8)
|
|
8.6%
|
|
|
50 Martin Place
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
CenterSquare Investment
Management LLC
|
|
7,201,460(9)
|
|
8.3%
|
|
|
630 West Germantown Pike,
Suite 300
Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
State Street Corporation
|
|
5,724,644(10)
|
|
6.6%
|
|
|
One Lincoln Street
Boston, MA 02111
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Wellington Management
Group LLP
|
|
4,967,412(11)
|
|
5.7%
|
|
|
280 Congress Street
Boston, MA 02210
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
22 |
* |
|
less than 1% of the total Shares outstanding. |
(1) |
|
Percentages in the table are based on 86,614,790 Shares outstanding as of March 6, 2023, plus for each
person, the number of Shares that person has the right to acquire within 60 days after such date. |
(2) |
|
Number of Shares beneficially owned includes outstanding Shares and
Shares which are not outstanding that the person has the right to acquire within 60 days after the date of this table. Certain Shares included in this column are currently in the form of restricted Shares, all owned directly by such person,
each of which represents the right to receive one Share upon vesting. During the vesting period, holders of restricted Shares have voting rights as if such restricted Shares were vested. Holdings of restricted Shares are as follows: Brian
L. Harper, 490,669 Shares; Richard L. Federico, 10,112 Shares; Arthur H. Goldberg, 10,112 Shares; Joanna Lau, 10,112 Shares; David J. Nettina, 10,112 Shares; Laurie M. Shahon, 10,112 Shares; Andrea M. Weiss, 10,112 Shares; Michael P.
Fitzmaurice, 144,376 Shares; Timothy Collier, 56,050 Shares; Raymond J. Merk, 22,988 Shares; and Heather R. Ohlberg, 41,459. |
(3) |
|
Includes 48,700 Shares owned by Mr. Goldberg’s wife and 5,000 Shares
owned by a pension trust. Mr. Goldberg disclaims beneficial ownership of the Shares owned by his wife and the trust. Excludes 58,647 Shares deferred under certain of the Trust’s equity incentive plans. |
(4) |
|
Includes 4,555 common shares that Mr. Nettina could acquire upon
conversion of 7.25% Series D Convertible Perpetual Preferred shares owned by him. |
(5) |
|
Includes trustees and executive officers as of March 6, 2023. |
(6) |
|
Based on a Schedule 13G/A filed by BlackRock Inc. (BlackRock) with
the SEC on January 23, 2023. BlackRock has sole voting power with respect to 16,738,217 Shares, sole dispositive power with respect to 16,986,327 Shares and shared voting and/or dispositive power with respect to none of such Shares. The
percentage of beneficial ownership has been adjusted to reflect our actual Shares outstanding as of the close of business on March 6, 2023. |
(7) |
|
Based on a Schedule 13G/A filed by The Vanguard Group (Vanguard) with
the SEC on February 9, 2023. The Vanguard Group has sole voting power with respect to none of the Shares, shared voting power with respect to 133,642 Shares, sole dispositive power with respect to 13,838,072 Shares and shared dispositive
power with respect to 217,441 Shares. The percentage of beneficial ownership has been adjusted to reflect our actual Shares outstanding as of the close of business on March 3, 2023. |
(8) |
|
Based on a Schedule 13G/A jointly filed by Macquarie Group Limited
(Macquarie Group), Macquarie Management Holdings Inc. (Macquarie Management), Macquarie Investment Management Business Trust and Macquarie Investment Management Australia Limited with the SEC on February 14, 2023. The principal business
address of Macquarie Management and Macquarie Investment Management Business Trust is 2005 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103. Macquarie Group has shared voting and/or dispositive power and sole voting and/or dispositive power with
respect to none of such Shares. Each of Macquarie Management and Macquarie Investment Management Business Trust has sole voting power with respect to 7,397,598 Shares, sole dispositive power with respect to 7,397,598 Shares and shared
voting and/or dispositive power with respect to none of such Shares. Macquarie Investment Management Australia Limited has sole voting power with respect to 17,757 Shares, sole dispositive power with respect to 17,757 Shares and shared
voting and/or dispositive power with respect to none of such Shares. The percentage of beneficial ownership has been adjusted to reflect our actual Shares outstanding as of the close of business on March 6, 2023. |
(9) |
|
Based on a Schedule 13G filed by CenterSquare Investment Management
LLC (CenterSquare) with the SEC on February 10, 2023. CenterSquare has sole voting power with respect to none of the Shares, sole dispositive power with respect to 7,201,460 Shares and shared voting and/or dispositive power with respect to
none of such Shares. The percentage of beneficial ownership has been adjusted to reflect our actual Shares outstanding as of the close of business on March 6, 2023. |
(10) |
|
Based on a Schedule 13G/A filed by State Street Corporation (State
Street) with the SEC on January 31, 2023. State Street has shared voting power with respect to 4,580,239 Shares, shared dispositive power with respect to 5,724,644 Shares and sole voting and/or dispositive power with respect to none of such
Shares. The percentage of beneficial ownership has been adjusted to reflect our actual Shares outstanding as of the close of business on March 6, 2023. |
(11) |
|
Based on a Schedule 13G/A jointly filed by Wellington Management
Group LLP (Wellington Management Group), Wellington Group Holdings LLP (Wellington Group Holdings), Wellington Investment Advisors Holdings LLP (Wellington Investment Advisors) and Wellington Management Company LLP (Wellington Management
Company) with the SEC on February 6, 2023. Each of Wellington Management Group, Wellington Group Holdings and Wellington Investment Advisors has shared voting power with respect to 4,899,719 Shares, shared dispositive power with respect to
4,967,412 Shares and sole voting and/or dispositive power with respect to none of such Shares. Wellington Management Company has shared voting power with respect to 4,785,506 Shares, shared dispositive power with respect to 4,853,199 Shares
and sole voting and/or dispositive power with respect to none of such Shares. The percentage of beneficial ownership has been adjusted to reflect our actual Shares outstanding as of the close of business on March 6, 2023. |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
23 |
7.25% Series D Cumulative Convertible Perpetual Preferred Shares of Beneficial Interest
The following table sets forth information as of March 6, 2023, except as otherwise noted, regarding the number and percentage of the Trust’s 7.25% Series D Cumulative Convertible Perpetual Preferred Shares of
Beneficial Interest, $0.01 par value per share (the “Preferred Shares”), beneficially owned by (1) each trustee, nominee for trustee and named executive officer, (2) all of our trustees and executive officers as a group and (3) to our knowledge,
each beneficial owner of more than 5% of the outstanding Preferred Shares. Unless otherwise indicated, each owner has sole voting and investment powers with respect to the Preferred Shares listed below.
|
Trustees,
Nominees
for Trustee and Named Executive Officers(1)
|
|
Number
of
Shares Beneficially Owned
|
|
Percent
of
Shares
|
|
|
David J. Nettina
|
|
1,200
|
|
*
|
|
|
All Trustees and
Executive Officers as a Group (1 Person)
|
|
1,200
|
|
*
|
|
|
More Than 5%
Shareholders:
|
|
|
Infrastructure Capital
Advisors, LLC
|
|
179,545(2)
|
|
9.7%
|
|
|
1325 Avenue of the
Americas, 28th Floor
New York, NY 10019
|
|
|
|
|
|
* |
|
less than 1% of the total Shares outstanding. |
(1) |
|
Percentages in the table are based on 1,849,000 Preferred Shares outstanding as of March
6, 2023. |
(2) |
|
Based on a Schedule 13G/A jointly filed by Infrastructure Capital Advisors, LLC, Virtus
Infra Cap U.S. Preferred Stock ETF, a Series of ETFis Series Trust I (Virtus), Jay Hatfield, and InfraCap Equity Income Fund ETF, a series of Series Portfolios Trust (InfraCap Equity), with the SEC on February 14, 2023. Each of
Infrastructure Capital Advisors, LLC and Jay Hatfield has shared voting and/or dispositive power and sole voting and/or dispositive power with respect to none of such Preferred Shares. Virtus has sole voting and/or dispositive power with
respect to none of such Preferred Shares and shared voting and/or dispositive power with respect to 179,545 of such Preferred Shares. InfraCap Equity has sole voting and/or dispositive power with respect to none of such Preferred Shares and
shared voting and/or dispositive power with respect to 5,986 of such Preferred Shares. The percentage of beneficial ownership has been adjusted to reflect our actual Preferred Shares outstanding as of the close of business on March 6, 2023. |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
24 |
Proposal 1
Election of Trustees
The Board currently consists of seven trustees, each of whom has a term that expires at the Annual Meeting. Seven trustees are to be elected at the Annual Meeting to serve until the 2024 annual meeting of shareholders
and until their successors are duly elected and qualify or until any such trustee’s earlier resignation, retirement or other termination of service. The seven trustee nominees who receive the most votes cast at the Annual Meeting will be elected
as trustees. Withheld votes and broker non-votes, if any, will not be counted as votes cast at the Annual Meeting and will have no effect on the outcome of the vote. The Board, based on the recommendation of the Nominating & Governance
Committee of the Board (the “Nominating & Governance Committee”), has nominated each of our current trustees, Richard L. Federico, Arthur H. Goldberg, Brian L. Harper, Joanna T. Lau, David J. Nettina, Laurie M. Shahon and Andrea M. Weiss, for
re-election at the Annual Meeting. Proxies cannot be voted for a greater number of persons than the number of nominees named. The Board recommends that you vote FOR the election of the Board’s nominees.
Each of the seven trustee nominees has consented to serve and has consented to be named in this proxy statement. If for any reason any of the nominees becomes unavailable for election, the Board may designate a
substitute nominee. In such case, the persons named as proxies in the accompanying proxy card will vote for the Board’s substitute nominee. Alternatively, the Board may reduce the size of the Board or leave the position vacant.
The nominees for election to the Board are as follows, with ages set forth as of March 6, 2023:
|
Name
|
|
Age
|
|
Title
|
|
|
Richard L. Federico
|
|
68
|
|
Trustee
|
|
|
Arthur H. Goldberg
|
|
80
|
|
Trustee
|
|
|
Brian L. Harper
|
|
47
|
|
Trustee; President and
Chief Executive Officer of the Trust
|
|
|
Joanna T. Lau
|
|
64
|
|
Trustee
|
|
|
David J. Nettina
|
|
70
|
|
Chairman of the Board
|
|
|
Laurie M. Shahon
|
|
71
|
|
Trustee
|
|
|
Andrea M. Weiss
|
|
67
|
|
Trustee
|
|
Trustee Background and Qualifications
As a fully integrated self-administered, publicly-traded real estate investment trust which owns and operates a national portfolio of dynamic open-air shopping destinations principally located in the top U.S. markets,
the Trust’s business involves a wide range of real estate, financing, accounting, management and financial reporting matters. In light of the Trust’s business and structure, the Nominating & Governance Committee considers the experience,
viewpoint, mix of skills, independence from management and other qualities of the trustees and nominees to ensure appropriate Board composition. In particular, the Nominating & Governance Committee believes that trustees and nominees with the
following qualities and experiences can assist in meeting this goal:
|
Senior Leadership Experience
|
|
Trustees with experience in significant leadership positions provide the Trust with perspective in analyzing, shaping and overseeing the execution of operational, organizational and strategic issues
at a senior level. Further, such persons have a practical understanding of balancing operational and strategic goals and risk management.
|
|
|
REITs/Real Estate Experience
|
|
An understanding of real estate issues, particularly with respect to real estate investment trusts, real estate development, community shopping centers and key tenants, brings critical
industry-specific knowledge and experience to the Board. Education and experience in the real estate industry is useful in understanding the Trust’s acquisition, development, leasing and management of shopping centers and the competitive
landscape of its industry.
|
|
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
25 |
|
Retail, Consumer Products and Hospitality/Entertainment Experience
|
|
The Board believes that our trustees with experience in the retail, consumer products and hospitality/entertainment segments can provide our management with valuable insight on the industries that
are driving demand for retail shopping centers.
|
|
|
Senior Leadership, Business Entrepreneurship, Transactional and Strategic Planning
|
|
Trustees who have a background in high growth companies and transactions can provide insight into developing and implementing strategies for entering into new business segments, partnering in joint
ventures and/or growing via mergers and acquisitions. Further, they have a practical understanding of the importance of “fit” with the Trust’s culture and strategy, the valuation of transactions and business opportunities and management’s
plans for integration with existing operations.
|
|
|
Financial, Accounting, Capital Markets and Investment Banking Experience
|
|
An understanding of the financial markets, corporate finance, accounting requirements and regulations and accounting and financial reporting processes allows trustees to understand, oversee and
advise management with respect to the Trust’s operating and strategic performance, capital structure, financing and investing activities and financial reporting and internal control of such activities. The Trust seeks to have a number of
trustees who qualify as audit committee financial experts and expects all of the trustees to be financially knowledgeable.
|
|
|
Technology/Cyber Risks
|
|
Trustees with significant experience in the technology and technology consulting industries can provide the Trust with valuable insight into technological developments and trends that are impacting
the retail industry and can guide the Trust’s management in operational matters that are impacted by evolving technology cyber risks.
|
|
|
Public Company Board and Corporate Governance Experience
|
|
Trustees who serve, or have served, on other public company boards can offer advice and insights with regard to the dynamics and operation of a board of trustees or directors, relationship of a board
of trustees or directors to the chief executive officer and other management personnel, importance of a particular agenda or oversight matter and oversight of a changing mix of strategic, operational and compliance-related matters.
|
|
|
Sustainability
|
|
Trustees with experience in sustainability issues can provide the Trust with insight related to sustainable development, corporate social responsibility, stakeholder driven goals and corporate
accountability in order to achieve transparency and maximize shareholder value and corporate stewardship.
|
|
|
Risk Oversight
|
|
Trustees who have experience in identifying, assessing and mitigating risks can provide the Trust with insight regarding compliance matters, market conditions and overall risk profile of the Trust.
|
|
Board Composition and Diversity
The Nominating & Governance Committee values diversity and believes that trustees with varying backgrounds bring different and fresh perspectives, can optimize the effectiveness of the Board and can best serve the
Trust and shareholders. The Nominating & Governance Committee is committed to engaging in diverse and inclusive searches to better ensure that racially and/or ethnically diverse candidates and women are included in the candidate pool from
which Board candidates are chosen. The Nominating & Governance Committee may review and evaluate various personal and professional attributes of each candidate including, without limitation, skillset, experiences, age, ethnicity, race,
viewpoints and gender. The Nominating & Governance Committee evaluates the attributes of each Board candidate in relation to the overall composition of the existing Board members in order to ensure a diversity of backgrounds, expertise and
skills. Since 2018, the Trust has replaced three of six independent Board members, resulting in significantly enhanced diversification of skills, experience, gender, ethnicity and tenure.
The following sets forth the business experience during at least the past five years of each trustee nominee. The years of trustee service indicated for each trustee nominee include service for the Trust’s
predecessors. In addition, the following includes, for each trustee nominee, a brief discussion of the specific experiences, qualifications, attributes and skills that led to the conclusion that such trustee nominee should serve on the Board in
light of the goals set forth above. Each of the trustee nominees listed below is currently a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors (“NACD”).
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
26 |
|
Richard L. Federico
|
Richard L. Federico has been a trustee since 2018 and is an independent trustee. Mr. Federico served as Non-Executive Chairman of P.F. Chang’s China Bistro Inc., a casual dining restaurant chain (“P.F. Chang’s”), from
February 2016 to March 2019. He previously served as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer or Co-Chief Executive Officer of P.F. Chang’s, as applicable, from September 1997 to March 2015 and as Executive Chairman from March 2015 to
February 2016. Mr. Federico joined P.F. Chang’s as President in 1996, when he also began his service on its board of directors. Prior to joining P.F. Chang’s, Mr. Federico held a number of leadership positions in the restaurant industry
including roles at Steak and Ale, Orville Beans and Bennigan’s restaurants as well as Grady’s Goodtimes and Brinker International Restaurants. Mr. Federico has served on the board of directors of Domino’s Pizza, Inc., a NYSE-listed
company, since February 2011, and Tastemaker Acquisition Corp., a Nasdaq-listed company, since January 2021. He also sits on the boards of directors of several private companies in the food industry and was previously the chairman of the
board of directors of Jamba, Inc. Mr. Federico is a Founding Director of Chances for Children.
Mr. Federico’s extensive knowledge of the hospitality and food service industries, senior leadership experience and experience as a director of other publicly-traded companies led the Nominating
& Governance Committee to conclude Mr. Federico should continue to serve as a member of the Board.
|
|
Arthur H. Goldberg
|
Arthur H. Goldberg has been a trustee since 1988 and is an independent trustee. Mr. Goldberg is currently the Chairman of the Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County. Mr. Goldberg was a Managing Director of Corporate
Solutions Group, LLC, an investment banking and advisory firm, from 2002 to 2015. Mr. Goldberg served as President of Manhattan Associates, LLC, a merchant and investment banking firm, from 1994 to 2002 and as Chairman of Reich &
Company, Inc. (formerly Vantage Securities, Inc.), a securities and investment brokerage firm, from 1990 to 1993. Mr. Goldberg also has extensive experience serving on the board of directors of public companies, including Avantair, Inc.,
North Shore Acquisition Corp. and Atlantic Realty Trust.
Mr. Goldberg’s significant investment banking experience, relationships and familiarity with public equity offerings and transactional matters, as well as his knowledge of the Trust based on his 30
plus years of service, led the Nominating & Governance Committee to conclude Mr. Goldberg should continue to serve as a member of the Board.
|
|
Brian L. Harper
|
Brian L. Harper has been a trustee since 2018 and has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Trust since June 2018. Prior to joining the Trust, Mr. Harper served as Chief Executive Officer of Rouse
Properties, a real estate investment company, where he also served as the Chief Operating Officer from April 2015 to July 2016 and served as Executive Vice President of Leasing and Marketing as well as Executive Vice President of Leasing
and Acquisitions from January 2012 to April 2015. Mr. Harper was previously the Senior Vice President of Leasing for General Growth Properties, a publicly-traded retail real estate investment trust (“REIT”). Mr. Harper has over 20 years
of experience in the retail real estate industry, and brings significant expertise in real estate operations, redevelopment and site densification as well as strong relationships with leading retailers. He has won several awards,
including Chain Store Age’s 10 Under 40 in Real Estate. Mr. Harper is Chairman of the board at Autism Speaks.
Mr. Harper’s knowledge of and experience in the retail real estate industry and his role as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Trust led the Nominating & Governance Committee to
conclude that Mr. Harper should continue to serve as a member of the Board.
|
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
27 |
|
Joanna T. Lau
|
Joanna T. Lau has been a trustee since 2019 and is an independent trustee. Ms. Lau served as the Chief Executive Officer of Lau Acquisition Corporation d/b/a Lau Technologies, an executive consulting and investment company
focused on providing debt and equity financing and consulting to mid-range companies. Ms. Lau has served in this role since she founded Lau Acquisition Corporation in 1990. Ms. Lau held leadership positions with Digital Equipment
Corporation and General Electric before founding Lau Acquisition Corporation. Ms. Lau has served as a member of the board of directors of Designer Brands Inc., an NYSE-listed North American footwear and accessories designer, since 2008.
