Fiscal year 2023 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.
Each company listed discloses VGR 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 VGR in an earlier year and no longer does, and one whose own most recent disclosure is older than the last two seasons.
| Named executive officer | Salary | Bonus | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension / NQDC | All other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Howard Lorber | $2,018,678 | $0 | $9,675,000 | $0 | $2,334,096 | $3,423,776 | $495,100 | $17,946,650 |
| President and Chief Executive Officer | ||||||||
| Richard Lampen | 682,500 | 0 | 2,902,500 | 0 | 591,855 | 404,973 | 231,885 | 4,813,713 |
| Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer | ||||||||
| J. Bryant Kirkland III | 603,750 | 0 | 1,612,500 | 0 | 232,672 | 177,323 | 9,900 | 2,636,145 |
| Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer | ||||||||
| Marc Bell | 525,000 | 0 | 1,612,500 | 0 | 151,758 | 132,531 | 9,900 | 2,431,689 |
| Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary | ||||||||
| Nicholas Anson | 682,500 | 0 | 322,500 | 0 | 575,011 | 0 | 9,900 | 1,589,911 |
| President and Chief Operating Officer of Liggett Vector Brands and Liggett | ||||||||
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.
| Named executive officer | FY2023 total | FY2022 total | FY2021 total | Δ FY2022→2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Howard Lorber | $17,946,650 | $10,950,867 | $17,871,658 | +6,995,783 |
| Richard Lampen | 4,813,713 | 3,346,551 | 5,051,700 | +1,467,162 |
| J. Bryant Kirkland III | 2,636,145 | 1,915,742 | 2,010,790 | +720,403 |
| Marc Bell | 2,431,689 | 1,763,681 | 1,776,938 | +668,008 |
| Nicholas Anson | 1,589,911 | 1,531,150 | 1,451,800 | +58,761 |
Prior-year totals as disclosed in the corresponding proxy; deltas are computed values with the derivation shown in the register.
No insider equity transactions reported since the proxy statement.
| Executive | Award | Grant date | Threshold | Target | Granted | Maximum | Grant-date fair value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nicholas Anson | RSU | 2023-02-15 | — | — | 25,000 | — | $322,500 |
| Marc Bell | RSU | 2023-02-15 | — | — | 125,000 | — | 1,612,500 |
| J. Bryant Kirkland III | RSU | 2023-02-15 | — | — | 125,000 | — | 1,612,500 |
| Richard Lampen | RSU | 2023-02-15 | — | — | 225,000 | — | 2,902,500 |
| Howard Lorber | RSU | 2023-02-15 | — | — | 750,000 | — | 9,675,000 |
| Named executive officer | Time-vested (RSU) | Performance-vested (PSU) | Options / SARs | % performance-vested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nicholas Anson | $322,500 | $0 | $0 | 0.0% |
| Marc Bell | 1,612,500 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| J. Bryant Kirkland III | 1,612,500 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Richard Lampen | 2,902,500 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Howard Lorber | 9,675,000 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
% performance-vested = PSU grant-date fair value ÷ (RSU + PSU + Options), a computed value with the derivation shown in the register.
| Executive | Award | Shares unvested | Exercise price | Market value unvested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Howard Lorber | RSU | 150,000 | — | $1,692,000 |
| Richard Lampen | RSU | 135,000 | — | 1,522,800 |
| Richard Lampen | RSU | 75,000 | — | 846,000 |
| Howard Lorber | RSU | 125,000 | — | 1,410,000 |
| J. Bryant Kirkland III | RSU | 25,000 | — | 282,000 |
| Howard Lorber | RSU | 225,000 | — | 2,538,000 |
| J. Bryant Kirkland III | RSU | 50,000 | — | 564,000 |
| Richard Lampen | RSU | 90,000 | — | 1,015,200 |
| Howard Lorber | RSU | 300,000 | — | 3,384,000 |
| J. Bryant Kirkland III | RSU | 40,000 | — | 451,200 |
| J. Bryant Kirkland III | RSU | 75,000 | — | 846,000 |
| Howard Lorber | RSU | 62,500 | — | 705,000 |
| Richard Lampen | RSU | 45,000 | — | 507,600 |
| Richard Lampen | RSU | 18,750 | — | 211,500 |
| J. Bryant Kirkland III | RSU | 10,000 | — | 112,800 |
The Company’s overall compensation philosophy is intended to reward its executives with fully competitive compensation, while providing opportunities to reward outstanding performance and align the interests of our executives with those of stockholders. The program aims to ensure alignment of pay and performance against preset annual and long-term goals, provide incentives that pay out in alignment with stockholder value creation, and attract and retain talented executives.
