Velarion · Company Intelligence
Compensation Brief
Fiscal year 2025 · Filings through 2026-06-26

Foster L B (FSTR)

Fiscal year 2025 executive and director compensation, incentive-plan design, equity activity, and governance — every figure in this brief is traceable to its exact location in the company’s SEC filing — the document, the section, the page, and the table, linked directly.

$2,920,512
John Kasel total, FY2025
46th
CEO pay percentile vs peers
CEO-to-median pay ratio
99.78%
Say-on-pay support, latest vote
Companies that benchmark against FSTR
15 companies name FSTR as a compensation peer

Each company listed discloses FSTR in its own benchmarking peer group, as disclosed in each company's most recent proxy statement within the last two proxy seasons. Two companies are therefore absent by design: one that named FSTR in an earlier year and no longer does, and one whose own most recent disclosure is older than the last two seasons.

01

Summary Compensation Table — fiscal year 2025

Named executive officerSalaryBonusStock awardsOption awardsNon-equity incentivePension / NQDCAll otherTotal
John Kasel$790,417$0$1,319,357$0$654,400$0$156,338$2,920,512
President and CEO
Brian Kelly390,6460320,4070176,6090584,6261,472,288
Former EVP and Senior Advisor to the CEO
William Thalman436,6150376,9540234,707095,9821,144,258
EVP and Chief Financial Officer
Patrick Guinee408,9580343,9810202,012082,3951,037,346
EVP, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary
Gregory Lippard363,4210278,016068,958074,753785,148
SVP, Rail

A dash means the company reported no figure in that column; 0 means it reported zero. Figures are as printed in the filing, without adjustment.

Three-year trend — total compensation per named executive

Named executive officerFY2025 totalFY2024 totalFY2023 totalΔ FY20242025
John Kasel$2,920,512$3,075,320$2,857,653−154,808
Brian Kelly1,472,2881,071,9431,024,987+400,345
William Thalman1,144,2581,211,6901,159,545−67,432
Patrick Guinee1,037,3461,095,8701,040,825−58,524
Gregory Lippard785,1481,000,488843,704−215,340

Prior-year totals as disclosed in the corresponding proxy; deltas are computed values with the derivation shown in the register.

02

Equity transactions since the proxy statement was filed

No insider equity transactions reported since the proxy statement.

03

Grants of plan-based awards — fiscal year 2025

ExecutiveAwardGrant dateThresholdTargetGrantedMaximumGrant-date fair value
Patrick GuineeRSU2025-05-227,378$137,600
Patrick GuineePSU2025-05-225,53311,06622,132206,381
John KaselPSU2025-05-2221,22342,44684,892791,618
John KaselRSU2025-05-2228,297527,739
Brian KellyRSU2025-05-226,872128,163
Brian KellyPSU2025-05-225,15410,30820,616192,244
Gregory LippardRSU2025-05-225,963111,210
Gregory LippardPSU2025-05-224,4728,94417,888166,806
William ThalmanPSU2025-05-226,06412,12724,254226,169
William ThalmanRSU2025-05-228,085150,785
03b

Vehicle mix — grant-date fair value by award type

Named executive officerTime-vested (RSU)Performance-vested (PSU)Options / SARs% performance-vested
Patrick Guinee$137,600$206,381$060.0%
John Kasel527,739791,618060.0%
Brian Kelly128,163192,244060.0%
Gregory Lippard111,210166,806060.0%
William Thalman150,785226,169060.0%

% performance-vested = PSU grant-date fair value ÷ (RSU + PSU + Options), a computed value with the derivation shown in the register.

04

Outstanding equity awards at fiscal year-end 2025

ExecutiveAwardShares unvestedExercise priceMarket value unvested
John KaselRSU162,382$4,376,195
John KaselPSU55,0441,483,436
William ThalmanRSU50,4101,358,550
Patrick GuineeRSU44,3701,195,772
Gregory LippardRSU36,420981,519
Brian KellyRSU29,349790,956
William ThalmanPSU17,551472,999
Patrick GuineePSU16,217437,048
Gregory LippardPSU13,351359,809
05

Incentive-plan design — the Compensation Discussion & Analysis

The Company's compensation philosophy facilitates the attraction and retention of talented and qualified executives and seeks to align executive compensation with Company performance by rewarding initiative and positive financial and operating results. Compensation opportunities are determined with reference to the 50th percentile or median of the market, and the program avoids highly-leveraged incentives that could drive risky short-term behavior.