Ms. Lau’s previous public board experience also includes serving on the board of directors of INSO Corporation, ITT Educational Services, Inc., FSI International, Inc., BostonFed Bancorp, Inc. and TD Banknorth Inc. Ms. Lau has also earned
the CERT Certificate in Cybersecurity Oversight developed by NACD, Ridge Global and Carnegie Mellon University’s CERT division.
Ms. Lau’s extensive board experience, strong technological background and retail industry expertise led the Nominating & Governance Committee to conclude that Ms. Lau should continue to serve as
a member of the Board.
|
|
David J. Nettina
|
David J. Nettina has served as Chairman of the Board since 2019 and as a trustee since 2012 and is an independent trustee. Mr. Nettina has served as the Managing Principal of Briarwood Capital Group, LLC, since 2001,
through which he develops residential and commercial real estate. Mr. Nettina served as the Co-Chief Executive Officer of Career Management, LLC from 2009 to 2013 and has served as Chief Executive Officer since 2013. Prior to 2009, Mr.
Nettina served as the President, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Real Estate Officer of American Financial Realty Trust (“AFRT”), a publicly-traded net lease real estate investment trust, from March 2005 to April 2008. From 1997 to
2001, Mr. Nettina served as President and Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer of SL Green Realty Corp., a publicly-traded real estate investment trust which owns and operates Manhattan commercial office real estate. Prior
to joining SL Green Realty Corp., Mr. Nettina held various executive management positions for more than 11 years with The Pyramid Companies, a developer, owner and operator of 20 regional malls in the Northeast, including serving as the
Chief Financial Officer. Prior to his service at The Pyramid Companies, Mr. Nettina served in a number of roles in the consumer banking division of Citicorp. Mr. Nettina also formerly served as the chairman of the board of directors of
Mastrioanni Bros., Inc., a privately held commercial banking company in Albany, New York and as a member of the board of directors of Frontera Investment, Inc.
Mr. Nettina’s 34 years of extensive knowledge of the real estate industry and experience as a leader of publicly-traded real estate investment trusts, as well as the other attributes noted above,
including with respect to corporate finance, accounting and capital markets, led the Nominating & Governance Committee to conclude Mr. Nettina should continue to serve as a member of the Board.
|
|
Laurie M. Shahon
|
Laurie M. Shahon has been a trustee since 2015 and is an independent trustee. Ms. Shahon is the President of Wilton Capital Group, a private direct investment firm she founded in 1994 that makes principal investments in
later-stage ventures and medium-sized buyouts. She previously held investment banking positions with Morgan Stanley and Salomon Brothers. Ms. Shahon was a director of KCG Holdings, Inc. (and its predecessor) from 2006 until its sale in
2017. She is currently a director of Boston Mutual Life Insurance Company and its wholly-owned subsidiary Life Insurance Company of Boston and New York. Ms. Shahon has been an Adjunct Professor of Finance at Columbia Business School. Ms.
Shahon has served on the boards of more than ten public companies over the past 25 plus years, including The Bombay Company, Inc., Eddie Bauer Holdings, Inc. and Kitty Hawk Inc.
Ms. Shahon’s significant experience in the financial services, retail and securities industries, as the founder of a private direct investment firm, as a director of other publicly-traded companies
as well as her extensive finance and accounting knowledge, combined with the attributes noted above, led the Nominating & Governance Committee to conclude Ms. Shahon should continue to serve as a member of the Board.
|
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
28 |
|
Andrea M. Weiss
|
Andrea M. Weiss has been a trustee since 2018 and is an independent trustee. Ms. Weiss has extensive specialty retail experience having served in several senior executive positions with dELIA*s Inc., The Limited, Inc.,
Intimate Brands, Inc., Guess, Inc. and Ann Taylor Stores, Inc. She is the Founder and current President and Chief Executive Officer of Retail Consulting, Inc., a retail consulting firm, and has served as its President and Chief Executive
Officer since its formation in October 2002. Ms. Weiss is also the Co-Founder and current Managing Member of The O Alliance LLC, a new branch of Retail Consulting, Inc. Ms. Weiss has served on the board of directors of Cracker Barrel Old
Country Store, Inc. since 2003, Bed, Bath & Beyond Inc. since May 2019 and O’Reilly Automotive, Inc. since May 2019. Ms. Weiss also serves on several private advisory boards, including Kalera, and on the boards of private companies
such as Extend and The Fisher Company. Previously, Ms. Weiss served on the boards of directors of Chico’s FAS, Inc., NutriSystem Inc., GSI Commerce, Inc., Ediets.com, Inc., The Pep Boys-Manny, Moe & Jack, Grupo Cortefiel and
Brookstone, Inc. In 2016, Ms. Weiss was named by the NACD as one of America’s Top 100 Directors and in 2017, Ms. Weiss achieved NACD Leadership Board Fellowship status, the highest credential awarded for independent board members. Ms.
Weiss is also NACD Directorship Certified.
Ms. Weiss’s significant experience in the specialty retail field, business entrepreneurship experience and service as a director of other publicly-traded companies led the Nominating & Governance
Committee to conclude Ms. Weiss should continue to serve as a member of the Board.
|
The chart below summarizes and highlights characteristics and skills of our trustees that we believe are integral to the long-term success of the Trust, which have been gained by such trustee through his or her
current or previous positions. The characteristics below are taken into account by the Nominating & Governance Committee in conjunction with all other nominee qualifications, but are not deciding factors.
|
Experience/Skills
|
|
Federico
|
|
Goldberg
|
|
Harper
|
|
Lau
|
|
Nettina
|
|
Shahon
|
|
Weiss
|
|
|
Senior Leadership, Business Entrepreneurship, Transactional and Strategic Planning
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
|
Risk Oversight
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
|
REITs/Real Estate
|
|
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
|
Asset Management
|
|
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
|
|
X
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Capital
Markets/Investment Banking
|
|
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
|
|
|
Financial /Accounting
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
|
Technology/Cyber risks
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
X
|
|
|
|
|
|
X
|
|
|
Public Company Board and
Corporate Governance
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
|
Sustainability
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
|
Retail Consumer Products
and Hospitality/Entertainment
|
|
X
|
|
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
|
Human Capital/Talent
Management
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
29 |
Trustee Independence
Our Corporate Governance Guidelines provide that a majority of our trustees must qualify as independent for purposes of the NYSE listing standards and the applicable rules promulgated by the SEC. The NYSE listing
standards set forth objective requirements for a trustee to satisfy, at a minimum, in order to be determined independent by the Board. In addition, the NYSE listing standards require the Board to consider all relevant facts and circumstances,
including the trustee’s commercial, industrial, banking, consulting, legal, accounting, charitable and familial relationships, among others, in making such a determination. The Board has affirmatively determined, after considering all of the
relevant facts and circumstances, including all applicable relationships of which the Board had knowledge, that each of Messrs. Federico, Goldberg, and Nettina and each of Mses. Lau, Shahon and Weiss are independent trustees under the
requirements of the NYSE listing standards. In determining that each of Mses. Lau and Weiss qualified as an independent trustee, our Board considered that (1) each serves as a non-employee director for a company which is a tenant at the Trust’s
properties, (2) neither Ms. Lau nor Ms. Weiss, as applicable, receives any benefit, directly or indirectly, with regard to payments made by the tenants to the Trust, and (3) the transactions between each of the tenants and the Trust were
arms-length transactions undertaken in the ordinary course of business.
The Audit Committee of the Board (the “Audit Committee”), Compensation and Human Capital Committee and Nominating & Governance Committee are composed entirely of independent trustees.
Majority Voting Resignation Policy
Our Corporate Governance Guidelines include a policy approved by the Board to be followed if any trustee nominee in an uncontested election receives a greater number of votes “withheld” from his or her election than
votes “for” such election. In such event, our Corporate Governance Guidelines provide that the applicable trustee shall tender his or her resignation for consideration by the Nominating & Governance Committee. The Nominating & Governance
Committee will recommend to the Board the action to be taken with respect to such resignation. The Board will disclose its decision with respect to the resignation within 90 days following certification of the shareholder vote.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
30 |
Board
Matters
The Board of Trustees
General
The Board has general oversight responsibility of the Trust’s affairs and the trustees, in exercising their fiduciary duties, represent and act on behalf of the shareholders. Although the Board does not have
responsibility for the Trust’s day-to-day management, it stays regularly informed about the Trust’s business and provides guidance to management through periodic meetings and other informal communications. The Board is significantly involved in,
among other things, the Trust’s strategic and financial planning process, leadership development, as well as other functions carried out through the Board committees as described below. The Board, led by the Nominating & Governance Committee,
also performs an annual performance review of the Board.
Board
Leadership
The Board does not have a specific policy on whether the Chairman should be a non-employee Trustee or if the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer positions should be separate. In accordance with our Corporate
Governance Guidelines, if the Chairman is also the Chief Executive Officer of the Trust, then one of the independent members of the Board will be named as Lead Trustee. The Board believes either circumstance provides sufficient checks and
balances and is appropriate to further the interests of shareholders of the Trust. Currently, Mr. Nettina, an independent trustee, is the Chairman of the Board, a position he has held since June 2019.
The Board believes that its independent trustees are deeply engaged and provide significant independent leadership and direction given their executive and Board experience. See “Proposal 1—Election of Trustees—Trustee
Background and Qualifications”. The independent trustees are the sole members of the Audit, Compensation and Human Capital and Nominating & Governance Committees, which oversee critical matters of the Trust such as the integrity of the
Trust’s financial statements, the compensation of executive management, the nomination and evaluation of trustees and the development and implementation of the Trust’s corporate governance policies and structures. The independent trustees also
meet regularly in executive session without management participation at Board and committee meetings and have access to independent advisors as they deem appropriate. The executive sessions are chaired by our Chairman who is an independent
trustee. Management supports this oversight role through its tone-at-the-top and open communication.
Oversight
of
Risk Management
The Board is responsible for overseeing the Trust’s risk management including identifying, assessing and mitigating the most significant risks facing the Trust. To this end, the Board and its committees consult with
management to evaluate strategic risk management. This general risk oversight is administered by the Board and its committees. The Trust has an ERM program which is sponsored and overseen by the Audit Committee and executive management team, and
which includes an internal risk committee that governs the Trust’s operational, financial and legal risk. ERM is embedded in the fabric of the Trust’s culture, allowing risk to be considered openly and enabling the Trust’s employees and business
units to work horizontally to manage risk. Management, including finance, legal, information technology, and internal audit functions provide periodic reports to the Audit Committee regarding the Trust’s material risks and efforts and policies to
mitigate such risks. The Audit Committee reviews and discusses such risks and mitigation efforts with the Board. In addition, the Board receives periodic detailed financial and operational updates from management.
Board
•
|
provides general
oversight of risk, mitigation of risk and risk management strategies;
|
•
|
reviews and
approval of management’s annual business plan and long-term strategic plan;
|
•
|
conducts quarterly
reviews (or more often as necessary), including the review and discussion of regular;
|
•
|
periodic reports
to the Board and its committees, of business developments, strategic plans;
|
•
|
implementation,
liquidity, debt maturities and financial results and the risks related thereto, market conditions, leasing activity, cybersecurity, potential legal claims and various other matters related to our business;
|
•
|
oversight of
succession planning;
|
•
|
oversight of
capital spending and financings;
|
•
|
required to
approve (or a designated committee of the Board) certain transactions and investments, including among others, acquisitions, dispositions and developments pursuant to our formal internal investment policy; and
|
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
31 |
•
|
reviews regular
periodic reports from our auditors and other outside consultants regarding various areas of potential risk, including, among others, those relating to our qualification as a real estate investment trust.
|
|
Audit
Committee
|
|
Nominating
& Governance Committee
|
|
Compensation
and
Human Capital Committee
|
|
|
Assists the Board in
overseeing the
management of risk in connection with:
• financial and
accounting risk exposures;
• financial
reporting;
• internal
controls;
• cybersecurity
and data security;
• enterprise and
operational risk, including the Trust’s ERM program ; and
• legal and
regulatory compliance.
|
|
Oversees risk management
associated with:
• corporate
governance;
• business code
of ethics;
• Board
composition;
• Board and
committee evaluation; and
• ESG policies
and strategy.
|
|
Oversees risk management
associated with:
• Trust’s
compensation program, policies
and practices;
• non-employee
Trustee and executive officer compensation; and
• talent and
culture.
|
|
The Board also relies on management to bring significant matters affecting the Trust to its attention. Given its role in the risk oversight of the Trust, the Board believes that any leadership structure that it adopts
must allow it to effectively oversee the management of the risks relating to the Trust’s operations. Although there are different leadership structures that could allow the Board to effectively oversee the management of such risks, and while the
Board believes its current leadership structure enables it to effectively manage such risks, it was not the primary reason the Board selected its current leadership structure over other potential alternatives.
See the discussion under the heading “—Board Leadership” above for a discussion of why the Board has determined that its current leadership structure is appropriate and for an additional discussion regarding oversight
of risk management.
Cybersecurity
We are committed to cybersecurity and protecting the Trust’s resources and information from unauthorized access. The Trust has implemented a strategic approach to cybersecurity and performs annual cybersecurity
penetration tests and formal cyber security maturity assessments via a third party to ensure that we are consistent with current security best practices. The Trust’s cybersecurity approach incorporates a layered portfolio of technology products
and tools, documented policies, end-user training, and dedicated resources to manage and monitor the evolving threat landscape. We employ members from the information technology department who focus on preventing, identifying, and detecting
cybersecurity risks. The Audit Committee is responsible for overseeing cybersecurity risks, and management provides the Audit Committee with periodic reports on the Trust’s cybersecurity and data security programs, initiatives and policies
designed to address, monitor and mitigate cybersecurity and data security risks. Our cybersecurity personnel regularly evaluate risks and opportunities to improve our cybersecurity program. We also have a Security Incident and Response Plan in
place in order to evaluate, address and mitigate cyber incidences.
Corporate Governance
The Board and management are committed to responsible corporate governance to ensure that the Trust is managed for the benefit of its shareholders. To that end, the Board and management periodically review and update
the Trust’s corporate governance policies and practices as appropriate or required by applicable law, the NYSE listing standards or SEC regulations.
Code
of
Business Conduct and Ethics and Guidelines on Corporate Governance
The Trust has adopted a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics which sets forth basic principles to guide the conduct of trustees and the Trust’s employees, including its principal executive officer, principal financial
officer, principal accounting officer or controller and persons serving similar functions. The code covers numerous topics including illegal or unethical behavior, conflicts of interest, compliance with laws, accounting and financial reporting
practices, harassment, corporate opportunities and confidentiality. A copy of the Trust’s Code of Business Conduct and Ethics is available on the Trust’s website under “Investors—Corporate Governance—Governance Documents” at www.rptrealty.com.
Any waiver or material amendment that relates to the trustees or certain executive officers of the Trust will be publicly disclosed in such subsection on the Trust’s website within four business days of such action.
The Trust has also adopted Corporate Governance Guidelines, which address, among other things, a trustee’s responsibilities, qualifications (including independence), compensation and access to management and advisors.
The Nominating & Governance Committee is responsible for overseeing and reviewing these guidelines and recommending any changes to the
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
32 |
Board. A copy of the
Trust’s Corporate Governance Guidelines is available on the Trust’s website under “Investors—Corporate Governance—Governance Documents” at www.rptrealty.com.
A copy of the Trust’s committee charters, Code of Business Conduct and Ethics and Corporate Governance Guidelines will be sent to any shareholder, without charge, upon written request sent to the Trust’s executive
offices: Investor Relations, RPT Realty, 19 W 44th Street, 10th Floor, Suite 1002, New York, New York 10036.
Diversity
and
Board Composition
The Board values diversity and believes that trustees with varying backgrounds bring different and fresh perspectives, can optimize the effectiveness of the Board and can best serve the Trust and shareholders. As a
result, the Nominating & Governance Committee is committed to considering various personal and professional attributes of potential Board candidates, including, without limitation, skillset, experiences, age, ethnicity, race, viewpoints and
gender. Since 2018, we have elected three new trustees, two of whom are women, reducing the average trustee tenure to 9 years and significantly enhancing the depth and breadth of experience of existing trustees. Currently, 50% of RPT’s
independent trustees are women and 17% are racially and/or ethnically diverse. In addition, two (2) committee chairs are women.
Board
Evaluations
and Assessment
The Board conducts annual evaluations to assess the effectiveness of the Board and its committees. The Nominating & Governance Committee is responsible for leading the evaluation process. During the evaluation
process, the Board reviews achievements of the Board and identifies potential areas for Board and/or committee improvement.
Meetings
In 2022, the Board held nine (9) meetings. Independent trustees generally hold scheduled executive sessions in which independent trustees meet without the presence of management. These executive sessions generally
occur around regularly scheduled meetings of the Board.
Trustees are expected to regularly attend Board and the appropriate Board committee meetings. Each trustee attended at least 75% of the aggregate of (1) the total number of meetings of our Board in 2022 held during
the period for which he or she has been a trustee and (2) the total number of meetings in 2022 of all committees of our Board on which the Trustee served during the periods that he or she served. We do not have a policy with regard to Board
members’ attendance at annual shareholder meetings. All of the trustees attended the 2022 annual meeting of shareholders.
Committees of the Board
The Board has delegated various responsibilities and authority to Board committees and each committee regularly reports on its activities to the Board. Each committee, except the Executive Committee, has regularly
scheduled meetings and is comprised exclusively of independent trustees, in accordance with the NYSE listing standards. The Audit, Compensation and Human Capital and Nominating & Governance Committees operate under written charters approved
by the Board, which are reviewed annually by the respective committees and the Board and are available on the Trust’s website under “Investors—Corporate Governance—Governance Documents” at www.rptrealty.com. From time to time, the Board also may
create additional committees for such purposes as the Board may determine. The table below sets forth the current membership and 2022 meeting information for the four standing committees of the Board:
|
Name
|
|
Audit
|
|
Compensation
|
|
Nominating
&
Governance
|
|
Executive
|
|
|
Richard L. Federico
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
–
|
|
–
|
|
|
Arthur H. Goldberg
|
|
X
|
|
Chair
|
|
–
|
|
X
|
|
|
Brian L. Harper
|
|
–
|
|
–
|
|
–
|
|
X
|
|
|
Joanna T. Lau
|
|
Chair
|
|
–
|
|
X
|
|
–
|
|
|
David J. Nettina
|
|
X
|
|
–
|
|
–
|
|
Chair
|
|
|
Laurie M. Shahon
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
Chair
|
|
X
|
|
|
Andrea M. Weiss
|
|
–
|
|
X
|
|
X
|
|
–
|
|
|
Meetings in 2022
|
|
5
|
|
8
|
|
5
|
|
1
|
|
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
33 |
Audit
Committee
We have adopted an Audit Committee charter, which details the principal functions of the Audit Committee, including oversight related to:
•
|
the Trust’s
accounting and financial reporting process;
|
•
|
the integrity of
the Trust’s financial statements;
|
•
|
the Trust’s system
of disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting;
|
•
|
the performance of
the Trust’s internal audit function;
|
•
|
the Trust’s ERM
program;
|
•
|
the Trust’s cyber
and data security programs;
|
•
|
the Trust’s
compliance with financial, legal and regulatory requirements; and
|
•
|
the Trust’s
overall risk assessment and management.
|
The Audit Committee is also responsible for engaging an independent registered public accounting firm, reviewing with the independent registered public accounting firm the plans and results of the audit engagement,
approving professional services provided by the independent registered public accounting firm, including all audit and non-audit services, reviewing the independence of the independent registered public accounting firm, considering the range of
audit and non-audit fees and reviewing the adequacy of our internal accounting controls. The Audit Committee also prepares the Audit Committee Report required by SEC regulations to be included in this proxy statement. See “Audit Committee
Disclosure” and “Report of the Audit Committee” for additional information on the responsibilities and activities of the Audit Committee.