| CEO STI target (% of salary) | — |
|---|---|
| CEO LTI target (% of salary) | — |
| Independent consultant | FTI Consulting |
| Clawback policy | true |
| Anti-hedging | true |
| Anti-pledging | true |
| Meeting year | Meeting date | For | Against | Abstain | Support | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 2024-08-20 | 77,042,769 | 44,653,552 | 590,849 | 63.31% | Passed |
| 2023 | 2023-07-26 | 112,273,121 | 6,444,064 | 570,493 | 94.57% | Passed |
| 2022 | 2022-06-28 | 52,204,948 | 66,042,958 | 686,731 | 44.15% | Failed |
| 2021 | 2021-06-03 | 55,521,585 | 59,279,123 | 5,291,215 | 48.36% | Failed |
| 2020 | 2020-05-28 | 33,205,768 | 72,298,306 | 590,995 | 31.47% | Failed |
| 2019 | 2019-05-02 | 47,186,997 | 48,270,833 | 688,488 | 49.43% | Failed |
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.
| Meeting year | Meeting date | Approval — company's computation |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 2024-08-20 | 63.31%a |
| 2023 | 2023-07-26 | 94.57%b |
| 2022 | 2022-06-28 | 44.15%c |
a. Voting standard not stated in the filing.
b. Voting standard not stated in the filing.
c. Voting standard not stated in the filing.
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.
| Director | Cash fees | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | All other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ronald J. BernsteinNot independent | $75,000 | $0 | — | — | $763,582 | $838,582 |
| Jean E. SharpeIndependent · Audit · Compensation and Human Capital · Corporate Responsibility and Nominating (Chair) | 110,000 | 82,275 | — | — | 16,304 | 208,579 |
| Bennett S. LeBowIndependent · Board Chair · Executive (Chair) | 80,000 | 82,275 | — | — | 43,625 | 205,900 |
| Henry C. BeinsteinIndependent · Audit (Chair) · Corporate Responsibility and Nominating | 90,000 | 82,275 | — | — | 25,721 | 197,996 |
| Paul V. CarlucciIndependent · Audit · Compensation and Human Capital | 85,000 | 82,275 | — | — | 25,193 | 192,468 |
| Barry WatkinsIndependent · Corporate Responsibility and Nominating | 80,000 | 82,275 | — | — | 2,349 | 164,624 |
| Wilson L. WhiteIndependent · Audit | 80,000 | 82,275 | — | — | 240 | 162,515 |
| Howard M. LorberEmployee director · Executive | — | — | — | — | — | 0 |
| Richard J. LampenEmployee director | — | — | — | — | — | 0 |
| Annual cash retainer | $75,000 |
|---|---|
| Annual equity retainer | $7,500 |
| Per board meeting fee | — |
| Committee chair fees (audit / comp / nom-gov) | 10,000 / 10,000 / 25,000 |
| Stock ownership guideline | $150,000 |
| Component | FY2023 |
|---|---|
| Cash retainers and fees | $600,000 |
| Equity awards (grant-date value) | $493,650 |
| All other compensation | $877,014 |
| Total cost of the board | $1,970,664 |
Computed as the sum of the director compensation table rows above; inputs and formula shown in the register.
The compensation peer group as the company disclosed it in its own proxy — the reference set behind the percentile above.
Of the companies Vector Group 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 Vector Group.
Most recent fiscal-year chief executive compensation at each disclosed peer, taken from that company's own proxy statement.