CEO STI target (% of salary)
CEO LTI target (% of salary)
Independent consultantPay Governance
Clawback policytrue
Anti-hedgingtrue
Anti-pledgingtrue
06

Say-on-pay — recent advisory votes

Meeting yearMeeting dateForAgainstAbstainSupportOutcome
20262026-05-217,556,42416,54510,47999.78%Passed
20252025-05-228,731,033101,07835,60598.86%Passed
20242024-05-228,170,12523,15923,26999.72%Passed
20232023-05-256,896,8351,066,504598,15486.61%Passed
20222022-06-026,926,9071,607,0546,92281.17%Passed
20212021-05-276,241,8031,198,601166,20483.89%Passed

Rows are labeled by annual-meeting year, with the meeting date beside each; the vote held in a given year acts on the prior fiscal year's compensation.

Say-on-pay — history, company's computation

Meeting yearMeeting dateApproval — company's computation
20262026-05-2199.78%a
20252025-05-2298.86%b
20242024-05-2299.72%c

a. Approved under the standard stated in the filing — “Abstentions are not considered to be votes cast on this proposal and will have no effect on the vote for this proposal.”.

b. Approved under the standard stated in the filing — “Abstentions are not considered to be votes cast on this proposal and will have no effect on the vote for this proposal.”.

c. Approved under the standard stated in the filing — “Abstentions are not considered to be votes cast on this proposal and will have no effect on the vote for this proposal.”.

Approval percentages are the company's own reported computations under its own stated standard, not recomputed by Velarion. Where a company does not state a standard, none is assumed.

08

Director compensation — fiscal year 2025

DirectorCash feesStock awardsOption awardsNon-equity incentiveAll otherTotal
Raymond T. BetlerIndependent · Board Chair · Compensation$145,000$90,000$235,000
Diane B. OwenIndependent · Audit · Compensation · Nomination and Governance (Chair) · Corporate Responsibility82,50090,000172,500
Bruce E. ThompsonIndependent · Audit (Chair) · Nomination and Governance · Corporate Responsibility82,50090,000172,500
John E. KunzIndependent · Audit · Compensation (Chair) · Corporate Responsibility82,50090,000172,500
David J. MeyerIndependent · Nomination and Governance · Corporate Responsibility (Chair)72,00490,000162,004
Alexander B. JonesIndependent · Departed during FY66,95790,000156,957
Janet LeeIndependent · Departed during FY51,80090,000141,800
John F. KaselEmployee director0
09

Board fee structure and ownership guideline

Annual cash retainer$70,000
Annual equity retainer$90,000
Per board meeting fee
Committee chair fees (audit / comp / nom-gov)12,500 / 12,500 / 12,500
Stock ownership guideline$4
09b

Total cost of the board

ComponentFY2025
Cash retainers and fees$583,261
Equity awards (grant-date value)$630,000
All other compensation$0
Total cost of the board$1,213,261

Computed as the sum of the director compensation table rows above; inputs and formula shown in the register.

10

Disclosed peer group — fiscal year 2025

The compensation peer group as the company disclosed it in its own proxy — the reference set behind the percentile above.

10a

Peer reciprocity

Of the companies Foster L B names as compensation peers, which name it back in their own disclosed peer groups. A peer set the market reciprocates reads differently from one selected in a single direction.

Reciprocity shown where the peer's own current proxy has been read — each mark is cited in the register to that peer's filing. A dash means the peer's current proxy was read and names no reciprocal group including Foster L B.

10b

Chief executive pay against the peer group

Most recent fiscal-year chief executive compensation at each disclosed peer, taken from that company's own proxy statement.