The Board has determined that each of Messrs. Federico, Goldberg and Nettina and Mses. Lau and Shahon qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” as that term is defined in the rules of the SEC based on the
relevant experience of each set forth under “Proposal 1—Election of Trustees—Trustee Background and Qualifications.” The qualification as an “audit committee financial expert” does not impose upon such person any duties, obligations or
liabilities that are greater than are generally imposed on such person as a member of the Audit Committee and the Board, and such designation does not affect the duties, obligations or liabilities of any other member of the Audit Committee or the
Board.
Compensation
and
Human Capital Committee
We have adopted a Compensation and Human Capital Committee charter, which details the principal functions of the Compensation and Human Capital Committee, including:
•
|
reviewing and
approving corporate goals and objectives relating to the compensation of the Trust’s Chief Executive Officer, evaluating the performance of the Trust’s Chief Executive Officer in light of these goals and objectives and determining and
approving the compensation of the Trust’s Chief Executive Officer based on such evaluation;
|
•
|
reviewing with
management certain initiatives, policies and programs related to the corporate culture and talent management;
|
•
|
determining and
approving the compensation of all executive officers of the Trust;
|
•
|
approving all
compensation and all compensation arrangements and benefits for non-employee Trustees;
|
•
|
reviewing,
periodically reassessing and, where appropriate, recommending changes to the Trust’s processes and procedures for considering and determining non-employee Trustee and executive officer compensation;
|
•
|
reviewing,
implementing and administering the Trust’s equity-based and incentive plans;
|
•
|
reviewing the
Trust’s executive compensation policies and plans;
|
•
|
assisting
management in complying with the Trust’s proxy statement and annual report disclosure
requirements;
|
•
|
producing a report
on executive compensation to be included in the Trust’s annual proxy statement; and
|
•
|
recommending
changes, if appropriate, to the compensation of non-employee directors.
|
See “Compensation Discussion and Analysis” and “Compensation and Human Capital Committee Report” for additional information on the responsibilities and activities of the Compensation and Human Capital Committee.
Nominating
&
Governance Committee
We have adopted a Nominating & Governance Committee charter, which details the principal functions of the Nominating & Governance Committee, including:
•
|
identifying and
recommending to the Board qualified candidates for election as trustees and recommending nominees for election as trustees at the annual shareholders meeting;
|
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
34 |
•
|
overseeing the
evaluation of the Board;
|
•
|
serving in an
advisory capacity to the Board and Chairman of the Board on matters of organizational and governance structure of the Trust and the conduct of the Board;
|
•
|
developing and
recommending to the Board corporate governance guidelines and fulfilling the responsibilities assigned to it under such guidelines;
|
•
|
annually reviewing
and making recommendations to the Board regarding revisions to the Corporate Governance Guidelines;
|
•
|
reviewing and
overseeing the Trust’s ESG strategy, practices, objectives and policies; and
|
•
|
developing and
recommending to the Board a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics.
|
Identification
of
Trustee Candidates
The Nominating & Governance Committee identifies individuals qualified to become members of the Board and recommends that the Board select the nominees for the Board for the annual shareholders meeting. The
Nominating & Governance Committee establishes criteria for the selection of new Board members, including specific minimum qualifications that the Nominating & Governance Committee believes must be met by recommended nominees, and any
specific qualities or skills that the Nominating & Governance Committee believes are necessary for one or more of the Board members to possess. See “Proposal 1—Election of Trustees—Trustee Background and Qualifications” for a discussion of
the experience, mix of skills, independence from management and other qualities of the trustees and nominees that the Nominating & Governance Committee considers, in light of the Trust’s business and structure, to ensure appropriate Board
composition.
The Nominating & Governance Committee does not solicit trustee nominations but will consider nominee recommendations by shareholders with respect to elections to be held at an annual meeting, so long as such
recommendations are timely made and otherwise in accordance with the Trust’s Bylaws and applicable law. The Nominating & Governance Committee will apply the same standards in considering candidates submitted by shareholders as it does in
evaluating candidates submitted by members of the Board. Any recommendations by shareholders are to follow the procedures outlined under “Additional Information—Presentation of Shareholder Proposals and Nominations at 2024 Annual Meeting” in this
proxy statement and should provide the reasons supporting a candidate’s recommendation, the candidate’s qualifications and the candidate’s written consent to being considered as a trustee nominee.
Executive
Committee
The Executive Committee is permitted to exercise all of the powers and authority of the Board, except as limited by applicable law and the Bylaws.
Trustee Compensation
The Compensation and Human Capital Committee and Board believe that trustees should receive a mix of cash and equity. Compensation paid to the non-employee trustees is intended to provide incentives to such persons to
continue to serve on the Board, to further align the interests of the Board and shareholders and to attract new trustees with outstanding qualifications. Trustees who are employees or officers of the Trust or any of its subsidiaries do not
receive any compensation for serving on the Board or any committees thereof; therefore, Mr. Harper is excluded from the trustee compensation table below.
2022
Non-Employee
Trustee Annual Cash Retainer and Meeting Fees
In 2021, the Board, after taking into consideration the Compensation and Human Capital Committee’s recommendation following a survey of other public REITs director compensation programs and the additional oversight
work conducted by the committees, including with respect to ESG, DE&I, employee talent and culture and cybersecurity matters, increased the annual committee member fees payable to (i) each trustee, (ii) the Chair of the Audit Committee and
(iii) the Chair of the Trust, effective January 1, 2022. Each non-employee trustee received an annual cash retainer equal to approximately $75,000 and an annual equity retainer, consisting of a grant of restricted Shares, valued at approximately
$100,008 (or 10,112 restricted Shares). The restricted Shares were granted on July 1, 2022 and vest in full on the first anniversary of the grant date. The chair of each of the Audit Committee, Compensation and Human Capital Committee and
Nominating & Governance Committee received additional cash retainers of $35,000, $15,000 and $15,000, respectively. Mr. Nettina, in his capacity as Chairman of the Board, also received an additional annual cash retainer of $125,000. The cash
retainers are payable in quarterly installments and are prorated to reflect service on the Board and in the applicable role. The Trust also reimburses all trustees for expenses incurred in connection with attending any meetings or performing
their duties as trustees. There were no additional fees paid per meeting attended.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
35 |
Our Compensation and Human Capital Committee annually reviews and periodically recommends updates to the trustee compensation program to our Board for approval. The Compensation and Human Capital Committee’s
recommendation takes into account our trustee compensation philosophy, changes in market practices, and consultation with the Compensation and Human Capital Committee’s independent compensation consultant, Meridian Compensation Partners. No
changes were made to the form or amount of director compensation as part of the 2022 review.
Share
Ownership
Guidelines
The Trust’s Share ownership guidelines for non-employee trustees require such persons to hold directly a number of Shares (including unvested restricted Shares) having a market value no less than five times the then
current annual Share grant denominated in Shares for all trustees. New trustees have a five-year period to comply with the guidelines. The Compensation and Human Capital Committee reviews the minimum equity holding level and other market trends
and practices on a periodic basis. The Compensation and Human Capital Committee has confirmed that all trustees currently satisfy the guidelines or are within the time period to become compliant.
Deferred
Fee
Plan
The Trust maintains a Deferred Fee Plan for trustees. A trustee may elect to defer the annual retainer (including any fees paid to a trustee for serving as chairman of a committee or the Board) earned for services
provided during a subsequent calendar year (“Deferral Year”) by completing and filing a proper deferred fee agreement with the Secretary of the Trust no later than December 31 of the year prior to the Deferral Year. Any Shares deferred will be
credited to a deferred share account and will be entitled to receive distributions, which at the Trustee’s election will either be paid in cash or will be reinvested in Shares. A trustee may modify or revoke his or her existing fee deferral
election only on a prospective basis, only for fees to be earned in a subsequent calendar year and only if such trustee executes a new deferred fee agreement or revokes his or her existing deferred fee agreement in writing by December 31 of the
year preceding the calendar year for which such modification or revocation is to be effective. The trustee must elect the end of the deferral period at the time of such election and, except for limited circumstances, no trustee shall have any
right to make any early withdrawals from the trustee’s deferred fee accounts.
2022 Trustee Compensation Table
|
Name
|
Fees
Earned or
Paid in Cash ($)(1)
|
|
Stock
Awards
($)(2)
|
|
Total
($)
|
|
|
Richard L. Federico
|
75,000
|
|
100,008
|
|
175,008
|
|
|
Arthur H. Goldberg
|
90,000
|
|
100,008
|
|
190,008
|
|
|
Joanna T. Lau
|
110,000
|
|
100,008
|
|
210,008
|
|
|
David J. Nettina
|
200,000
|
|
100,008
|
|
300,008
|
|
|
Laurie M. Shahon
|
90,000
|
|
100,008
|
|
190,008
|
|
|
Andrea M. Weiss
|
75,000
|
|
100,008
|
|
175,008
|
|
(1)
|
Represents amounts
earned in 2022 with respect to the cash retainers.
|
(2)
|
Represents the
aggregate grant date fair value of restricted Share awards granted during the year ended December 31, 2022, calculated as the closing price per Share on the NYSE on July 1, 2022 (i.e., $9.89) multiplied by the number of Shares granted. As
of December 31, 2022, each of the non-employee trustees held 10,112 unvested restricted Shares or deferred Shares, as applicable, that had been granted by us as trustee compensation. As of December 31, 2022, none of the non-employee
trustees held any unexercised options.
|
Communication with the Board
Any shareholder or interested party who desires to communicate with the Board or any specific trustee(s) can write to the Board at the following address: Board of Trustees, c/o Secretary, RPT Realty, 19 W 44th Street,
10th Floor, Suite 1002, New York, NY 10036. All communications received by the Trust’s Secretary which are addressed to the Board or a Board committee will be forwarded directly to the members of the Board.
Shareholders, Trust employees, officers, trustees or any other interested persons who have concerns or complaints regarding accounting or auditing matters of the Trust are encouraged to contact, anonymously or
otherwise, the Chair of the Audit Committee (or any trustee who is a member of the Audit Committee) at the address above. Such submissions will be treated confidentially.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
36 |
Executive Officers
The executive officers of the Trust serve at the pleasure of the Board. The executive officers of the Trust as of the record date are as follows:
|
Brian L. Harper
Age: 47
Title: Trustee; President and Chief
Executive Officer
|
See “Proposal 1—Election of Trustees—Trustee Background and Qualifications” for biographical and other information regarding Mr. Harper.
|
Michael P. Fitzmaurice
Age: 44
Title: Executive Vice President and Chief
Financial Officer
|
Michael P. Fitzmaurice has been Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer since June 2018. Mr. Fitzmaurice was employed with Retail Properties of
America, Inc., an NYSE-listed retail shopping center REIT, as Senior Vice President of Finance from September 2017 to June 2018, Vice President of Capital Markets & Investor Relations from January 2017 to September 2017 and Vice President of
Finance from August 2012 to January 2017. Prior to Retail Properties of America, Inc., Mr. Fitzmaurice spent 11 years at General Growth Properties, a publicly-traded retail REIT that was taken private in 2018, in various finance, capital markets
and accounting roles. In addition, Mr. Fitzmaurice spent two years with Equity Office Properties as a Manager with the Investments/Due Diligence team. Mr. Fitzmaurice received his B.S. in finance from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
|
Timothy Collier
Age: 49
Title: Executive Vice President, Leasing
|
Timothy Collier has served as Executive Vice President of Leasing since August 2018. Mr. Collier has over 21 years of experience in the real estate industry and
was formerly with Acadia Realty Trust, a NYSE-listed equity REIT, serving most recently as their Senior Vice President of Leasing from January 2016 to August 2018, Vice President of Leasing from January 2013 to December 2015, and Director of
Leasing from May 2011 to December 2012. Mr. Collier has also worked at Kimco Realty and Pyramid Management Group in various leasing roles. Mr. Collier received his B.A. from State University of New York at Oswego, is a Licensed Real Estate
Salesperson in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and a member of the ICSC.
|
Heather R. Ohlberg
Age: 43
Title: Executive Vice President,
General Counsel and Secretary
|
Heather R. Ohlberg has served as Executive Vice President General Counsel and Secretary of the Trust since May 2020. From February 2019 until May 2020, Ms.
Ohlberg was Senior Vice President Legal Counsel and Secretary of the Trust. Prior to joining RPT, Ms. Ohlberg served as Senior Vice President, Legal Leasing & Real Estate for Brookfield Properties’ retail division (formerly Rouse Properties)
from February 2017 to September 2018. Ms. Ohlberg previously spent six years as an Associate and Counsel at Tarter Krinsky & Drogin LLP in the Real Estate, Retail and Construction Departments and was Co-Chair of the Hospitality and Restaurant
Group. Ms. Ohlberg is a graduate of the Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University and received her B.A from the State University of New York at Albany.
|
Raymond J. Merk
Age: 63
Title: Senior Vice President and Chief
Accounting Officer
|
Raymond J. Merk served as the Trust’s acting principal financial officer from April 2018 to June 2018 and has served as the Trust’s Chief Accounting Officer
since March 2017, having joined the Trust, originally on an interim basis, in September 2016. From April 2010 through April 2013, Mr. Merk was the vice president of finance for DynaVox Systems, LLC. Mr. Merk served as Chief Financial Officer and
corporate secretary of DynaVox Systems, LLC from May 2013 through May 2015. In addition, Mr. Merk served as the Chief Financial Officer and corporate secretary of DynaVox Inc., DynaVox Systems Holdings, LLC and DynaVox Intermediate LLC, the
holding company parents of DynaVox Systems, LLC, from May 2013 through March 2014. DynaVox Inc., DynaVox Systems Holdings, LLC, and DynaVox Intermediate LLC filed a voluntary petition for relief under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy
Code in April 2014. Mr. Merk holds a B.S. in Business Administration from Ohio Northern University. Mr. Merk is a Certified Public Accountant.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
37 |
Compensation Discussion and Analysis
LETTER FROM THE CHAIR OF OUR COMPENSATION AND HUMAN CAPITAL COMMITTEE CHAIR
Dear Fellow Shareholders,
On behalf of the Compensation and Human Capital Committee and the entire Board of Trustees of RPT Realty, I am pleased to present our Compensation Discussion
& Analysis for 2022. This section of our proxy statement provides insights into our compensation program, including the decisions made by the Compensation and Human Capital Committee throughout the year.
2022 Business and Performance Highlights
The Trust’s 2022 fiscal year was marked by accomplishments tempered by a challenging economic environment. Soaring inflation, supply chain disruptions,
geopolitical instability and other factors impacted not only the entire U.S. real estate sector but also the global economy as a whole, leading to disappointing absolute total shareholder returns. Despite these headwinds, our executive team
continued to execute the Trust’s strategic vision, delivering historically strong leasing results, judicious deployment of capital, continued diversification of our portfolio into higher growth markets, and incisive strengthening of the Trust’s
balance sheet. The Trust also continued to advance its Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) initiatives which represent the core values of the Trust and are fundamental to its success. Our success across the business has resulted in strong
top-line and bottom-line growth over the last two years with same property NOI growth increasing at 4.3% in 2022 and 6.3% in 2021, while 2022 Operating FFO increased 9.5% in 2022 and 21.8% in 2021.(1)
Thanks to the sum of all these efforts, we believe that the Trust is well positioned to capitalize on current and evolving market conditions, and to continue to
deliver strong results from the Trust’s improved portfolio, transformed operating platform and strong company culture.
Pay and Performance for 2022
The Compensation and Human Capital Committee is focused on aligning the interests of the Trust’s executive team with the interests of the Trust’s shareholders
through the design of a compensation program that is performance based and focuses on achieving rigorous financial, strategic and operational goals. We strive to implement the right balance of meaningful incentives to motivate our executive team in
both the short- and long-term, as well as retaining industry leading talent. This mission is an enduring one that is rooted in the alignment of the economic interests of management with not only the creation of value for our shareholders but also
the values of all our stakeholders. The results of this philosophy are reflected in 2022’s executive compensation results as follows:
|
• |
Annual Incentive Award paid out at 142.5% of target, a significant reduction relative to 2021
performance. While we believe our overall performance was strong, the year-over-year decrease is reflective of the challenging economic environment. |
|
• |
2020 Performance Share Units, based on relative Total Shareholder Return for the three-year period
ending December 31, 2022, fell below our threshold requirement. These awards lapsed in their entirety reinforcing our commitment to rewarding our executive team when our shareholders also benefit. |
Shareholder Engagement
The Trust and the Compensation and Human Capital Committee engaged with shareholders through our robust shareholder outreach program to design a program that we
believe harmonizes these various interests for 2022 and beyond. During 2022, we reached out to holders representing over 80% of the Trust’s outstanding shares and engaged with all of those who expressed an interest in providing feedback.
Shareholder feedback supported a compensation program structured in a manner substantially consistent with the Trust’s pre-pandemic programs. As a result, we modeled our 2022 compensation program after our 2021 compensation program, which was based
upon the Trust’s pre-pandemic program, and received strong support from shareholders during our shareholder outreach and through the say-on-pay advisory vote at last year’s annual meeting. As described below, we also made enhancements to the 2022
compensation program.
(1) Same Property NOI and Operating FFO are non-GAAP financial measures for which reconciliations and other information are set
forth on 48-51 of the Trust’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 and Appendix A of this proxy statement.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
38 |
Overview of our Compensation Program
We believe the compensation program represents a thoughtful mix of base salary, formulaic annual cash bonus and annual long-term equity incentive awards. The
program is heavily weighted towards both long-term equity and linked significantly to at-risk and performance-based compensation, particularly for our CEO but also for the Trust’s other named executive officers. We have long had a pay for
performance philosophy and this year’s compensation program is representative of that philosophy.
After an extensive assessment and discussion of our 2021 compensation program, consideration of market practices and significant shareholder outreach, we
identified areas to enhance our 2022 compensation program, which we proactively disclosed in the proxy statement for last year:
|
• |
First, we modified the 2022 performance-based equity awards to increase the alignment of management with our
shareholders by: |
|
o |
adopting a tiered one-, two- and three-year performance measurement approach to align management incentives to the
near, medium and long-term stock performance of the Trust, which appropriately reflects our shareholder base and their desired investment timeframes, and all earned awards vest following the conclusion of the three-year period. |
|
o |
increasing the target performance hurdle from the 50th percentile to 55th percentile relative to
a broader peer set, which increased the overall rigor of these awards; and |
|
o |
Utilizing a broader performance peer set based on our market capitalization. |
|
• |
Second, in order to reflect our ongoing focus on ESG, we expanded the role of ESG objectives to form a larger, separate key component of
the annual bonus opportunity for the Trust’s named executive officers in 2022. |
We are committed to the highest standards of corporate governance including transparency in compensation, disclosure, and a robust shareholder engagement program;
the feedback from which guides our compensation decisions. Because we disclosed these changes in last year’s proxy statement, we have already benefited from additional discussions with shareholders. Based on the upon the positive responses we
received to the structure of our 2022 compensation program, the structure of our 2023 compensation program will remain unchanged from the 2022 compensation program.
