Nordson Corporation management check
NDSN · Industrials · Industrial Machinery & Supplies & Components · CEO Sundaram Nagarajan
Filings as of
4 good · 1 to watch · 1 flagged, across the seven questions below.
- Flag
Have owners done well?
Trailed its chosen peers$100 invested at the start of fiscal 2021 grew to $127, against $207 for the peer group the company picked itself.
- Good
Does pay follow performance?
Pay rose and fell with returnsOver 5 years, the CEO's pay actually paid (equity valued at the share price) had a correlation of 0.90 with shareholder return. 1 means pay moved in step; below 0, the opposite way.
- Watch
What does the CEO cost owners?
1.7% of net income$8.2m of reported pay in fiscal 2025, against $484.5m of net income.
- n/a
Do they own the stock?
No recent CEO filingLight activity: no buys, $876k sold in six months.
- Good
Are owners being diluted?
Share count shrinkingDiluted shares changed -0.6% a year over the last three fiscal years. Stock-based pay was 0.7% of revenue in the latest year.
- Good
Is leadership stable?
8 leadership filings in 3 yearsCEO in the pay table: Sundaram Nagarajan. 8 filings under 8-K item 5.02 (officers or directors leaving or joining, or new pay arrangements) in the last 3 years.
- Good
Are the books clean?
No red flags on fileNo restatements, auditor changes or late filings since 2021.
Against the S&P 500
Each check's score (0–100) and how it compares: the share of ranked S&P 500 companies it matches or beats, and the median in Industrials.
| Check | Score | At or above | Sector median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner returns | 2 | 55 | |
| Pay for performance | 95 | 86 | |
| CEO cost | 31 | 48 | |
| Skin in the game | — | — | 55 |
| Dilution | 58 | 62 | |
| Stable leadership | 85 | 75 | |
| Clean books | 100 | 100 |
Closest peers
Others in Industrial Machinery & Supplies & Components, by management score. Nordson Corporation is 55th of 81 in its sector.
- 120HUBBHubbell Incorporated75
- 123GWWW. W. Grainger74
- 151PHParker Hannifin72
- 170OTISOtis Worldwide71
- 179SNASnap-on70
- 196DOVDover Corporation69
- 197IRIngersoll Rand69
- 213PNRPentair68
- 286XYLXylem Inc.62
- 293NDSNNordson Corporation62
Pay versus performance
From the proxy statement filed January 16, 2026. "Actually paid" values stock awards at the share price, so it rises and falls with the stock.
| Fiscal year | CEO | CEO pay | Actually paid | Other executives (avg) | $100 became | Peers | Net income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Sundaram Nagarajan | $8.2m | $7.2m | $2.2m | $127 | $207 | $484.5m |
| 2024 | — | $8.6m | $11.0m | $1.9m | $132 | $169 | $467.3m |
| 2023 | — | $7.1m | $4.3m | $2.3m | $113 | $138 | $487.5m |
| 2022 | — | $8.4m | $7.6m | $2.5m | $118 | $129 | $513.1m |
| 2021 | — | $10.3m | $11.9m | $3.1m | $133 | $142 | $454.4m |
The board says pay is tied most to Total Operating Profit. Its other key measures: EPS Growth, ROIC, EBITDA Margin, Total Revenue.
Insiders and the CEO's stake
Light activity: no buys, $876k sold in six months.
- SoldDaniel Roy HopgoodEVP, CFO$444kAug 26, 2026
- SoldJoseph M RutledgeVP, CAO$212kSep 15, 2026
- SoldMilton Mayo MorrisDirector$133kOct 14, 2026
- SoldJennifer L McdonoughEVP, GC, and Secretary$87kAug 27, 2026
Leadership and governance on file
- Oct 28, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jul 14, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jun 11, 2025Leadership change8-K/A 5.02
- Apr 29, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Apr 23, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Feb 20, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jan 16, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Oct 23, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jul 27, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Sep 15, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Apr 11, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Feb 2, 2022Leadership change8-K/A 5.02
Latest shareholder vote results: Mar 4, 2026, including the say-on-pay vote.
Where the money went
Over 2021–2025: $1.5bn returned to owners in buybacks and dividends, 61% of net income, and $114.1m of pay in stock.
| Fiscal year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $2.4bn | $2.6bn | $2.6bn | $2.7bn | $2.8bn |
| Net income | $454.4m | $513.1m | $487.5m | $467.3m | $484.5m |
| Stock-based pay | $22.8m | $30.7m | $22.7m | $19.0m | $18.9m |
| Buybacks | $61.0m | $262.9m | $89.7m | $33.3m | $306.4m |
| Dividends | $97.7m | $125.9m | $150.4m | $161.4m | $179.1m |
| Diluted shares | 59m | 58m | 58m | 58m | 57m |
Educational only, not investment advice. Figures are as filed with the SEC: pay from the proxy's pay-versus-performance table, capital allocation from 10-K XBRL data, insider trades from Form 4s over the last six months, events from the last 5 years of filings. The peer group is the one the company chose. See the method.