RankCompanyFYChief executiveSalaryStock awardsOption awardsNon-equity incentiveTotal
1NPK International Inc.2025Matthew Lanigan$754,000$4,058,537$0$3,339,632$8,196,160
2Columbus McKinnon Corporation2026David Wilson925,0003,111,978925,000925,0005,971,066
3Quanex Building Products Corporation2025George Wilson950,0001,853,4250737,5783,635,424
4Hawkins, Inc.2026Patrick Hawkins743,2692,062,3930736,9843,607,894
5NWPX Infrastructure, Inc.2025Scott Montross732,1821,280,06101,464,3643,492,930
6InSteel Industries Inc.2025H.o. Woltz III750,000562,506562,4891,500,0003,447,259
7LSI Industries Inc.2025James Clark752,7701,500,0000494,1703,376,388
8Foster L B2025John Kasel790,4171,319,3570654,4002,920,512
9Haynes International, Inc.2023Michael Shor700,0011,080,122297,499452,3852,610,143
10Twin Disc, Incorporated2025John Batten704,6981,033,8300495,6102,411,245
11The Gorman-Rupp Company2025Scott King717,500750,000002,187,652
12Orion Group Holdings, Inc.2025Paul McDowell584,000659,9060746,9362,080,319
13Ampco-Pittsburgh Corporation2025J. Brett McBrayer718,750701,7820600,9532,065,460
14Tredegar Corporation2025John Steitz937,560000984,438
Manitex International, Inc.not in coverage universe
Ascent Industries Co.not in coverage universe

Each peer's compensation is from its most recently filed proxy; fiscal years differ by company. Each peer's figures come from its own filings; the subject company is highlighted. Peers whose chief executive compensation is outside our coverage universe are stated as such, never left blank.

10c

Incentive design against the same peers

CompanyAnnual incentive payoutLong-term vehicle mixPSU measures include TSRCompensation consultant
Foster L Bnot disclosedPSU 60 · Restricted Stock 40not disclosedPay Governance
Ampco-Pittsburgh Corporationnot disclosedPSU 67 · RSU 33not disclosedPay Governance LLC
Ascent Industries Co.not disclosednot disclosednot disclosednot disclosed
Columbus McKinnon Corporation100%PSU 50 · RSU 25 · Options 25NoMeridian Compensation Partners
Hawkins, Inc.not disclosedPRSU 100not disclosedMcLagan
Haynes International, Inc.64.6%PSU 37.5 · RSU 37.5 · Options 25Yes — Relative Total Shareholder Return (TSR)Total Rewards Strategies
InSteel Industries Inc.200%RSU 50 · Options 50not disclosedPearl Meyer & Partners, LLC
LSI Industries Inc.68.2%PSU 60 · RSU 40NoFrederic W. Cook & Co., Inc.
Manitex International, Inc.not disclosednot disclosednot disclosednot disclosed
NPK International Inc.not disclosedRSU 50 · PRSU 50not disclosedZayla Partners, LLC
NWPX Infrastructure, Inc.not disclosedPSU 75 · RSU 25not disclosedWillis Towers Watson
Orion Group Holdings, Inc.not disclosedPSU 60 · RSU 40Yes — absolute TSR performanceFerguson Partners Consulting L.P.
Quanex Building Products Corporationnot disclosedPerformance Shares 40 · Restricted Stock 30 · PRSU 30not disclosedFrederic W. Cook & Co., Inc.
The Gorman-Rupp Companynot disclosedPSU 60 · RSU 40NoSemler Brossy Consulting Group
Tredegar Corporationnot disclosednot disclosednot disclosednot disclosed
Twin Disc, Incorporatednot disclosednot disclosednot disclosedPay Governance, LLC

Read from each company's Compensation Discussion and Analysis: annual incentive payout as a percentage of target, the disclosed long-term vehicle mix, whether performance-share measures include a total shareholder return component, and the retained compensation consultant. “Not disclosed” appears only where the company's filing does not state the item.

11

Source register

Each figure's location is given both for the eye (section · page · table · row · column) and for a script (table/row/column index and exact character span in the filed document). Any figure can be independently confirmed against the source.