I and the rest of the Board would like to thank you very much for your interest in the Trust. We continue to believe in the fundamental integrity of our
compensation program, the rigor of the process through which compensation decisions are made and are committed to implementing a pay for performance philosophy that aligns with shareholders while motivating and retaining executive management to
achieve the Trust’s strategic goals.
On behalf of the Compensation and Human Capital Committee and the Board of Trustees, thank you again for your feedback and respectfully ask for your continued
support at our 2023 annual meeting.
Sincerely,
Arthur H. Goldberg
Compensation and Human Capital Committee Chair and Trustee
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
39 |
Compensation Discussion and Analysis
This section of the proxy statement explains how the Trust’s compensation programs are designed and operated in practice with respect to our named executive
officers. In this “Compensation Discussion and Analysis,” we refer to our President and Chief Executive Officer, Brian L. Harper, our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Michael P. Fitzmaurice, our Executive Vice
President-Leasing, Timothy Collier, our Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary, Heather R. Ohlberg and our Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer, Raymond J. Merk, collectively, as our named executive officers, and we
refer to our Compensation and Human Capital Committee as the “Committee.”
Executive Summary
Key Highlights
2022 Operational and Financial Highlights(1) |
Leases Signed |
Pro-Rata Leased Rate(2) |
Comparable New Re-leasing Spread(2) |
2.2 Million Square Feet, a 33% increase in year-over-year activity |
93.8%, an increase of 70 basis points
year-over-year |
42.6%, a 10% increase versus 2021 |
Operating FFO per Share(3) |
Same Property NOI Growth(3) |
Dividend per Share |
$1.04, a 9.5% year-over-year increase and at the high end of the initial guidance range of $1.00-$1.05 |
4.3%, above the initial expectation of
2.0% to 4.0% |
$0.52 per share, a 33% increase
compared to 2021 |
(1) |
As of December 31, 2022. |
(2) |
For comparable new leases. Financial information presented on a “pro-rata” basis includes our proportionate economic ownership interest of each of our unconsolidated joint ventures derived on an
entity-by-entity basis. |
(3) |
Operating FFO and Same Property NOI are non-GAAP financial measures for which reconciliations and other information are set forth on 48-51 of the Trust’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the
fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 and Appendix A of this proxy statement. |
The following are key highlights of our 2022 compensation program for our named executive officers.
Executing our Strategy: The Trust had another strong year across all business units.
Leasing: Following a 49% increase in leasing activity in 2021, the Trust completed 2.2 million square feet of activity in 2022, a 33% increase
over 2021 and the highest annual level since 2014. These elevated leasing levels are reflective of the high quality of the Trust’s portfolio, the importance to retailers of a strong bricks and mortar presence and the lack of quality new supply.
Rents on comparable new leases signed also continued to expand, finishing the year at over 42%. We continue to invest in our properties through our active value-enhancing redevelopment, merchandising, and outlot expansion pipeline. We ended 2022
with a total pipeline of $45 million, up from $30 million in 2021.
Portfolio Capital Recycling: During the year, the Trust also continued to reshape the portfolio towards higher growth and higher income markets.
Our three-mile average household income increased by 19% to $122,000 over the past two years. The Trust also continued to expand its presence in markets like Boston and Miami, with Boston now the Trust’s second largest market following additional
acquisitions in 2022. Our successful portfolio recycling program was facilitated by the complementary nature of our three investment platforms that allowed us to opportunistically acquire $375 million of assets in 2022 and $921 million over the
past two years. We also closed on dispositions and contributions into our two strategic joint venture platforms totaling $283 million in 2022 and $529 million over the past two years.
Digital and Data Innovation: We continued to integrate advanced digital tools and data analytics into our business to monitor
operations, drive decision-making and refine long-term strategy during 2022. We automated numerous legacy data processes using multi-dimensional cube-based reporting, significantly enhancing productivity and analysis, and continued to transition
legacy manually generated reports into automated live dashboards that improve visualization and insight into business trends. We also added a climate risk score to the Trust’s proprietary asset scoring model and fully automated the model, which is
used extensively in the Trust’s investment underwriting process and manages property level risk from acquisition through disposition.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
40 |
Managing our Balance Sheet: In 2022, the Trust again demonstrated its proactive balance sheet management by issuing debt and equity in early 2022
when cost of capital was relatively low and refinancing the Trust’s unsecured credit facility ahead of the dislocation in the capital markets that occurred in the fall. Over the course of the year, we maintained leverage, enhanced liquidity,
eliminated near term maturities, fixed rates on all of our term loans through maturity, gained operational and covenant flexibility in our note purchase agreements, and maintained our investment grade credit rating. At the end of 2022, the Trust
had no debt maturing until 2025, significantly reducing exposure to the impact of rising interest rates.
2022 Debt Highlights(1) |
Floating Rate Debt |
Unsecured Debt |
Debt Maturities Through 2024 |
5.0% |
93.8% |
0.0% |
Weighted Average Debt Maturity |
Net Debt to EBITDA Ratio(2) |
Investment Grade Credit Rating |
5.1 years |
6.9x |
BBB- |
(1) |
As of December 31, 2022. All data includes the Trust’s pro-rata share of unconsolidated joint venture amounts. |
(2) |
Represents the Trust’s annualized adjusted net debt to EBITDA ratio. Net debt to annualized adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure for which a reconciliation and other information are
included in Appendix A of this proxy statement. |
Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”): We continued to advance our commitment to ESG, with a focus on each of the Environmental, Social and
Governance areas of sustainability. We believe that these initiatives are a vital part of supporting our primary goal to achieve a long-term sustainable business model that maximizes value for our shareholders and integrates ESG into our overall
business practices.
2022 Environmental, Social and Governance Highlights(1) |
Environmental |
Social |
Governance |
•
Increased GRESB Score by 33% from 2021 to 2022
•
On track to advance our goal of reducing common area electricity consumption by 25% by the end of 2026 by installing LED lighting at five shopping centers during
2022
•
On track to achieve our goal of installing smart irrigation projects to reduce common area water consumption by an additional 20% by the end of 2024, having
previously reduced consumption by 40.6% from 2019-2021
•
Diverted 24.7% of common area generated waste under the Trust’s control, furthering our goal of diverting 35% of landlord-controlled waste from landfills by the
end of 2023
|
•
Achieved our goal of continuing to implement comprehensive and affordable health benefits and a robust wellness program, as well as employee-focused policies by
implementing a new digital platform in 2022 that offers challenges, educational information and personal health coaching, in which 67% of employees are actively engaged; offered a variety of activities to promote the physical, financial,
mental and social wellbeing of our employees; and implemented enhancements to 2023 medical benefits
•
Executed strategic initiatives and implemented programs focusing on diversity and inclusion throughout the company that increased diversity year over year and
established baselines for conduct
|
•
Enhanced the Trust’s vendor policy program by creating a new vendor policy rider for our Vendor Contractor Code of Conduct and ESG Sustainability Policy governing
vendor conduct and including the new rider in 77% of contracts executed in 2022
•
Enhanced our vendor policy program by creating and implementing a Vendor Diversity and Audit Policy
•
Included Green Lease language that either meets or exceeds the Gold Standard Green Lease Leader requirements in 82% of shop leases executed in 2022
|
|
•
Supported charitable partners who align with the Trust’s purpose of Turning Commercial Ground into Common Ground through charitable giving and volunteer
initiatives
|
|
(1) |
As of December 31, 2022. |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
41 |
2022 Performance Summary
Annual Cash Bonus Program. Due to our strong operating FFO performance, the component of our annual cash bonus program linked to this performance
measure was achieved at 137.5% for each of our named executive officers. Our named executive officers successfully executed our 2022 strategy and advanced numerous ESG initiatives, positioning the Trust for future success. As a
result, each of our named executive officers achieved 200% for the strategy performance component of our annual cash bonus program and 125% for the ESG performance component. The total payout ratio for the 2022 annual
cash bonus program was 142.5%.
2020 Long-Term Equity Awards. The performance-based restricted share units granted to our named executive officers for 2020 were forfeited in
full due to our three-year relative total shareholder return for the period ending on December 31, 2022 falling below threshold performance.
2022 Long-Term Equity Awards (Tranche One). Our named executive officers earned 108% of the one-third portion of the performance-based
restricted share units granted to our named executive officers for 2022 that could be earned based on the Trust’s relative shareholder return over a one-year performance period ending on December 31, 2022. The earned awards remain
subject to time-based vesting conditions until March 1, 2025, subject to continued employment through such date. The remaining two-thirds of the 2022 Long-Term Equity Awards (Tranche Two and Tranche Three) remain at-risk and are
subject to continuing performance- and time-based vesting conditions.
|
Shareholder Engagement
The Trust values the insight of shareholders and actively engages with investors in order to maintain open lines of communication. In 2022, the Trust hosted 110
engagements with 104 unique investors through calls, conferences, property tours and headquarters visits.
Additionally, the Trust provides periodic governance and ESG updates and solicits feedback from its largest shareholders. In spring 2022, we reached out to
shareholders representing 74% of our outstanding shares to discuss our 2022 Proxy and executive compensation plans. Our Compensation and Human Capital Committee Chair and Head of Investor Relations participated in these calls. Shareholder feedback
was shared and discussed with the Board of Trustees.
In fall 2022, we engaged with the stewardship teams of shareholders representing 83% of our outstanding shares to provide a business update and to discuss
governance and ESG topics. Our Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Chief Executive Officer and Head of Investor Relations participated in these calls. Learning and feedback from these calls were shared and discussed with the Board of Trustees.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Who we engaged |
|
Discussion Topics |
|
Results of Engagement |
Spring 2022 |
|
•
Reached out to shareholders representing 74% of outstanding shares
•
Engaged with shareholders representing 29% of shares
|
|
•
2022 Proxy
•
Executive compensation
•
ISS and Glass Lewis recommendations
|
|
•
Feedback shared with senior management and the Board
•
Expanded the Fall 2022 stewardship shareholder outreach program
|
Fall 2022 |
|
•
Reached out to shareholders representing 83% of outstanding shares
•
Engaged with shareholders representing 46% of shares
|
|
•
Preferred ESG frameworks
•
Ideas on additional information to include in future corporate sustainability reports
•
Science-based targets
•
Corporate governance
•
Board construction and oversite
•
Executive compensation
|
|
•
Feedback reported to senior management and the Board
•
Incorporated additional disclosures in this proxy statement and planned for future corporate sustainability reports
|
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
42 |
Key Compensation Practices
✔ |
Pay for performance and create alignment with shareholders |
✔ |
Include rigorous hurdles in our incentive plans |
✔ |
Deliver the majority of target compensation in the form of “at-risk” pay with capped incentive opportunities |
✔ |
Pay a significant percentage of total compensation for our CEO and other named executive officers in equity |
✔ |
Annual named executive officer compensation based upon corporate financial and operational results and achievement of ESG goals established by the Committee at the beginning
of each year |
✔ |
Significant percentage of named executive officer long-term incentives is based upon relative shareholder return |
✔ |
Follow best practices related to equity ownership guidelines for our trustees and named executive officers |
✔ |
Incentive payments are subject to our clawback policy |
✔ |
Require a double trigger for cash severance and vesting of equity awards in connection with a change in control |
X |
No dividends or distributions paid on unvested or unearned equity awards |
X |
No excise tax gross-up provisions |
X |
No single trigger cash severance or accelerated vesting of equity awards in connection with a change in control |
X |
Don’t allow trustees or officers to hedge or pledge our securities |
X |
Do not encourage unnecessary or excessive risk taking |
Overview of the 2022 Compensation Program
The following table sets forth each material element of target compensation in the 2022 executive compensation program and describes how each is intended to
satisfy one or more of the Trust’s compensation objectives, as well as key features of the compensation elements that address such objectives.
Element of Compensation |
|
Compensation Objectives |
|
Key Features |
Base Salary |
|
•
Provide a minimum, fixed level of cash compensation
•
Important factor in retaining and attracting key employees in a competitive marketplace
•
Preserve an employee’s commitment during downturns in the general economy, the REIT industry and/or equity markets
|
|
•
Changes based on an evaluation of the individual’s experience, current performance, potential for advancement and comparison to peer groups
•
16.7% of CEO target compensation and 30.3% - 44.4% of other NEO target compensation
|
Annual Cash Bonus Program
|
|
•
Incentive for the achievement of short-term Trust performance
•
The bonus plan enhances “pay-for-performance” compensation and ensures greater transparency for the most significant executives
•
Assist in retaining, attracting and motivating employees in the near term
|
|
•
Our named executive officers are eligible for bonuses upon the achievement of specified targets; target bonuses range from 50-125% of base salary
•
All of our named executive officers received formulaic bonuses in 2022
•
20.9% of CEO target compensation and 22.2% - 24.5% of other NEO target compensation
|
Annual Long-Term Share-Based Incentive Awards |
|
•
Provide incentive for employees to focus on a balance of near-term value creation and long-term fundamentals and thereby create shareholder value across
multiple timeframes
•
Enhance shareholder-management alignment
|
|
•
50% of target award amount consists of performance-based restricted share units, with potential to earn 0% - 200% of target based on relative total
shareholder return compared to peer companies over one-, two- and three-year performance periods
•
50% of target award amount consists of service-based restricted shares vesting over three years
•
62.3% of CEO target compensation and 33.3% - 45.4% of other NEO target compensation
|
Change in Control/ Severance Benefits |
|
•
Retain and attract employees in a competitive market
•
Encourage appropriate risk taking
•
Mitigate disincentives to pursuit of shareholder friendly change in control transactions that may result in job loss
•
Ensure continued dedication of employees in case of personal uncertainties or risk of job loss
|
|
•
Double trigger (change in control and actual or constructive termination of employment) required for cash severance
•
Reasonable cash severance multiples - 1-2x annual base salary and annual cash bonus.
•
See “—Employment Agreements and Severance and Change in Control Arrangements” for a description of the material terms of such agreements.
|
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
43 |
2022 Target Annual Compensation
The following table sets forth the target annual compensation amounts for the Trust’s named executive officers in 2022:
Name |
|
Annual Base
Salary
($) |
|
Target Annual
Cash Bonus
($) |
|
Target Long-Term
Incentive Award
(Performance-
Based Rest.
Share Units)
($) |
|
Long-Term
Incentive
Award- (Service
Based Rest.
Stock)
($) |
|
Target Annual
Compensation
2022
($) |
|
Target Performance-
Based Compensation
(% of Target Comp.)(1) |
Brian L. Harper |
|
806,000 |
|
1,007,500 |
|
1,500,000 |
|
1,500,000 |
|
4,813,500 |
|
52.1% |
Michael P. Fitzmaurice |
|
494,000 |
|
395,200 |
|
370,000 |
|
370,000 |
|
1,629,200 |
|
47.0% |
Timothy Collier |
|
428,480 |
|
321,360 |
|
299,936 |
|
299,936 |
|
1,345,712 |
|
46.0% |
Heather R. Ohlberg |
|
416,000 |
|
270,400 |
|
208,000 |
|
208,000 |
|
1,102,400 |
|
43.4% |
Raymond J. Merk |
|
300,000 |
|
150,000 |
|
112,500 |
|
112,500 |
|
675,000 |
|
38.9% |
(1) |
Represents Target Annual Cash Bonus plus Target Long-Term Incentive Award (Performance-Based Restricted Share Units), divided by Target Annual Compensation 2022. |
2022 Results and Earned Compensation
Annual Cash Bonus
2022 STIP. Pursuant to the Trust’s cash bonus program (the “2022 STIP”), all of our named executive officers received bonuses
calculated by reference to the objective and subjective performance goals established for the 2022 STIP, and, as a result, were eligible to earn bonuses either at, above or below pre-established target bonus amounts.
The table below sets forth the 2022 STIP goals and the relative weight given to each goal, and the performance of the Trust and the named executive officers
relative to such goals.
|
|
Percentage Earned(1) |
|
|
2022 STIP Goal |
|
50% |
|
100% |
|
200% |
|
Weight |
|
Actual
Performance |
|
Percentage of Target
Bonus Earned |
Operating FFO Per Share(2) |
|
$0.99 |
|
$1.03 |
|
$1.11 |
|
80% |
|
$1.06 |
|
137.5% |
Environmental, Social and Governance(3) |
|
Threshold |
|
Target |
|
Maximum |
|
10% |
|
Above
Target(3) |
|
125.0% |
Strategy(4) |
|
Threshold |
|
Target |
|
Maximum |
|
10% |
|
Maximum(4) |
|
200.0% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
142.5% |
(1) |
Subject to linear interpolation for amounts between levels. |
(2) |
Represents Operating FFO per diluted share for 2022 as publicly reported, excluding bonus expense for above target performance. |
(3) |
Represents the contribution of each named executive officer to advancing a range of environmental, social and governance initiatives during 2022 that are described in more detail above in
“—Executive Summary—Key Highlights,” including (i) completion of LED lighting, smart irrigation and waste management projects, (ii) improving the culture of wellbeing, diversity, inclusion, equity and philanthropy of the Trust and (iii)
working with vendors and tenants to align the policies of these stakeholders with the values of the Trust. The Committee evaluated the performance of the named executive officers individually and as a group against these goals and determined
that all of the named executive officers achieved performance above target level. |
(4) |
Represents the performance of each named executive officer relative to the long-term and short-term strategic goals of the Trust, both internal and external, including an assessment of the
contributions of the named executive officers to the Trust’s operational, financial and other achievements for 2022 that are described in more detail above in “—Executive Summary—Key Highlights.” The Committee evaluated the performance of the
named executive officers individually and as a group against these goals and determined that all of the named executive officers achieved maximum performance. |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
44 |
The table below sets forth the target annual cash bonuses for 2022 and the annual cash bonuses actually earned in 2022 by each of the Trust’s named executive
officers under the 2022 STIP:
Name |
|
2022 Base Salary
($) |
|
2022 Target Bonus
Percentage of
Base Salary |
|
Target Annual Cash
Bonus 2022 ($) |
|
Earned Annual Cash
Bonus 2022
($) |
Brian L. Harper |
|
806,000 |
|
125% |
|
1,007,500 |
|
1,435,688 |
Michael P. Fitzmaurice |
|
494,000 |
|
80% |
|
395,200 |
|
563,160 |
Timothy Collier |
|
428,480 |
|
75% |
|
321,360 |
|
457,938 |
Heather R. Ohlberg |
|
416,000 |
|
65% |
|
270,400 |
|
385,320 |
Raymond J. Merk |
|
300,000 |
|
50% |
|
150,000 |
|
213,750 |
Performance-Based Restricted Share Units (“PSU”)
We have granted annual performance-based restricted share units to our named executive officers with performance criteria relating to the
percentile rank of our relative total shareholder return, or TSR, during the performance period compared to peer companies. During 2020, we also made one-time grants of performance-based restricted share units to our named executive officers with
performance criteria relating to the increase in our share price.
The table below provides a summary of the status of the earning of these performance-based restricted share units, as well as outstanding performance-based
restricted share units granted in 2018 as inducement awards, based on our performance through December 31, 2022:
|
|
|
|
|
Status at December 31, 2022
|
Awards |
|
Performance Period(s) |
|
Performance Criteria |
|
Percentile Rank |
|
Projected /
Actual Earned |
2018 PSU (Annual) |
|
Jan. 2018 – Dec. 2024(1) |
|
Earned based on relative TSR during the performance period as set forth below:
- Below 33rd percentile: 0% earned
- 33rd - 50th percentile: 50%-100% earned
- 50th - 90th percentile: 100%-200% earned
|
|
42nd |
|
75% - Projected |
2018 PSU (Inducement) |
|
Grant dates in 2018 – Dec. 2024(1) |
|
|
50th |
|
100% - Projected |
2020 PSU (Annual) |
|
Jan. 2020 – Dec. 2022 |
|
|
21st |
|
0% - Earned |
2021 PSU (Annual) |
|
Jan. 2021 – Dec. 2023 |
|
|
50th |
|
100% - Projected |
2022 PSU (Annual – One-Year Period) |
|
Jan. 2022 – Dec. 2022 |
|
Earned based on relative TSR during the performance period as set forth below:
- Below 30th percentile: 0% earned
- 30th - 55th percentile: 50%-100% earned
- 55th - 80th percentile: 100%-200% earned
|
|
57th |
|
108% - Earned |
2022 PSU (Annual – Two-Year Period) |
|
Jan. 2022 – Dec. 2023 |
|
|
57th |
|
108% - Projected |
2022 PSU (Annual – Three-Year Period) |
|
Jan. 2022 – Dec. 2024 |
|
|
57th |
|
108% - Projected |
2020 Absolute PSU |
|
Oct. 2020 – Dec. 2024 |
|
Earned based on absolute share price increases during the performance period as set forth below:(2)
- >25% (but < than 50%): 50% earned
- >50% (but < than 75%): 100% earned
- >75% (but < than 100%): 150% earned
- 100% (or more): 200% earned
|
|
N/A |
|
200%(3) |
(1) |
The end date of the performance period for these awards was extended from December 31, 2020 to December 31, 2024. |
(2) |
Each hurdle will be deemed to be achieved if, during any consecutive twenty-day trading period during the performance period, the average closing price of the Trust’s common shares of beneficial
interest exceeds such hurdle. |
(3) |
During 2021, the highest average closing price of the Trust’s common shares of beneficial interest for a twenty-day trading period represented an increase in the Trust’s share price of greater
than 100% from the consecutive twenty-day trading period ending on the grant date for the awards. As a result, these awards were earned at maximum (200%). Earned restricted share units will be settled in restricted shares that will vest on
December 31, 2024, subject to continued employment through such date. |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
45 |
Based on the Committee’s determination in February 2023 of the Trust’s performance set forth above for the “2022 PSU (Annual One-Year Period)” awards, our named
executives earned the following restricted share units for the one-year period from January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2022, which remain subject to vesting through March 1, 2025: Mr. Harper—42,486, Mr. Fitzmaurice—10,494, Mr. Collier—8,495, Ms.
Ohlberg—5,891, Mr. Merk—3,186.
2022 Compensation Determinations — Discussion
Base Salary
For 2022, as set forth in the table below, we increased the annual base salaries of all of our named executives officers. The base salary
increases for Messrs. Harper, Fitzmaurice and Collier and Ms. Ohlberg reflect moderate cost of living increases consistent with those generally provided to all of our officers across our organization who were in good standing, while Mr. Merk’s base
salary was further increased to align compensation paid by the Trust with competitive market rates.
Name |
|
2021 Annual Base Salary ($) |
|
2022 Annual Base Salary ($) |
|
Percentage Increase |
Brian L. Harper |
|
775,000 |
|
806,000 |
|
4.0% |
Michael P. Fitzmaurice |
|
475,000 |
|
494,000 |
|
4.0% |
Timothy Collier |
|
412,000 |
|
428,480 |
|
4.0% |
Heather R. Ohlberg |
|
400,000 |
|
416,000 |
|
4.0% |
Raymond J. Merk |
|
275,000 |
|
300,000 |
|
9.1% |
Annual Cash Bonus
2022 STIP. Pursuant to the 2022 STIP, all of our named executive officers received bonuses calculated by reference to the
performance goals established for the 2022 STIP, and, as a result, were eligible to earn bonuses either at, above or below pre-established target bonus amounts based on the Trust’s achievement of the 2022 STIP goals. The criteria selected as
performance goals for the 2022 STIP were selected because they were expected to be key shareholder value drivers of the Trust. The following outlines the reasons why the Committee selected such criteria for consideration in connection within the
2022 STIP:
|
• |
Operating FFO per share. Funds from operations (“FFO”) is a widely-used non-GAAP measure of financial performance for REITs to
assist investors and analysts in comparing results of real estate companies because it excludes the effect of real estate depreciation and amortization and net gain on sales, which are based on historical costs and implicitly assume that
the value of real estate diminishes predictably over time, rather than fluctuating based on existing market conditions. Operating funds from operations (“Operating FFO”) is an alternative measure of financial performance used by us because
it adjusts FFO for certain items that we believe enhance the comparability of our Operating FFO from period to period. Further details regarding the calculation of Operating FFO may be obtained from the detailed reconciliations included in
our quarterly earnings releases posted on our website. |
|
• |
Environmental, Social and Governance. ESG matters have become more and more important to the Trust and all its stakeholders,
including the Board of the Trust, our employees, our tenants, the communities in which we operate and our shareholders. We believe that advancement of these initiatives and values has become inseparable from the value of the trust, and that
achieving these goals will help us attract and retain vital employees, compete for premium tenants and ultimately enhance the value of our operating platform. The specific goals related to the following categories of ESG objectives: |
|
• |
Install LED lighting to advance the goal of reducing common area electricity consumption by 25% by the end of 2026. |
|
• |
Install smart irrigation projects to advance the goal of reducing common area water consumption by 20% by the end of 2024. |
|
• |
Execute new trash hauler contracts to divert 35% of common area generated waste from landfills by 2022 and advance goal of diverting 35% of
waste generated by program-compliant tenants by the end of 2023. |
|
• |
Continue to implement comprehensive and affordable health benefits and a robust wellness program that focuses on physical, mental and
financial wellbeing as well as employee focused policies including policies focusing on health and safety and flexible work arrangements. |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
46 |
|
• |
Execute strategic initiatives focusing on diversity and inclusion throughout the company and relationships with ethnic, racial and gender
diverse vendors and suppliers. |
|
• |
Continue to support charitable partners who align with the Trust’s purpose of Turning Commercial Ground into Common Ground. |
|
• |
Enhance the Trust’s vendor policy program by creating a new vendor policy rider for the Trust’s Vendor Code of Conduct and ESG
Sustainability Policy governing vendor conduct and including the new rider in 50% of contracts executed in 2022. |
|
• |
Enhance the vendor policy program by auditing vendor compliance with the Trust’s vendor policy. |
|
• |
Work with tenants to improve environmental conditions at shopping centers by including Green Lease language in 20% of
shop leases executed in 2022. |
|
• |
Strategy. This measure reflects the Committee’s overall assessment of the Trust’s internal and external strategic performance,
including the use of innovation to drive the business in an evolving landscape in order to achieve growth. The development and deployment of creative, novel solutions in a rapidly changing operating environment, like the one we have faced
over the last few years, to enhance and evolve our platform are vital to the Trust’s success and is therefore an important component of our 2022 STIP. |
The principal achievements of the Trust that the Committee considered in relation to these executive performance goals are discussed above in “—Executive
Summary—Key Highlights.”
The Committee established target bonus amounts as a percentage of annual base salary for each of our named executive officers under the 2022 STIP with no changes
from the percentages of annual base salary that were used in 2021, except for Mr. Collier whose target bonus percentage increased from 65% of his base salary to 75% of his base salary.
Under the 2022 STIP, the Committee had also established bonus payout levels for each named executive officer at threshold (50% of target incentive), target (100%
of target incentive) or maximum (200% of target incentive) for certain objective and subjective goals, with linear interpolation between such levels for the objective goal, but not the subjective goals. The 2022 STIP goals, the relative weight
given to each goal, the specific hurdles and the target and actual bonus amounts are set forth above under “—2022 Results and Earned Compensation.”
Long-Term Incentive Compensation
Following an extensive review of our compensation program, we modified the structure of our performance-based share unit awards for 2022 as set
forth in the table below. These changes were intended to increase alignment of management with our shareholders, and to increase the overall rigor of these awards.
Prior Awards (2021 and earlier) |
|
Current Awards (2022) |
|
Rationale for Change |
Performance Period. The awards had a single three-year performance period, with all earned awards vesting following the conclusion of such period. |
|
Performance Period. The awards have three equally weighted performance periods of one-year, two-years and three-years, with all earned awards vesting following the
conclusion the full three-year period. |
|
The one-, two- and three-year measurement approach aligns management incentives with our near, medium and long-term stock performance, which
appropriately reflects our shareholder base and their desired investment timeframes, and all earned awards only vest following the conclusion of the full three-year performance period. |
Peer Group. The Trust’s performance is based on its percentile rank relative to a small group of direct peer companies. |
|
Peer Group. The Trust’s performance is based on its percentile rank relative to 72 companies across all real estate sectors with equity market capitalizations of $5
billion or less that are constituents of the MSCI Equity REIT Index. |
|
Utilizing a broader peer set reduces short-term volatility and addresses the diminishing number of direct peer companies in our sector. |
Performance Hurdles. Awards are earned based on TSR relative to the peer group during the performance period as set forth below:
- Below 33rd percentile: 0% earned
- 33rd - 50th percentile: 50%-100% earned
- 50th - 90th percentile: 100%-200% earned
|
|
Performance Hurdles. Awards are earned based on TSR relative to the peer group during the performance period as set forth below:
- Below 30th percentile: 0% earned
- 30th - 55th percentile: 50%-100% earned
- 55th - 80th percentile: 100%-200% earned
|
|
Increasing the target performance hurdle from the 50th percentile to the 55th percentile increases the overall rigor of the awards,
and ensures that above-target payouts are only achieved as a result of above-median performance. |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
47 |
Annual Grants. In February 2022, the Committee approved long-term incentive compensation awards to the named executive officers in the amounts set forth below:
Name |
|
Long-Term Incentive
Plan Award
($) |
|
Target Restricted Share Units
(Performance-Based)
(#) |
|
Restricted Shares
(Service-Based)
(#) |
Brian L. Harper |
|
3,000,000 |
|
118,017 |
|
118,017 |
Michael P. Fitzmaurice |
|
741,000 |
|
29,150 |
|
29,150 |
Timothy Collier |
|
599,872 |
|
23,598 |
|
23,598 |
Heather R. Ohlberg |
|
416,000 |
|
16,365 |
|
16,365 |
Raymond J. Merk |
|
225,000 |
|
8,851 |
|
8,851 |
For 2022, consistent with 2021, the target amount of the long-term incentive compensation awards made to Mr. Harper equaled the contractual minimum amount set forth in the
employment agreement he entered into with the Trust in 2020. The target amounts of the long-term incentive compensation awards made to the remaining named executive officers were established as a percentage of each executive’s base salary based on
a review of competitive market data as follows: Mr. Fitzmaurice—150%; Mr. Collier—140%; Ms. Ohlberg: 100%; and Mr. Merk—75%.
The long-term incentive awards consisted one-half of grants of service-based restricted shares and one-half of performance-based restricted share units based on the amounts that
could be earned based on target performance.
The service-based restricted shares vest in three equal installments on the anniversaries of the date of grant, subject to continued employment. For these and future grants under
the Amended and Restated 2019 Omnibus Long-Term Incentive Plan, the Trust will retain all dividends that otherwise would have been paid on unvested restricted shares and those amounts will only be paid if and when the shares vest.
One-third of the performance-based restricted share units may be earned based on the percentile rank of our relative total shareholder return over the one-year period from
January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2022, the two-year period from January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2023 and the three-year period from January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2024 compared to a group of peer companies, as set forth in the following table, with
linear interpolation between the performance levels up to a maximum of 200%.
Performance Level |
|
Comparative Total Shareholder Return |
|
Percentage of Target Number of
Shares |
Threshold |
|
30th |
|
50% |
Target |
|
55th |
|
100% |
Maximum |
|
80th |
|
200% |
None of the restricted share units will be earned if our TSR is below the 30th percentile.
The peer companies utilized for purposes of these performance-based restricted share units are the following publicly traded REITs, representing the Trust’s compensation peers
and the constituents of the MSCI US REIT Index that, as of December 31, 2021, had a market capitalization of less than $5 billion: Acadia Realty Trust, Agree Realty Corporation, Alexander & Baldwin, Inc., Alexander’s Inc., American Assets
Trust, Inc., American Finance Trust, Inc., Apartment Investment and Management Company, Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc., Armada Hoffler Properties, Inc., Brandywine Realty Trust, CareTrust REIT, Inc., Cedar Realty Trust, Inc., Centerspace, Chatham
Lodging Trust, City Office REIT, Inc., Community Healthcare Trust Incorporated, CoreCivic, Inc., Corporate Office Properties Trust, DiamondRock Hospitality Company, DigitalBridge Group, Inc., Diversified Healthcare Trust, Easterly Government
Properties, Inc., Empire State Realty Trust, Inc., EPR Properties, Equity Commonwealth, Essential Properties Trust, Inc., Four Corners Property Trust, Inc., Franklin Street Properties Corp., Getty Realty Corp., Gladstone Commercial Corporation,
Global Medical REIT Inc., Global Net Lease, Inc., Healthcare Realty Trust Incorporated, Highwoods Properties, Inc., Hudson Pacific Properties, Inc., Industrial Logistics Properties Trust, iStar Inc., JBG SMITH Properties, Kite Realty Group Trust,
LTC Properties, Inc., LXP Industrial Trust, Monmouth Real Estate Investment Corporation, National Health Investors, Inc., NexPoint Residential Trust, Inc., Office Properties Income Trust, One Liberty Properties, Inc., Paramount Group, Inc., Park
Hotels & Resorts Inc., Pebblebrook Hotel Trust, Physicians Realty Trust, Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc., Retail Opportunity Investments Corp., RLJ Lodging Trust, Sabra Health Care REIT, Inc., Safehold Inc. Saul Centers, Inc., Seritage
Growth Properties,
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
48 |
Service Properties Trust, SITE Centers Corp., SL Green Realty Corp., Summit Hotel Properties, Inc., Sunstone Hotel Investors, Inc., Tanger Factory Outlet Centers, Inc., The GEO
Group, Inc., The Macerich Company, UMH Properties, Inc., Universal Health Realty Income Trust, Urban Edge Properties, Urstadt Biddle Properties Inc., Veris Residential, Inc., Washington Real Estate Investment Trust, Xenia Hotels & Resorts, Inc.
The Trust’s performance relative to this group of peer companies for the one-year period from January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2022 and the number of restricted share units
earned by our named executive officers are set forth above under “—2022 Results and Earned Compensation.” All of the performance-based restricted share units, whether or not earned as of December 31, 2022, are also subject to service-based vesting,
based on continued employment through March 1, 2025.
Upon satisfaction of both the specified performance measures and service-based vesting, any performance-based restricted share units earned will be settled in
the form of unrestricted shares. On the settlement date, the Trust will pay, in cash, an amount equal to the aggregate dividends that would have been paid with respect to the earned shares if such shares had been outstanding for the period from the
grant date of the performance-based restricted share units to the settlement date.
Executive Compensation and Related Policies and Considerations
Severance Arrangements
The Trust has employment agreements with Messrs. Harper and Fitzmaurice and offer letters with Messrs. Collier and Merk and Ms. Ohlberg that provide for
specified severance benefits, including termination upon a change in control. The Trust also has a Change in Control Policy applicable to executive officers of the Trust, which applies to Messrs. Collier and Merk and Ms. Ohlberg. In addition, our
performance-based restricted share units provide for acceleration of vesting and/or earning in connection with a change in control or termination of employment in certain circumstances. See “—Employment Agreements and Severance and Change in
Control Arrangements” below for a summary of these arrangements.
We believe that providing predetermined severance benefits for all of our executives in the event they are terminated without cause or terminate their employment for good reason
following a change in control helps to further align the interests of our executives and our shareholders in the event of a potentially attractive proposed change in control transaction following which one or more of our executives may be expected
to be terminated. We also believe that providing predetermined severance benefits for our executives in the event they are terminated without cause encourages these executives to engage in appropriate risk-taking activities and, because the
severance level is determined up front, makes it easier for us to terminate these executives without the need for protracted negotiations over severance. Additionally, many of our competitors have severance and change in control arrangements with
named executive officers and having such arrangements are critical for the attraction and retention of talented, well qualified executives.
Share Ownership Guidelines
The Trust’s share ownership guidelines for executive officers require our executive officers to hold directly a number of shares (including unvested restricted
shares) having a market value equal to a multiple of their then current base salary; the Chief Executive Officer’s multiple is six and all other executive officers’ multiple is five. The Committee reviews the minimum equity holding level and other
market trends and practices on a periodic basis. The Committee has confirmed that all executive officers currently satisfy the guidelines or are within the time period to become compliant.
Clawback Policy
The Trust has a clawback policy that allows the Trust to recoup cash and equity incentive compensation paid to, earned by or granted to our executive officers
during the three-year period preceding either a restatement of the Trust’s financial statements or the determination by the Committee that a material miscalculation of a performance metric occurred that resulted from fraud or any other intentional
misconduct by any of our executive officers. In such circumstances, the Trust may recoup the amount of cash and equity incentive compensation that was paid, earned or granted as a result of either the incorrectly reported financial results of the
Trust that were the subject of the restatement or the material miscalculation that would not have been paid, earned or granted, as applicable, if determined based on correctly reported financial results or the correct calculation of the performance
metric. Our clawback policy applies to all cash and equity performance-based incentive compensation with a performance period beginning on or after January 1, 2020, and may be updated from time to time to comply with applicable laws, regulations
and listing standards.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
49 |
Prohibition on Hedging and Pledging
The Trust has adopted an anti-hedging and pledging policy that prohibits its trustees and executive officers from (1) purchasing any financial instrument or
entering into any transaction that is designed to hedge or offset any decrease in the market value of the shares or other equity securities, and (2) pledging, hypothecating or otherwise encumbering shares or other equity securities as collateral
for indebtedness, including holding such shares in a margin account. The Trust does not have any practices or policies regarding the ability of any other employees to purchase financial instruments or otherwise engage in transactions that hedge or
offset, or are designed to hedge or offset, any decrease in the market value of the Trust’s equity securities.
Timing and Pricing of Share-Based Grants
The Trust does not coordinate the timing of share-based grants with the release of material non-public information. Annual equity grants for
executive officers and other employees are generally made at the first Committee meeting each year with a grant date as of such approval or shortly thereafter. Further, awards that are subject to performance measures are generally granted at the
first Committee meeting of the year following satisfaction of such performance measures. The Committee generally establishes dates for regularly scheduled meetings at least a year in advance.
Trading Limitations
In addition to the restrictions set forth in SEC regulations, the Trust has an insider trading policy, which among other things, prohibits Trustees, executive
officers and other employees from engaging in short sales, trading in options or participating in any other speculative investments relating to the Trust’s shares.