#SupportsDocumentFiledAccessionLocation in document
1Section 01, John KaselDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE – 2025, 2024, AND 2023” · page 39. As printed: 2,920,512. Filing ↗machine: r2 · c21 · span 731507–731517
2Section 01, Brian KellyDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE – 2025, 2024, AND 2023” · page 39. As printed: 1,472,288. Filing ↗machine: r10 · c21 · span 762765–762775
3Section 01, William ThalmanDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE – 2025, 2024, AND 2023” · page 39. As printed: 1,144,258. Filing ↗machine: r6 · c21 · span 747056–747066
4Section 01, Patrick GuineeDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE – 2025, 2024, AND 2023” · page 39. As printed: 1,037,346. Filing ↗machine: r14 · c21 · span 778485–778495
5Section 01, Gregory LippardDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE – 2025, 2024, AND 2023” · page 39. As printed: 785,148. Filing ↗
6Section 03, Patrick Guinee RSUDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 902118–902125
7Section 03, Patrick Guinee PSUDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 896961–896968
8Section 03, John Kasel PSUDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 836783–836790
9Section 03, John Kasel RSUDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 841899–841906
10Section 03, Brian Kelly RSUDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 882015–882022
11Section 03, Brian Kelly PSUDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 876858–876865
12Section 03, Gregory Lippard RSUDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 922067–922074
13Section 03, Gregory Lippard PSUDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 917081–917088
14Section 03, William Thalman PSUDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 856801–856808
15Section 03, William Thalman RSUDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 861958–861965
16Section 08, Raymond T. BetlerDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 235,000. Filing ↗machine: span 231055–231234
17Section 08, Diane B. OwenDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 172,500. Filing ↗machine: span 240408–240587
18Section 08, Bruce E. ThompsonDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 172,500. Filing ↗machine: span 242348–242526
19Section 08, John E. KunzDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 172,500. Filing ↗machine: span 234854–235033
20Section 08, David J. MeyerDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 162,004. Filing ↗machine: span 238646–238825
21Section 08, Alexander B. JonesDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 156,957. Filing ↗machine: span 232823–233002
22Section 08, Janet LeeDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 141,800. Filing ↗machine: span 236613–236792
23Section 08, John F. KaselDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. Filing ↗
24Section 06, 2026 voteForm 8-K2026-05-220000352825-26-000033Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 99.78% (votes for as printed: 7,556,424). Filing ↗
25Section 06, 2025 voteForm 8-K2025-05-270000352825-25-000078Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 98.86% (votes for as printed: 8,731,033). Filing ↗
26Section 06, 2024 voteForm 8-K2024-05-240000352825-24-000142Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 99.72% (votes for as printed: 8,170,125). Filing ↗
27Section 01 trend, Δ column (computed)ComputedcomputedΔ = current-FY total − prior-FY total per named officer.machine: formula: Δ = FY(n) − FY(n−1)
28Section 03b vehicle mix (computed)ComputedcomputedRSU / PSU / Options grant-date fair values summed per officer from the grants table; % performance-vested = PSU ÷ (RSU+PSU+Options).machine: formula: sums + PSU ratio
29Section 09b board cost (computed)ComputedcomputedCash 583,261 + equity 630,000 + all other 0 = 1,213,261, summed across the director compensation table rows.machine: formula: Σ = 1,213,261
30NPK International Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-04-090000071829-26-000017CEO total compensation as printed in NPK International Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 8,196,160. Filing ↗machine: span 593230–593239
31Columbus McKinnon Corporation, Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-06-260001005229-26-000032CEO total compensation as printed in Columbus McKinnon Corporation's own proxy. As printed: 5,971,066. Filing ↗machine: r4 · c24 · span 1007169–1007178
32Quanex Building Products Corporation, Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-01-280001104659-26-007408CEO total compensation as printed in Quanex Building Products Corporation's own proxy. As printed: 3,635,424. Filing ↗machine: r1 · c48 · span 843908–843917