Change in Control Payments
Section 280G of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”) disallows a company’s tax deduction for “excess parachute payments,” generally defined
as payments to specified persons that are contingent upon a change in control in an amount equal to or greater than three times the person’s base amount (the five-year average of Form W-2 compensation). Additionally, Section 4999 of the Code
imposes a 20% excise tax on any person who receives such excess parachute payments.
The Trust’s share-based plans entitle participants to payments in connection with a change in control that may result in excess parachute payments. Further, the employment
agreements of Messrs. Harper and Fitzmaurice, the offer letters of Messrs. Collier and Merk, as well as the Change in Control Policy for the benefit of executive officers, entitle our named executive officers to payments upon termination of
employment following a change in control that may constitute excess parachute payments. In the event that any payment or benefit constitutes an excess parachute payment under Section 280G of the Code subject to an excise tax, the executive will not
be entitled to a tax gross-up payment; however, the executive’s payments and benefits would be reduced to the extent necessary to avoid such excise taxes, but only if such a reduction of pay or benefits would result in a greater after-tax benefit
to the executive.
Compensation Philosophy and Benchmarking
The Trust’s compensation program for named executive officers is designed to:
|
• |
establish and reinforce the Trust’s pay-for-performance philosophy; |
|
• |
motivate and reward the achievement of specific annual and long-term financial and strategic
goals of the Trust; |
|
• |
link actual compensation earned to the relative performance of the Trust’s total shareholder
return as compared against the peer companies; |
|
• |
attract, retain and motivate key executives critical to the Trust’s operations and strategies;
and |
|
• |
be competitive relative to peer companies. |
The Committee recognizes that a compensation program must be flexible to address all of its objectives.
The Committee engaged Meridian Compensation Partners LLC (“Meridian”), a nationally recognized third-party compensation consulting firm, to assist the Committee in determining
our executive compensation for 2022. Among other things, Meridian provided the Committee with competitive market data from a peer group developed by the Committee with the assistance of our Chief Executive Officer and Meridian. Our peer group,
along with other market data, used for benchmarking our executive compensation program for fiscal year 2022 was the same as our peer group for 2021, minus Retail Properties of America, Inc. and Weingarten Realty Investors, which were acquired by
Kite Realty Group Trust and Kimco Realty Corporation, respectively, and minus Washington Prime Group Inc., which filed for bankruptcy in 2021.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
50 |
Our 2022 peer group, which represented companies with similar businesses and annual revenues and market capitalization comparable to ours, included the following companies:
Acadia Realty Trust |
Saul Centers, Inc. |
Agree Realty Corporation |
Seritage Growth Properties |
Cedar Realty Trust, Inc.(1) |
Urban Edge Properties |
Kite Realty Group Trust |
Urstadt Biddle Properties, Inc. |
Retail Opportunity Investments Corp. |
|
(1) Cedar Realty Trust, Inc. became
a wholly owned subsidiary of Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust in August 2022 and ceased to be a publicly traded company.
The 2022 peer group data presented to the Committee included information regarding base salary, annual cash bonus, total annual compensation and long-term incentive compensation. For each of these categories,
Meridian presented information comparing our compensation to the compensation paid by these companies at the 25th, 50th and 75th percentiles for comparable positions. For purposes of 2022 compensation, the Committee used this peer group data to
gain a greater understanding of market practices in connection with establishing base salaries, target annual cash bonus amounts and target values for annual long-term incentive compensation, all of which were established in early 2022. The
Committee did not target a single percentile or range of percentiles to be used consistently for all of our executives, but rather used this information in connection with a number of factors, including, among others, the individual experience
and skills of, and expected contributions from, our executives, the difficulty that we would have in replacing each of our executives and current economic conditions.
In October 2022, the Committee evaluated and updated its peer group to address the reduction in size of its existing peer group resulting from recent industry consolidation, and to provide the Trust with a robust set
of peers when setting compensation. The expanded peer group will be used for compensation decisions beginning in 2023.
Our 2023 peer group represents companies of similar size, portfolio type, geographic footprint, pay strategy and that compete for the same type of talent, and includes the eight companies (which excludes Cedar Realty
Trust, Inc.) set forth above plus the additional following companies:
Brixmor Property Group Inc.
|
SITE
Centers Corp.
|
Getty Realty Corp.
|
Tanger
Factory
Outlet Centers, Inc.
|
NETSREIT Corp.
|
Wheeler
Real Estate Investment Trust, Inc.(1)
|
Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust
|
|
(1) Cedar Realty Trust, Inc. became a wholly owned subsidiary of Wheeler Real Estate
Investment Trust in August 2022 and ceased to be a publicly traded company.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
51 |
Compensation and Human Capital Committee Report
The Compensation and Human Capital Committee of the Board has reviewed and discussed the Compensation Discussion and Analysis (CD&A) in this proxy statement with management.
Based on such review and discussion, the Compensation and Human Capital Committee recommended to the Board that the CD&A be included in the Trust’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022 and the proxy statement for the
2023 annual meeting of shareholders.
The Compensation and Human Capital Committee
Arthur Goldberg (Chair)
Richard L. Federico
Laurie M. Shahon
Andrea M. Weiss
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
52 |
Compensation Risks
We reviewed our compensation policies and practices for employees to determine whether they encourage unnecessary or excessive risk-taking. Due to the greater emphasis placed on
incentive compensation at higher levels of our organization, and the fact that these individuals are more likely to make decisions that impact corporate performance and could have a material adverse effect on us, the review focused primarily on our
executive compensation policies and practices. Based on this review, we concluded that risks arising from our policies and practices for compensating employees are not reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on us. Our conclusion was
based primarily on the following findings:
|
• |
vesting schedules for restricted shares and restricted share units cause management to have a significant amount of
unvested awards at any given time; |
|
• |
our executive compensation program has a significant focus on long-term equity compensation; |
|
• |
the goals for our long-term incentive compensation program are based on overlapping performance periods and relative
TSR performance, reducing the impact of short-term volatility and aligning management with our long-term success; |
|
• |
incentive compensation opportunities are capped and therefore do not incentivize employees to maximize short-term
performance at the expense of long-term performance; |
|
• |
we have a clawback policy that will allow us to recoup incentive compensation in the event of a restatement or
material miscalculation that resulted from fraud or any other intentional misconduct by one of our executive officers; |
|
• |
our compensation levels and opportunities are in keeping with appropriate competitive practice; and |
|
• |
our executives and trustees are expected to maintain an ownership interest in our Trust, which aligns their interests
with those of shareholders. |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
53 |
Executive and Trustee Compensation Process
The Committee typically meets several times each year in connection with the consideration and determination of executive compensation. As the timing of many compensation
decisions follows a predictable annual schedule, regular meetings and general agenda topics are scheduled well in advance by the Committee. Special meetings are scheduled as needed by the Committee, and specific meeting agendas are prepared at the
direction of the chair of the Committee and our Chief Executive Officer. In certain circumstances, the Committee may also take actions by written consent to address compensation matters that have been previously discussed and/or are summarized by
our Chief Executive Officer, a consultant engaged by the Committee or other advisor to the Trust or the Committee.
The Committee of our Board has the authority to determine all compensation payable to our executive officers. In 2018, the Committee engaged Meridian to conduct a competitive
review of our executive compensation program, including a written report providing competitive analysis of compensation levels for our executives and Meridian’s recommendations with respect to the mix of our executive compensation and the structure
of our cash and equity incentive programs, which the Committee utilized in connection with negotiating employment arrangements with Messrs. Harper, Fitzmaurice and Collier during 2018. This report was subsequently used as the basis for structuring
2022 compensation, which was substantially consistent with 2021 compensation. The Committee and the chair of the Committee consulted with Meridian during early 2022 in connection with the finalization of 2022 compensation decisions regarding base
salaries and the target amounts for, and the structure of, our cash and equity incentive programs for 2022. For 2022, each executive’s target annual cash bonus was linked in a formulaic manner to the achievement of specific, objectively measurable
goals and certain subjective short-term and long-term goals that were communicated to each executive in February 2022.
For 2022, the Committee considered the recommendations of the Chief Executive Officer regarding the design and implementation of the executive compensation program because he has
significant involvement in, and knowledge of, the Trust’s business goals, strategies and performance, the overall effectiveness of the executive officers and each person’s individual contribution to the Trust’s performance. For each named executive
officer, the Committee was provided a compensation recommendation as well as information regarding historical earned compensation, the individual’s experience, current performance, potential for advancement and other subjective factors. The
Committee ultimately made all determinations regarding compensation payable to our executive officers.
In October 2021, the Committee engaged Meridian to evaluate the overall structure of the Trust’s non-employee trustee compensation and to conduct an extensive review. Following
this review, in consultation with Meridian, the Committee approved changes to better align our trustee compensation with market practice and to ensure the attraction and retention of qualified trustees. Effective January 1, 2022, the Trust
increased annual cash compensation for non-employee trustee compensation, increased the annual retainer for serving as the Chair of the Trust’s Audit committee and increased the annual compensation for serving as Chair of the Trust.
In compliance with the SEC and the NYSE requirements regarding independent of compensation consultants, Meridian provided the Committee with a letter
addressing each of the six independence factors. Their responses affirm the independence of Meridian and the partners, consultants and employees who service the Committee on executive compensation matters.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
54 |
Named Executive Officer Compensation Tables
Summary Compensation Table
The table below sets forth information regarding the total compensation paid to or earned by the named executive officers in 2022, 2021 and 2020.
Name and Principal Position |
|
Year |
|
Salary
($)(1) |
|
Bonus
($) |
|
Stock
Awards
($)(2) |
|
Non-Equity
Incentive Plan
Compensation
($) |
|
All Other
Compensation
($)(3) |
|
Total
($) |
Brian L. Harper |
|
2022 |
|
806,000 |
|
— |
|
3,431,934 |
|
1,435,688 |
|
3,200 |
|
5,676,822 |
President and CEO |
|
2021 |
|
789,904 |
|
— |
|
3,531,108 |
|
1,937,500 |
|
3,200 |
|
6,261,712 |
|
|
2020 |
|
678,029 |
|
823,438 |
|
6,544,214 |
|
— |
|
3,200 |
|
8,048,881 |
Michael P. Fitzmaurice |
|
2022 |
|
494,000 |
|
— |
|
847,683 |
|
563,160 |
|
4,000 |
|
1,908,843 |
Executive VP and CFO |
|
2021 |
|
484,135 |
|
— |
|
838,639 |
|
760,000 |
|
3,200 |
|
2,085,974 |
|
|
2020 |
|
445,265 |
|
323,000 |
|
1,501,894 |
|
— |
|
3,200 |
|
2,273,359 |
Timothy Collier |
|
2022 |
|
428,480 |
|
— |
|
686,230 |
|
457,938 |
|
4,000 |
|
1,576,648 |
Executive VP, Leasing |
|
2021 |
|
419,923 |
|
— |
|
678,911 |
|
618,000 |
|
3,200 |
|
1,720,034 |
|
|
2020 |
|
386,227 |
|
227,630 |
|
646,711 |
|
— |
|
3,200 |
|
1,263,768 |
Heather R. Ohlberg |
|
2022 |
|
416,000 |
|
— |
|
475,894 |
|
385,320 |
|
3,200 |
|
1,280,414 |
Executive VP, General Counsel
and Secretary |
|
2021 |
|
407,692 |
|
100,000 |
|
470,820 |
|
520,000 |
|
3,200 |
|
1,501,712 |
|
|
2020 |
|
374,750 |
|
221,000 |
|
327,530 |
|
— |
|
3,200 |
|
926,480 |
Raymond J. Merk |
|
2022 |
|
300,000 |
|
— |
|
257,387 |
|
213,750 |
|
36,545 |
|
807,682 |
Senior VP and Chief
Accounting Officer |
|
2021 |
|
280,288 |
|
— |
|
242,753 |
|
275,000 |
|
7,434 |
|
805,475 |
|
2020 |
|
257,548 |
|
93,500 |
|
267,386 |
|
— |
|
50,579 |
|
669,013 |
(1) |
For 2020, the amounts reported reflect the base salaries approved for our named executive officers in February 2020,
less amounts voluntarily forgone for no value but including amounts forgone in exchange for restricted shares pursuant to our salary reduction and exchange program, and, as a result, do not reflect the amounts actually paid to Messrs.
Harper, Fitzmaurice and Collier and Ms. Ohlberg. The actual amounts of base salary paid to these named executives in cash during 2020 were as follows: Mr. Harper—$581,058; Mr. Fitzmaurice—$415,529; Mr. Collier—$360,454; and
Ms. Ohlberg—$349,500. For 2021, the amounts reported reflect the base salaries for our named executive officers, plus the cash value of excess accrued vacation time paid to each named executive officer during 2021 as follows:
Mr. Harper—$14,904; Mr. Fitzmaurice—$9,135; Mr. Collier—$7,923; Ms. Ohlberg—$7,692; and Mr. Merk—$5,288. |
(2) |
The amounts reported reflect the grant date fair value (excluding the effect of estimated forfeitures). The awards in
the Stock Awards column for 2022, 2021 and 2020 relate to service-based restricted shares and performance-based restricted share units granted in 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively, but do not include the restricted shares our named
executive officers received in exchange for base salary in 2020 pursuant to our salary reduction and exchange program, which are included in the Salary column. The amounts reported reflect the aggregate grant date fair value computed in
accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718. The grant date fair value of each share of service-based restricted shares granted is calculated as the closing price of the shares as of the grant date. The grant date fair values of the
performance-based restricted share units are based on the probable outcome of the performance conditions on the grant date for financial statement reporting purposes under FASB ASC Topic 718 and consistent with the estimate of aggregate
compensation cost to be recognized over the service period determined as of the grant date under FASB ASC Topic 718, excluding the effect of estimated or actual forfeitures. |
|
The valuations of the annual performance-based restricted share units granted in 2022 based on relative TSR assume a risk free interest rate of 1.4% and share price volatility level of 58.5%. Assuming that
maximum performance is achieved under these performance-based restricted share units granted in 2022, the value at the grant date of these relative performance-based restricted share units would have been as follows: Mr. Harper—$2,999,992;
Mr. Fitzmaurice—$740,993; Mr. Collier—$599,861; Ms. Ohlberg—$415,998; and Mr. Merk—$224,992. The grant date fair value of awards granted to our named executive officers in 2022 is reflected in the “Grants of Plan-Based Awards in 2022” table. |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
55 |
(3) |
For 2022, the following named executive officers received payments and/or benefits included under “All Other Compensation”: |
|
a. |
Mr. Harper—$3,000 in 401(k) plan company match and $200 gift card; |
|
b. |
Mr. Fitzmaurice—$3,000 in 401(k) plan company match, $200 gift card and $800 HSA employer funding; |
|
c. |
Mr. Collier—$3,000 in 401(k) plan company match, $200 gift card and $800 HSA employer funding; |
|
d. |
Ms. Ohlberg—$3,000 in 401(k) plan company match and $200 gift card; and |
|
e. |
Mr. Merk—$32,745 for housing and travel reimbursements, which amount includes $15,010 for the tax gross up paid in connection with these
reimbursement, pursuant to Mr. Merk’s offer letter, $3,000 in 401(k) plan company match, $200 gift card and $600 HSA funding. |
Grants of Plan-Based Awards in 2022
The following table provides information about plan-based awards granted to the named executive officers in 2022.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Estimated Possible Payouts
Under Non-Equity
Incentive Plan Awards(1) |
|
Estimated Future Payouts
Under Equity
Incentive Plan Awards(2) |
|
All Other
Stock
Awards:
Number
of
Shares of
Stock or
Units
(#)(3) |
|
Grant
Date
Fair
Value
of Stock
and
Option
Awards
($)(4) |
Name |
|
Grant
Date |
|
Approval
Date |
|
Threshold
($) |
|
Target
($) |
|
Maximum
($) |
|
Threshold
(#) |
|
Target
(#) |
|
Maximum
(#) |
|
|
|
|
Brian L. Harper |
|
03/01/22 |
|
02/28/22 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
59,009 |
|
118,017 |
|
236,034 |
|
— |
|
1,931,938 |
|
|
03/01/22 |
|
02/28/22 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
118,017 |
|
1,499,996 |
|
|
— |
|
|
|
503,750 |
|
1,007,500 |
|
2,015,000 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
Michael P.
Fitzmaurice |
|
03/01/22 |
|
02/28/22 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
14,575 |
|
29,150 |
|
58,300 |
|
— |
|
477,186 |
|
|
03/01/22 |
|
02/28/22 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
29,150 |
|
370,497 |
|
|
— |
|
|
|
197,600 |
|
395,200 |
|
790,400 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
Timothy Collier |
|
03/01/22 |
|
02/28/22 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
11,799 |
|
23,598 |
|
47,196 |
|
— |
|
386,299 |
|
|
03/01/22 |
|
02/28/22 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
23,598 |
|
299,931 |
|
|
— |
|
|
|
160,680 |
|
321,360 |
|
642,720 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
Heather R.
Ohlberg |
|
03/01/22 |
|
02/28/22 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
8,183 |
|
16,365 |
|
32,730 |
|
— |
|
267,895 |
|
|
03/01/22 |
|
02/28/22 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
16,365 |
|
207,999 |
|
|
— |
|
|
|
135,200 |
|
270,400 |
|
540,800 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
Raymond J.
Merk |
|
03/01/22 |
|
02/28/22 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
4,426 |
|
8,851 |
|
17,702 |
|
— |
|
144,891 |
|
|
03/01/22 |
|
02/28/22 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
8,851 |
|
112,496 |
|
|
— |
|
|
|
75,000 |
|
150,000 |
|
300,000 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
— |
|
|
(1) |
Represents cash payouts that were possible pursuant to the 2022 STIP. See “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2022
Compensation Determinations—Discussion—Annual Cash Bonus—2022 STIP” for a description of these awards. |
(2) |
All awards in this column relate to shares of performance-based restricted shares under our Amended and Restated 2019
Omnibus Long-Term Incentive Plan (the “2019 Plan”). See “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2022 Compensation Determinations—Discussion—Long-Term Incentive Compensation” for a description of these amendments and awards. |
(3) |
All awards in this column relate to shares of service-based restricted shares under the 2019 Plan. |
(4) |
The amounts reported reflect the fair value computed in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718 for the service-based restricted shares and
performance-based restricted share units awarded in 2022 under the 2019 Plan. |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
56 |
Narrative Discussion of Summary Compensation and Grants of Plan-Based Awards Tables
Our executive compensation policies and practices, pursuant to which the compensation set forth in the Summary Compensation Table and the 2022 Grants of
Plan-Based Awards Table was paid or awarded, are described above under “— Compensation Discussion and Analysis.”
In 2022, we granted restricted share awards and performance-based restricted share units to each of our named executive officers under the 2019 Plan, as described in the Grants
of Plan-Based Awards in 2022 table. The vesting of each award is subject to acceleration in connection with certain termination triggering events as described below under “—Employment Agreements and Severance and Change in Control
Arrangements—Long-Term Incentive Plan Awards.”
For service-based awards made in 2022 under the 2019 Plan, we will retain all dividends that otherwise would have been paid on unvested restricted shares and those amounts will
only be paid if and when the shares vest. With respect to the annual performance-based restricted share units, holders are entitled to the accumulated value of dividends during the performance period. Once the performance-period for such annual
performance-based restricted share units ends, earned performance-based restricted share units will be settled in an equal number of shares. On the settlement date, the Trust will pay, in cash, an amount equal to the aggregate dividends that would
have been paid with respect to the earned shares if such shares had been outstanding for the period from the grant date of the performance-based restricted share units to the settlement date.
The terms of the employment agreements, offer letters and other agreements that we have entered into with our named executive officers are described below under “—Employment
Agreements and Severance and Change in Control Arrangements.”
Outstanding Equity Awards at December 31, 2022
The following table provides information on the holdings of equity awards by the named executive officers as of
December 31, 2022.
|
|
Stock Awards |
Name |
|
Number
of Shares or
Units of Stock
That Have Not
Vested
(#)(1) |
|
Market Value
of Shares or
Units of Stock
That Have Not
Vested
($)(2) |
|
Equity Incentive
Plan Awards:
Number of
Unearned Shares,
Units or
Other Rights
That Have
Not Vested
(#)(3) |
|
Equity
Incentive
Plan Awards:
Market or
Payout Value of
Unearned Shares,
Units or Other
Rights That
Have Not Vested
($)(2) |
Brian L. Harper |
|
1,053,236 |
|
10,574,489 |
|
1,236,117 |
|
12,410,610 |
Michael P. Fitzmaurice |
|
223,177 |
|
2,240,697 |
|
171,798 |
|
1,724,847 |
Timothy Collier |
|
106,392 |
|
1,068,176 |
|
129,890 |
|
1,304,096 |
Heather R. Ohlberg |
|
53,706 |
|
539,208 |
|
65,637 |
|
658,990 |
Raymond J. Merk |
|
40,187 |
|
403,477 |
|
35,477 |
|
356,189 |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
57 |
(1) |
Includes the following: |
Name |
|
2020
Extension
Awards |
|
2022
Awards(c) |
|
2021
Awards(d) |
|
2020
Awards(e) |
|
2018
Awards(f) |
|
2020
Absolute
Share
Price
Awards(g) |
|
Earned 2022
Performance
Awards(h) |
Brian L. Harper |
|
215,208(a) |
|
118,017 |
|
95,694 |
|
31,831 |
|
— |
|
550,000 |
|
42,486 |
Michael P. Fitzmaurice |
|
71,736(b) |
|
29,150 |
|
22,726 |
|
9,071 |
|
— |
|
80,000 |
|
10,494 |
Timothy Collier |
|
— |
|
23,598 |
|
18,398 |
|
5,901 |
|
— |
|
50,000 |
|
8,495 |
Heather R. Ohlberg |
|
— |
|
16,365 |
|
12,758 |
|
3,692 |
|
— |
|
15,000 |
|
5,891 |
Raymond J. Merk |
|
— |
|
8,851 |
|
6,578 |
|
2,626 |
|
946 |
|
18,000 |
|
3,186 |
|
(a) |
Represents restricted shares granted as an extension award in connection with Mr. Harper’s employment agreement, which will vest on June 30, 2025, subject to continued employment through such date. |
|
(b) |
Represents restricted shares granted as an extension award in connection with Mr. Fitzmaurice’s employment agreement, which will vest on June 30, 2024, subject to continued employment through such date. |
|
(c) |
Represents unvested restricted share awards granted for 2022, with one-third scheduled to vest on each of March 1, 2023, 2024 and 2025, subject to continued employment through such dates. |
|
(d) |
Represents unvested restricted share awards granted for 2021, with one-third having vested on February 11, 2022 and one-third scheduled to vest on each of February 11, 2023 and 2024, subject to continued
employment through such dates. |
|
(e) |
Represents unvested restricted share awards granted for 2020, with one-third having vested on each of March 1, 2021 and 2022 and one-third scheduled to vest on March 1, 2023, subject to continued employment
through such date. |
|
(f) |
Represents unvested restricted share unit awards granted for 2018, with one-fifth having vested on each of March 1, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022 and one-fifth scheduled to vest on each of March 1, 2023, subject to
continued employment through such date. |
|
(g) |
Represents unvested performance-based restricted share units granted in 2020. Based on increases in the Trust’s absolute share price during the performance period, the restricted share units were earned at
maximum performance level. The earned restricted share units will be settled in restricted shares that will vest on December 31, 2024, subject to continued employment through such date. |
|
(h) |
Represents unvested performance-based restricted share units granted in 2022 that were earned based on the Trust’s performance relative to a group of peer companies during the period from January 1, 2022 through
December 31, 2022. These restricted share units will be settled in restricted shares that will vest on March 1, 2025, subject to continued employment through such date. |
(2) |
Based upon the $10.04 closing price of the Trust’s shares on the NYSE on December 30, 2022, the last business day of the fiscal year. |
(3) |
Reflects performance-based restricted share units that were outstanding and for which the performance period had not ended as of December 31, 2022. The number of these performance-based units that were
outstanding as of December 31, 2022, which equals the target amount that could be earned, is set forth in the table below. In accordance with SEC rules, the number of units set forth in the table above includes the threshold, target or
maximum amount, as applicable, of the performance-based restricted share units that may be earned based on the Trust’s performance during the applicable performance period as of December 31, 2022. |
Name |
|
2022
Performance-
Based
Awards(a) |
|
2021
Performance-
Based
Awards(b) |
|
2020
Performance-
Based
Awards(c) |
|
2018
Performance-
Based
Inducement
Awards |
|
2018
Performance-
Based
Restricted
Share Unit
Awards(g) |
Brian L. Harper |
|
78,678 |
|
143,541 |
|
95,493 |
|
371,966(d) |
|
— |
Michael P. Fitzmaurice |
|
19,433 |
|
34,091 |
|
27,215 |
|
25,571(e) |
|
— |
Timothy Collier |
|
15,732 |
|
27,598 |
|
17,704 |
|
17,189(f) |
|
— |
Heather R. Ohlberg |
|
10,910 |
|
19,139 |
|
11,077 |
|
— |
|
— |
Raymond J. Merk |
|
5,901 |
|
9,868 |
|
7,878 |
|
— |
|
4,731 |
|
(a) |
Represents performance-based restricted share units granted in 2022. Each award provides the opportunity to earn and receive shares equal to
between 50% and 200% of the number of restricted share units subject to the award after the end of the one-, two- and three-year performance periods from January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2022, January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2023
and January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2024 based on total shareholder return compared to a group of peer companies. Earned restricted share units will be settled in restricted shares that will vest on March 1, 2025, subject to continued
employment. Based on our performance for the one-year performance period ending December 31, 2022, we earned 108% of the restricted share units, which are described in the table in footnote one, above. Assuming our relative performance for
the two-year performance period continues to be the same as we experienced from January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2023, the restricted share units would have been earned at a level between target and maximum performance. Assuming our
relative performance for the three-year performance period continues to be the same as we experienced from January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2024, the restricted share units would have been earned at a level between target and maximum
performance. |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
58 |
|
(b) |
Represents performance-based restricted share units granted in 2021. Each award provides the opportunity to earn and
receive shares equal to between 50% and 200% of the number of restricted share units subject to the award after the end of the three-year performance period from January 1, 2021 through December 31, 2023, based on total shareholder return
compared to a group of peer companies. Earned restricted share units will be settled in restricted shares that will vest on February 11, 2024, subject to continued employment. Assuming our relative performance for the three-year performance
period continues to be the same as we experienced from the beginning of the performance period through December 31, 2022, the restricted share units would have been earned at target performance. |
|
(c) |
Represents performance-based restricted share units granted in 2020. Each award provides the opportunity to earn and
receive shares equal to between 50% and 200% of the number of restricted share units subject to the award after the end of the three-year performance period from January 1, 2020 through December 31, 2022, based on total shareholder return
compared to a group of peer companies. Based on our relative performance for the three-year performance period through December 31, 2022, the number of restricted share units that would have been earned at threshold performance is shown in
the table above, though none of the restricted share units were ultimately earned. All of the restricted share units were forfeited upon the Committee’s determination of the Trust’s performance in February 2023. |
|
(d) |
Represents performance-based restricted share units granted in 2018. The award provides the opportunity to earn and
receive shares equal to between 50% and 200% of the number of restricted share units subject to the award after the end of the performance period from June 15, 2018 through December 31, 2024, based on total shareholder return compared to a
group of peer companies. Earned restricted share units will be settled in restricted shares that will vest on December 31, 2024, subject to continued employment. Assuming our relative performance for the multi-year performance period
continues to be the same as we experienced from the beginning of the performance period through December 31, 2022, the restricted share units would have been earned at target performance. |
|
(e) |
Represents performance-based restricted share units granted in 2018. The award provides the opportunity to earn and
receive shares equal to between 50% and 200% of the number of restricted share units subject to the award after the end of the performance period from June 18, 2018 through December 31, 2024, based on total shareholder return compared to a
group of peer companies. Earned restricted share units will be settled in restricted shares that will vest on December 31, 2024, subject to continued employment. Assuming our relative performance for the multi-year performance period
continues to be the same as we experienced from the beginning of the performance period through December 31, 2022, the restricted share units would have been earned at target performance. |
|
(f) |
Represents performance-based restricted share units granted in 2018. The award provides the opportunity to earn and
receive shares equal to between 50% and 200% of the number of restricted share units subject to the award after the end of the performance period from August 6, 2018 through December 31, 2024, based on total shareholder return compared to a
group of peer companies. Earned restricted share units will be settled in restricted shares that will vest on December 31, 2024, subject to continued employment. Assuming our relative performance for the multi-year performance period
continues to be the same as we experienced from the beginning of the performance period through December 31, 2022, the restricted share units would have been earned at target performance. |
|
(g) |
Represents performance-based restricted share units granted in 2018. The award provides the opportunity to earn and receive shares equal to
between 50% and 200% of the number of restricted share units subject to the award after the end of the three-year performance period from January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2024, based on total shareholder return compared to a group of
peer companies. Earned restricted share units will be settled in restricted shares that will vest on December 31, 2024, subject to continued employment. Assuming our relative performance for the multi-year performance period continues to be
the same as we experienced from the beginning of the performance period through December 31, 2022, the restricted share units would have been earned at a level between threshold and target performance. |
Option Exercises and Stock Vested In 2022
The following table provides information on restricted share awards held by each named executive officer that vested in 2022. No options were exercised by named executive
officers in 2022.
|
Stock Awards |
Name |
Number of Shares
Acquired on Vesting
(#) |
Value Realized
on Vesting
($)(1) |
Brian L. Harper |
112,870 |
1,428,190 |
Michael P. Fitzmaurice |
28,733 |
363,778 |
Timothy Collier |
21,324 |
269,762 |
Heather R. Ohlberg |
11,753 |
147,870 |
Raymond J. Merk |
10,342 |
131,846 |
(1) |
Amounts reflect the market value of the Trust’s shares on the vesting date. |
Employment Agreements and Severance and Change in Control Arrangements
The following section describes the employment agreements and offer letters that we have with the named executive officers as well as other severance or change in control
agreements, arrangements or policies, including applicable terms of the equity awards, pursuant to which we have agreed to make payments or provide benefits to our named executive officers in connection with a termination of employment or change in
control. The Trust, in its discretion, may also decide to provide payments or benefits that are not specifically required pursuant to these agreements, arrangements or policies in connection with any particular termination or change in control.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
59 |
Brian L. Harper’s Employment Agreement
The Trust entered into an employment agreement with Mr. Harper on June 11, 2020, which superseded the employment agreement the Trust entered into with Mr. Harper
in April 2018. The term of Mr. Harper’s employment under the employment agreement is through June 30, 2025, and will automatically renew for successive one-year periods unless either party provides written notice of non-renewal. Under the
employment agreement, Mr. Harper is entitled to (1) receive an annual base salary of no less than $775,000, which will be reviewed annually, (2) participate in the Trust’s short-term incentive program (i.e., annual cash bonus program), with a
target award each year equal to 125% of annual base salary and (3) participate in the Trust’s long-term incentive program, with a target award that is not less than $3,000,000.
The employment agreement also entitled Mr. Harper to receive an extension equity award consisting of restricted shares valued at $1,500,000 based on the closing price of the
Trust’s common shares on June 11, 2020, which equity award will vest in full on June 30, 2025. Mr. Harper’s employment agreement provides for other benefits, such as paid vacation, and health and insurance benefits, that are generally consistent
with both Mr. Harper’s prior employment agreement and with the benefits provided to the Trust’s other executive officers.
If Mr. Harper’s employment is terminated by the Trust during the term without cause or by Mr. Harper for good reason, subject to the execution and non-revocation of a general
release and waiver, Mr. Harper will be entitled to receive the following:
|
• |
an amount equal to 1.5 times (or, if the termination occurs within two years after a change in control, 2.0 times) the sum of Mr. Harper’s
annual base salary and annual short-term incentive program award (calculated based on the average award for Mr. Harper’s previous two most recently completed bonus years for which bonus determinations have already been communicated or, if
the termination occurs within two years after a change in control, the target award amount), each for the calendar year in which the termination occurs and payable in equal monthly installments for a period of 18 months (or, if the
termination occurs within two years after a change in control, 24 months) following the date of termination; |
|
• |
any earned but not yet paid incentive awards for already completed years or award cycles, payable pursuant to and in accordance with the
terms and conditions of such plans and award agreements; provided, that any short-term incentive program payment for a calendar year completed prior to the date of termination will be paid irrespective of whether Mr. Harper is employed by
the Trust on the payment date; |
|
• |
the pro rata portion of the short-term incentive program award for the year of termination, based on actual performance; |
|
• |
continued health benefits for a period of up to 18 months; and |
|
• |
with respect to equity awards held by Mr. Harper, the following treatment: (1) immediate vesting of the extension award granted in
connection with Mr. Harper’s new employment agreement and (2) with respect to all other outstanding equity awards, treatment in accordance with the terms set forth in the award agreements evidencing such equity awards. |
In the event that a change in control occurs and any payment or benefit constitutes an excess “parachute payment” under Section 280G of the IRC, subject to an excise tax,
Mr. Harper will not be entitled to a tax gross-up payment; however, his payments and benefits would be reduced to the extent necessary to avoid such excise taxes, but only if such a reduction of pay or benefits would result in a greater after-tax
benefit to Mr. Harper. Additionally, in the event that a change in control occurs within 24 months prior to the scheduled expiration of the term, Mr. Harper may extend the term until the date that is 24 months after the change in control to ensure
that the severance protections provided by the Harper Agreement apply for the full negotiated period following a change in control.
If Mr. Harper’s employment is terminated during the term because of his death or disability, subject to the execution and non-revocation of a general release and waiver,
Mr. Harper, or his estate, will be entitled to the same payments and benefits as he would have received upon a termination by the Trust without cause or by Mr. Harper for good reason, except that (1) the performance-based restricted share units
granted as an inducement equity award pursuant to Mr. Harper’s prior agreement will remain outstanding and vest based on actual performance through the end of the performance period and (2) a pro rata portion of the extension award granted in
connection with Mr. Harper’s current employment agreement will vest based on the portion of the period from July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2025 that has elapsed.
During employment and thereafter, Mr. Harper is subject to confidentiality and non-disparagement requirements. During employment and for 12 months after the
termination of employment, Mr. Harper is subject to non-competition requirements. During employment and for 24 months after the termination of employment, Mr. Harper is subject to non-solicitation requirements.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
60 |
Michael P. Fitzmaurice’s Employment Agreement
The Trust entered into an employment agreement with Mr. Fitzmaurice on June 11, 2020, which superseded the employment agreement the Trust entered into with Mr. Fitzmaurice in June 2018. The term of Mr. Fitzmaurice’s employment under the employment
agreement is through June 30, 2024, and will automatically renew for successive one-year periods unless either party provides written notice of non-renewal. Under the employment agreement, Mr. Fitzmaurice is entitled to (1) receive an annual base
salary of no less than $475,000, which will be reviewed annually, (2) participate in the Trust’s short-term incentive program (i.e., annual cash bonus program), with a target award each year equal to 80% of annual base salary and (3) participate in
the Trust’s long-term incentive program, with a target award that is not less than $712,500.
The employment agreement also entitled Mr. Fitzmaurice to receive an extension equity award consisting of restricted common shares of beneficial interest in the Trust valued at
$500,000 based on the closing price of the Trust’s common shares on June 11, 2020, which equity award will vest in full on June 30, 2024 (the “Fitzmaurice Extension Award”). Mr. Fitzmaurice’s employment agreement provides for other benefits, such
as paid vacation, and health and insurance benefits, that are generally consistent with both Mr. Fitzmaurice’s prior employment agreement and the benefits provided to the Trust’s other executive officers.
If Mr. Fitzmaurice’s employment is terminated by the Trust during the term without cause or by Mr. Fitzmaurice for good reason, subject to the execution and non-revocation of a
general release and waiver, Mr. Fitzmaurice will be entitled to receive the following:
|
• |
an amount equal to 1.0 times (or, if the termination occurs within two years after a change in control, 2.0 times) the sum of
Mr. Fitzmaurice’s annual base salary and target annual short-term incentive program award, each for the calendar year in which the termination occurs and payable in equal monthly installments for a period of 12 months (or, if the
termination occurs within two years after a change in control, 24 months) following the date of termination; |
|
• |
any earned but not yet paid incentive awards for already completed years or award cycles, payable pursuant to and in accordance with the
terms and conditions of such plans and award agreements; provided, that any short-term incentive program payment for a calendar year completed prior to the date of termination will be paid irrespective of whether Mr. Fitzmaurice is employed
by the Trust on the payment date; |
|
• |
the pro rata portion of the short-term incentive program award for the year of termination, based on actual performance (or, if the
termination occurs within two years after a change in control, at target); |
|
• |
continued health benefits for a period of up to 12 months (or, if the termination occurs within two years after a change in control, 18
months); and |
|
• |
with respect to equity awards held by Mr. Fitzmaurice, the following treatment: (1) immediate vesting of the extension award granted in
connection with Mr. Fitzmaurice’s new employment agreement and (2) with respect to all other outstanding equity awards, treatment in accordance with the terms set forth in the award agreements evidencing such equity awards. |
In the event that a change in control occurs and any payment or benefit constitutes an excess “parachute payment” under Section 280G of the IRC, subject to an excise tax,
Mr. Fitzmaurice will not be entitled to a tax gross-up payment; however, his payments and benefits would be reduced to the extent necessary to avoid such excise taxes, but only if such a reduction of pay or benefits would result in a greater
after-tax benefit to Mr. Fitzmaurice. In addition, in the event that a change in control occurs within 24 months prior to the scheduled expiration of the term, Mr. Fitzmaurice may extend the term until the date that is 24 months after the change in
control to ensure that the severance protections provided by the Fitzmaurice Agreement apply for the full negotiated period following a change in control.
If Mr. Fitzmaurice’s employment is terminated during the term because of his death or disability, subject to the execution and non-revocation of a general release and waiver,
Mr. Fitzmaurice, or his estate, will be entitled to the same payments and benefits as he would have received upon a termination by the Trust without cause or by Mr. Fitzmaurice for good reason, except that a pro rata portion of the extension award
granted in connection with Mr. Fitzmaurice’s new employment agreement will vest based on the portion of the period from July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2024 that has elapsed.