33Hawkins, Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-06-180000046250-26-000026CEO total compensation as printed in Hawkins, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 3,607,894. Filing ↗machine: r2 · c42 · span 275539–275548
34NWPX Infrastructure, Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-04-230001437749-26-013175CEO total compensation as printed in NWPX Infrastructure, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 3,492,930. Filing ↗machine: r2 · c20 · span 1026421–1026430
35InSteel Industries Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-01-020001308179-26-000001CEO total compensation as printed in InSteel Industries Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 3,447,259. Filing ↗machine: t164 · r1 · c8 · span 469403–469412
36LSI Industries Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2025-09-190001437749-25-029410CEO total compensation as printed in LSI Industries Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 3,376,388. Filing ↗machine: r2 · c32 · span 338547–338556
37Foster L B (subject), Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-04-100001140361-26-014171CEO total compensation as printed in Foster L B's own proxy. As printed: 2,920,512. Filing ↗machine: r2 · c21 · span 731507–731517
38Haynes International, Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2024-01-090001558370-24-000150CEO total compensation as printed in Haynes International, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 2,610,143. Filing ↗machine: t160 · r8 · c26 · span 700331–700340
39Twin Disc, Incorporated, Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2025-09-150001437749-25-029012CEO total compensation as printed in Twin Disc, Incorporated's own proxy. As printed: 2,411,245. Filing ↗machine: span 566177–566186
40The Gorman-Rupp Company, Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-03-230001193125-26-118757CEO total compensation as printed in The Gorman-Rupp Company's own proxy. As printed: 2,187,652. Filing ↗machine: r4 · c31 · span 557814–557823
41Orion Group Holdings, Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-03-200001873923-26-000073CEO total compensation as printed in Orion Group Holdings, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 2,080,319. Filing ↗machine: r4 · c39 · span 433823–433832
42Ampco-Pittsburgh Corporation, Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-03-270001193125-26-127659CEO total compensation as printed in Ampco-Pittsburgh Corporation's own proxy. As printed: 2,065,460. Filing ↗machine: r3 · c14 · span 1153868–1153877
43Tredegar Corporation, Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-03-250001628280-26-020996CEO total compensation as printed in Tredegar Corporation's own proxy. As printed: 984,438. Filing ↗machine: r4 · c27 · span 433265–433272
44Section 10a, Columbus McKinnon Corporation reciprocityDEF 14A0001005229-26-000032Columbus McKinnon Corporation names Foster L B in its own disclosed peer group (read from its most recent proxy). Filing ↗
45Section 10a, NPK International Inc. reciprocityDEF 14A0000071829-26-000017NPK International Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Foster L B. Filing ↗
46Section 10a, Orion Group Holdings, Inc. reciprocityDEF 14A0001873923-26-000073Orion Group Holdings, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Foster L B. Filing ↗
47Section 10a, The Gorman-Rupp Company reciprocityDEF 14A0001193125-26-118757The Gorman-Rupp Company names Foster L B in its own disclosed peer group (read from its most recent proxy). Filing ↗
48Section 10a, LSI Industries Inc. reciprocityDEF 14A0001437749-25-029410LSI Industries Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Foster L B. Filing ↗
49Section 10a, Haynes International, Inc. reciprocityDEF 14A0001558370-24-000150Haynes International, Inc. names Foster L B in its own disclosed peer group (read from its most recent proxy). Filing ↗
50Section 10a, Ampco-Pittsburgh Corporation reciprocityDEF 14A0001193125-26-127659Ampco-Pittsburgh Corporation names Foster L B in its own disclosed peer group (read from its most recent proxy). Filing ↗
51Section 10a, Twin Disc, Incorporated reciprocityDEF 14A0001437749-25-029012Twin Disc, Incorporated's most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Foster L B. Filing ↗
52Section 10a, InSteel Industries Inc. reciprocityDEF 14A0001308179-26-000001InSteel Industries Inc. names Foster L B in its own disclosed peer group (read from its most recent proxy). Filing ↗
53Section 10a, Quanex Building Products Corporation reciprocityDEF 14A0001104659-26-007408Quanex Building Products Corporation names Foster L B in its own disclosed peer group (read from its most recent proxy). Filing ↗
54Section 10a, Tredegar Corporation reciprocityDEF 14A0001628280-26-020996Tredegar Corporation's most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Foster L B. Filing ↗