During employment and thereafter, Mr. Fitzmaurice is subject to confidentiality and non-disparagement requirements. During employment and for 12 months after
the termination of employment, Mr. Fitzmaurice is subject to non-competition requirements. During employment and for 24 months after the termination of employment, Mr. Fitzmaurice is subject to non-solicitation requirements.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
61 |
Timothy Collier’s Offer Letter
The Trust entered into an offer letter with Mr. Collier on June 25, 2018. Under the offer letter, Mr. Collier is entitled to (1) an annual base salary of $400,000, (2) an annual bonus target equal to 65% of annual base salary, with a maximum equal
to 150% of target and (3) participate in the Trust’s long-term incentive program, with a target award equal to $450,000.
The offer letter also entitled Mr. Collier to receive inducement equity awards consisting of (1) restricted shares valued at $225,000 based on the closing price on the day prior
to Mr. Collier’s start date, vesting ratably on each of the first three anniversaries of the grant date and (2) performance-based restricted share units, with a number of units at target equal to $225,000 based on the closing price on the day prior
to Mr. Collier’s start date, entitling Mr. Collier to earn up to 200% of the target amount based on the Trust’s relative TSR during a performance period from the grant date to December 31, 2020 as compared to peer companies, which performance
period has been extended to now conclude on December 31, 2024. Mr. Collier’s employment agreement provides for other benefits, such as paid vacation, and health and insurance benefits, generally consistent with those provided to the Trust’s
executive officers.
Pursuant to the offer letter, if Mr. Collier’s employment is terminated without cause, subject to the execution and non-revocation of a general release and waiver, he will be
entitled to receive the following:
|
• |
an amount equal to one times (or, if the termination occurs in connection with a change in control, 1.5 times) the sum of Mr. Collier’s
annual base salary and his target bonus; |
|
• |
the pro rata portion of his annual bonus for the year of termination, based on actual performance; |
|
• |
a lump sum reimbursement for health benefits for one year of coverage; and |
|
• |
accelerated vesting in full and payout at target, if the performance period had not already ended, of Mr. Collier’s inducement equity
awards. |
Heather R. Ohlberg’s Offer Letter
The Trust entered into an offer letter with Ms. Ohlberg on October 5, 2018. Under the offer letter, Ms. Ohlberg is entitled to (1) an annual base salary of $270,000, (2) an annual bonus target equal to 50% of annual base salary and (3) participate
in the Trust’s long-term incentive program, with a target award equal to 45% of base compensation.
Pursuant to the offer letter, if Ms. Ohlberg’s employment is terminated without cause, subject to the execution and non-revocation of a general release and waiver, she will be
entitled to receive the following:
|
• |
an amount equal to one times the sum of Ms. Ohlberg’s annual base salary, plus a prorated annual bonus based on actual performance for the
year of termination following the date of termination; and |
|
• |
a lump sum reimbursement for health benefits for one year of coverage. |
Raymond J. Merk’s Offer Letter
The Trust entered into an offer letter with Mr. Merk on July 9, 2019. Under the offer letter, Mr. Merk is entitled to (1) an annual base salary of $250,000, (2) an annual bonus target equal to 40% of annual base salary, (3) participate in the
Trust’s long-term incentive program, with a target award equal to $187,500 and (4) monthly housing reimbursement equal to $2,000, with annual increases commensurate with annual rent increases and a tax gross up.
Pursuant to the offer letter, if Mr. Merk’s employment is terminated without cause, subject to the execution and non-revocation of a general release and waiver, he will be
entitled to receive the following:
|
• |
an amount equal to one times the sum of Mr. Merk’s annual base salary, plus a prorated annual bonus based on actual performance for the
year of termination following the date of termination; |
|
• |
a lump sum reimbursement for health benefits for one year of coverage; and |
|
• |
reimbursement for any remaining term of Mr. Merk’s apartment lease. |
Long-Term Incentive Plan Awards
Pursuant to the terms of the 2012 Plan and the 2019 Plan, and the applicable employment agreements and award agreements entered into with our named executive officers, upon a termination due to death or disability of an executive, the executive’s
outstanding unvested service-based restricted shares will generally fully vest. Outstanding unvested performance-based restricted share units granted as annual performance-based awards in 2020, 2021 and 2022 under the 2019 Plan will not be
forfeited and will be earned, in full, based on actual performance through the end of the performance period. Performance-based awards granted in 2018, including those granted under the Trust’s Inducement Incentive Plan and under the 2012 Plan,
as well as the one-time absolute share price awards granted in 2020 under the 2019 Plan, will be earned based on performance achieved as of the date of termination and the full amount of restricted share units earned will vest as of such date.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
62 |
In the event of a change in control, as defined in the applicable equity plan, any outstanding awards granted under the 2012 Plan and 2019 Plan that are not honored, assumed or
substituted by the successor of the Trust (or one of its affiliates) or the Trust, if it is the surviving entity, will vest, with performance-based awards generally vesting at target levels for the annual performance-based awards granted in 2020,
2021 and 2022 under the 2019 Plan. To the extent outstanding awards are honored, assumed or substituted, no accelerated vesting will occur, but performance-based awards will be converted into service-based awards at the greater of actual
performance or target levels for the annual performance-based awards granted in 2020, 2021 and 2022 under the 2019 Plan. In addition, in such event, performance-based awards granted in 2018, including those granted under the Trust’s Inducement
Incentive Plan and under the 2012 Plan, as well as the one-time absolute share price awards granted in 2020 under the 2019 Plan, will convert into service-based awards based on actual performance. In the event of a termination of an executive’s
service by the surviving entity without cause or by the executive for good reason within a specified period following such change in control, all of such honored, assumed or substituted outstanding unvested awards will vest. The 2012 Plan and the
2019 Plan also provide that awards may only be treated as honored, assumed or substituted if they are based on shares which are traded on an established securities market and otherwise have substantially equivalent or better economic value and
other rights and entitlements, including vesting and payment terms.
In connection with any other termination of an executive, except as set forth in an employment agreement (as summarized above) with respect to certain awards, the awards granted
under the 2012 Plan and 2019 Plan to our named executive officers generally provide that all unvested restricted shares or restricted share units (whether service-based or performance-based) will be forfeited unless the Committee decides otherwise.
In addition, the performance-based awards granted in 2018, including those granted under our Inducement Incentive Plan, as well as the one-time absolute share price awards granted in 2020 under the 2019 Plan, will vest upon a termination of the
executive without cause or by the executive for good reason, subject to proration in the case of such performance-based awards based on actual performance and the portion of the performance period that had elapsed.
In 2018, in connection with the hiring of Messrs. Harper, Fitzmaurice and Collier, we granted each of these executives equity awards under our Inducement Incentive Plan. The
treatment of the performance-based restricted share units granted as inducement awards for each of these executives is generally set forth above.
The 2012 Plan, the 2019 Plan and the Inducement Incentive Plan all also include terms providing that vesting, payments or other benefits for an executive that would constitute
excess “parachute payments” under Section 280G of the IRC, subject to an excise tax will not be received if such a reduction would result in the executive receiving a greater after-tax amount.
Change in Control Policy
The Trust maintains a Change in Control Policy for the benefit of the executive officers of the Trust except the executive officers with employment agreements that supersede the Change in Control Policy. Under the Change in Control Policy, if an
executive’s employment is terminated by the Trust without cause or by the executive for good reason within one year following a change in control, the executive is entitled to an amount equal to two times (or 2.99 times for the Chief Executive
Officer, to the extent applicable) the sum of the executive’s annual base salary and target annual bonus, each for the calendar year in which the termination occurs; provided that, other than for the Chief Executive Officer, such payment, plus all
other compensation amounts considered to be contingent on the change in control for purposes Section 280G of the Code shall not exceed 2.99 times the executive’s base amount for purposes of Section 280G.
The Change in Control Policy does not limit the provisions of any employment agreements with executives, but the payment due will be reduced by the amount of any severance or
other separation payments (other than accelerated vesting of equity awards) provided for in any employment agreements or other arrangements. During the term of the employment agreements with Messrs. Harper and Fitzmaurice, the Change in Control
Policy is superseded for those executives by the terms of their employment agreements.
The Change in Control Policy may be terminated by the Trust; provided that it will remain in effect with respect to any change in control that occurs prior to or within one year
following such termination.
Change in Control/Severance Payment Table as of December 31, 2022
The following table estimates the potential payments and benefits to the named executive officers upon termination of employment or a change in control, assuming such event occurs on December 31, 2022, based on the terms of agreements, arrangements
and policies in effect on such date and assuming that no additional discretionary payments or benefits are made. These estimates do not reflect the actual amounts that would be paid to such persons, which would only be known at the time that they
become eligible for payment and would only be payable if the specified event occurs.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
63 |
Change in Control and Severance Payments as of December 31, 2022
|
Death or
Disability
($) |
|
Change in
Control
($)(3) |
Termination
Without Cause or
for Good Reason
($)(11) |
|
Termination Without
Cause or for Good
Reason Following Change in Control
($) |
|
Brian L. Harper |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cash severance |
3,279,704 |
(4) |
— |
3,279,704 |
(4) |
3,627,000 |
(5) |
2022 pro rata bonus |
1,435,688 |
|
— |
1,435,688 |
|
1,435,688 |
|
Acceleration of service-based awards (1) |
3,546,178 |
|
— |
2,160,688 |
|
4,625,930 |
|
Acceleration of performance-based awards (1) |
9,256,539 |
(10) |
— |
4,745,797 |
|
12,936,121 |
|
Benefits continuation (2) |
45,812 |
|
— |
45,812 |
|
45,812 |
|
Total |
17,563,920 |
|
— |
11,667,689 |
|
22,670,550 |
|
Michael P. Fitzmaurice |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cash severance |
889,200 |
(6) |
— |
889,200 |
(6) |
1,778,400 |
(4) |
2022 pro rata bonus |
563,160 |
|
— |
563,160 |
|
563,160 |
|
Acceleration of service-based awards (1) |
1,062,298 |
|
— |
720,229 |
|
1,332,137 |
|
Acceleration of performance-based awards (1) |
1,059,933 |
|
— |
547,061 |
|
1,894,593 |
|
Benefits continuation (2) |
25,870 |
|
— |
25,870 |
|
51,740 |
|
Total |
3,600,461 |
|
— |
2,745,521 |
|
5,620,031 |
|
Timothy Collier |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cash severance |
— |
|
— |
775,710 |
(7) |
1,150,630 |
(8) |
2022 pro rata bonus |
— |
|
— |
457,938 |
|
457,938 |
|
Acceleration of service-based awards (1) |
480,886 |
|
— |
— |
|
480,886 |
|
Acceleration of performance-based awards (1) |
674,578 |
(10) |
— |
347,973 |
|
1,385,285 |
|
Benefits continuation (2) |
— |
|
— |
— |
|
— |
|
Total |
1,155,463 |
|
— |
1,581,621 |
|
3,474,739 |
|
Heather R. Ohlberg |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cash severance |
— |
|
— |
440,071 |
(7) |
1,372,800 |
(9) |
2022 pro rata bonus |
— |
|
— |
385,320 |
|
— |
|
Acceleration of service-based awards (1) |
329,463 |
|
— |
— |
|
329,463 |
|
Acceleration of performance-based awards (1) |
150,600 |
(10) |
— |
78,505 |
|
631,414 |
|
Benefits continuation (2) |
— |
|
— |
— |
|
— |
|
Total |
480,063 |
|
— |
903,896 |
|
2,333,676 |
|
Raymond J. Merk |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cash severance |
— |
|
— |
320,334 |
(7) |
900,000 |
(9) |
2022 pro rata bonus |
— |
|
— |
213,750 |
|
— |
|
Acceleration of service-based awards (1) |
190,770 |
|
— |
— |
|
190,770 |
|
Acceleration of performance-based awards (1) |
216,344 |
(10) |
— |
112,019 |
|
490,487 |
|
Benefits continuation (2) |
— |
|
— |
— |
|
— |
|
Total |
407,114 |
|
— |
646,102 |
|
1,581,257 |
|
(1) |
Represents the number of service-based and performance-based restricted shares and restricted share units, as applicable, that would have vested upon the occurrence of the applicable event
multiplied by $10.04, which is the closing price of one of the Trust’s common shares on the NYSE on December 30, 2022, the last business day of 2022. |
(2) |
Benefits continuation amounts are based on the actual expense for financial reporting purposes for covering an employee under the medical plan elected by such named executive officer as of December 31, 2022 for
the duration of their severance period. |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
64 |
(3) |
Does not include equity awards that by their terms only vest to the extent outstanding awards are not honored, assumed or substituted in the manner permitted pursuant to the 2012 Plan and the
2019 Plan in connection with the change in control or performance-based awards granted under the Inducement Incentive Plan and the 2019 Plan that convert, pursuant to their terms, into service-based awards upon a change in control. As of
December 31, 2022, additional service-based and performance-based equity awards having the following aggregate values would have vested upon a change in control of the Trust if such awards were not honored, assumed or substituted in the
manner permitted pursuant to the 2012 Plan and the 2019 Plan in connection with the change in control based on a share value of $10.04, the closing price of one share on the NYSE on December 30, 2022, the last business day of 2022, for each
unvested restricted share or restricted share unit: Mr. Harper —$8,305,512; Mr. Fitzmaurice—$2,166,798; Mr. Collier—$1,191,593; Ms. Ohlberg—$810,276; and Mr. Merk—$464,913. In addition, under the 2019 Plan and the Inducement Incentive Plan,
the following numbers of unvested performance-based restricted share units would have been converted into an equal number of service-based awards in connection with a change in control on December 31, 2022: Mr. Harper—921,966;
Mr. Fitzmaurice—105,571; Mr. Collier—67,189; Ms. Ohlberg—15,000; and Mr. Merk—21,548. |
(4) |
Represents eighteen months of base salary and one and one-half times the average of the annual cash bonus for the two most recently completed years for which annual cash bonus was determined
as of December 31, 2022. |
(5) |
Represents two years of base salary and target annual cash bonus as of December 31, 2022. |
(6) |
Represents twelve months of base salary and target annual cash bonus as of December 31, 2022. |
(7) |
Represents a lump sum payment equal to twelve months of base salary, including an estimated amount to provide for continuing benefits for a period of twelve months. For Mr. Collier, includes
target annual cash bonus as of December 31, 2022. |
(8) |
Represents a lump sum payment equal to eighteen months of base salary and one and one-half times target annual cash bonus as of December 31, 2022, including an estimated amount to provide for
continuing benefits for a period of twelve months. |
(9) |
Represents two years of base salary and target annual cash bonus as of December 31, 2022. |
(10) |
Does not include certain performance-based restricted share units that vest upon death or disability, but the payout, if any, will occur at the end of the performance period based on actual
results pursuant to the terms of the award. Information regarding the value of unvested performance-based restricted share units that were outstanding as of December 31, 2022 is set forth above in “Named Executive Officer Compensation
Tables—Outstanding Equity Awards at December 31, 2022.” |
(11) |
For Messrs. Collier and Merk, payments and benefits are only provided in connection with a termination by the Trust without cause. |
Items Not Reflected in Table
Items not reflected in the table set forth below include but are not limited to:
|
• |
Accrued salary and vacation. |
|
• |
Life insurance proceeds in the event of death. |
|
• |
Disability insurance payouts in the event of disability. |
|
• |
Welfare benefits provided to all salaried employees having substantially the same value. |
|
• |
Amounts outstanding under the Trust’s 401(k) plan. |
Equity Compensation Plan Information
The following table sets forth information regarding our equity compensation plans as of December 31, 2022.
Plan Category |
|
Number of securities to be
issued upon exercise of
outstanding options,
warrants and rights
(a) |
|
Weighted-average
exercise price of
outstanding options,
warrants and rights
(b) |
|
Number of
securities
remaining available for
future issuances under
equity compensation
plans
(excluding securities
reflected in column (a))
(c) |
Equity compensation plans approved by security holders |
|
|
|
|
|
|
2019 Plan |
|
1,884,141(1) |
|
$—(2) |
|
2,062,318(3) |
2012 Plan |
|
49,210(4) |
|
—(5) |
|
— |
Subtotal |
|
1,933,351 |
|
— |
|
2,062,318 |
Equity compensation plans not approved by security holders(6) |
|
829,452 |
|
— |
|
— |
Total |
|
2,762,803 |
|
$— |
|
2,062,318 |
(1) |
Includes (i) 1,862,162 shares issuable pursuant to performance-based restricted share units outstanding as of December 31, 2022 at the
maximum level of performance and (ii) 21,979 deferred shares. |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
65 |
(2) |
Because there is no exercise price associated with the performance-based restricted share units or the deferred shares, such units and shares are not included in the weighted average exercise
price. |
(3) |
Represents shares remaining available for issuance under the 2019 Plan. We adopted the 2019 Plan on April 29, 2019 and will not make future grants or awards under the 2012 Plan. |
(4) |
Includes (i) 3,080 shares issuable under restricted share units subject to service-based vesting, (ii) 9,462 shares issuable pursuant to performance-based restricted share units outstanding
as of December 31, 2022 at the maximum level of performance and (iii) 36,668 deferred shares. |
(5) |
Because there is no exercise price associated with the performance-based restricted share units or the deferred shares, such units and shares are not included in the weighted average exercise
price. |
(6) |
Includes shares issuable pursuant to performance-based restricted share units outstanding as of December 31, 2022 at the maximum level of performance. Because there is no exercise price
associated with the performance-based restricted share units, such units are not included in the weighted average exercise price. |
Inducement Incentive Plan
For a description of the Inducement Incentive Plan refer to Note 15 of the notes to the Trust’s consolidated financial statements included in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, filed with the SEC on
February 17, 2023.
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
66 |
Chief Executive Officer Pay Ratio
The Trust’s chief executive officer to median employee pay ratio was calculated in accordance with SEC requirements. However, due to the flexibility afforded by Item 402(u) of
Regulation S-K in calculating the pay ratio, the ratio presented herein is a reasonable estimate and may not be comparable to the pay ratio presented by other companies.
The Trust identified the median employee by examining 2022 compensation for all employees of the Trust excluding the President and Chief Executive Officer. As permitted by SEC
rules, employee compensation for full fiscal 2022 as reported in the Trust’s internal 401(k) reports was used as the compensation measure to identify the Trust’s median employee. The Trust believes that the use of this compensation measure is
reasonable since it includes all cash components of the Trust’s employee compensation: annual base salary, overtime pay, target short-term cash incentive compensation and employer benefit costs.
The employee population used to identify the Trust’s median employee included all employees of the Trust, whether employed on a full-time, part-time, or seasonal basis, as of
December 26, 2022. The compensation measure described above was consistently applied to this entire employee population. The Trust did not make any assumptions, adjustments, or estimates with respect to the employee population or the compensation
measure and did not annualize the compensation for any employees that were not employed by the Trust for all of 2022. After identifying the median employee based on the compensation measure described above, the Trust calculated annual total
compensation for the median employee using the same methodology used for our named executive officers as set forth in the “Summary Compensation Table” herein.
As illustrated in the table below, in 2022, the Trust’s President and Chief Executive Officer’s annual total compensation was 55 times that of the Trust’s median employee.
|
President &
Chief Executive Officer |
Median Employee |
2022 Annual Total Compensation |
$5,676,822 |
$103,720 |
Total Annual Compensation Pay Ratio |
55 |
1 |
RPT REALTY 2023 PROXY STATEMENT |
67 |