| Rank | Company | FY | Chief executive | Salary | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vector Group | 2023 | Howard Lorber | $2,018,678 | $9,675,000 | $0 | $2,334,096 | $17,946,650 |
| 2 | Ingredion Incorporated | 2025 | James Zallie | 1,290,929 | 6,509,237 | 1,999,964 | 2,185,980 | 12,932,234 |
| 3 | Steven Madden, Ltd. | 2025 | Edward Rosenfeld | 1,135,894 | 6,999,979 | 0 | 0 | 8,164,373 |
| 4 | The Andersons, Inc. | 2025 | William Krueger | 1,000,000 | 3,063,337 | — | 1,183,800 | 5,472,539 |
| 5 | The Simply Good Foods Company | 2025 | Geoff Tanner | 816,667 | 2,747,758 | 0 | 748,000 | 4,330,633 |
| 6 | Universal Corporation | 2026 | Preston Wigner | 828,800 | 1,849,532 | 0 | 215,900 | 3,179,995 |
| 7 | Turning Point Brands, Inc. | 2025 | Graham Purdy | 750,000 | 1,500,001 | 0 | 750,000 | 3,011,823 |
| 8 | The Boston Beer Company, Inc. | 2025 | C. James Koch | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5,695 |
| — | Beyond Meat, Inc. | — | — | — | — | — | — | not in coverage universe |
| — | Canopy Growth Corporation | — | — | — | — | — | — | not in coverage universe |
| — | Tilray Brands, Inc. | — | — | — | — | — | — | 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.
| Company | Annual incentive payout | Long-term vehicle mix | PSU measures include TSR | Compensation consultant |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vector Group | not disclosed | PRSU 60 · RSU 40 | not disclosed | FTI Consulting |
| Beyond Meat, Inc. | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed |
| Canopy Growth Corporation | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed |
| Ingredion Incorporated | 112.5% | PSU 50 · RSU 25 · Options 25 | Yes — Relative Total Shareholder Return (rTSR) | Meridian Compensation Partners, LLC |
| Steven Madden, Ltd. | not disclosed | PSU 52 · RSU 48 | No | Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s Human Resources & Compensation Consulting Practice |
| The Andersons, Inc. | not disclosed | PSU 60 · RSU 40 | not disclosed | Meridian Compensation Partners |
| The Boston Beer Company, Inc. | not disclosed | RSU 50 · PSU 50 | No | Frederic W. Cook & Co., Inc. |
| The Simply Good Foods Company | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed |
| Tilray Brands, Inc. | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed |
| Turning Point Brands, Inc. | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed |
| Universal Corporation | 26% | PSU 50 · RSU 50 | No | Meridian Compensation Partners |
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.
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.
| # | Supports | Document | Filed | Accession | Location in document |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Section 01, Howard Lorber | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “2023 SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE”. As printed: 17,946,650. Filing ↗machine: span 279688–279698 |
| 2 | Section 01, Richard Lampen | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “2023 SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE”. As printed: 4,813,713. Filing ↗machine: span 294606–294615 |
| 3 | Section 01, J. Bryant Kirkland III | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “2023 SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE”. As printed: 2,636,145. Filing ↗machine: span 308758–308767 |
| 4 | Section 01, Marc Bell | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “2023 SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE”. As printed: 2,431,689. Filing ↗machine: span 323674–323683 |
| 5 | Section 01, Nicholas Anson | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “2023 SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE”. As printed: 1,589,911. Filing ↗machine: span 337815–337824 |
| 6 | Section 03, Nicholas Anson RSU | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2023” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 501625–501632 |
| 7 | Section 03, Marc Bell RSU | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2023” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 492792–492801 |
| 8 | Section 03, J. Bryant Kirkland III RSU | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2023” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 483963–483972 |
| 9 | Section 03, Richard Lampen RSU | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2023” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 475124–475133 |
| 10 | Section 03, Howard Lorber RSU | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS IN 2023” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 466286–466295 |
| 11 | Section 08, Ronald J. Bernstein | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 838,582. Filing ↗machine: span 920154–920290 |
| 12 | Section 08, Jean E. Sharpe | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 208,579. Filing ↗machine: span 929576–929712 |
| 13 | Section 08, Bennett S. LeBow | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 205,900. Filing ↗machine: span 926436–926572 |
| 14 | Section 08, Henry C. Beinstein | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 197,996. Filing ↗machine: span 917153–917289 |
| 15 | Section 08, Paul V. Carlucci | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 192,468. Filing ↗machine: span 923295–923431 |
| 16 | Section 08, Barry Watkins | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 164,624. Filing ↗machine: span 932713–932849 |
| 17 | Section 08, Wilson L. White | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 162,515. Filing ↗machine: span 935850–935986 |
| 18 | Section 08, Howard M. Lorber | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. Filing ↗ |
| 19 | Section 08, Richard J. Lampen | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. Filing ↗ |
| 20 | Section 06, 2024 vote | Form 8-K | 2024-08-21 | 0000059440-24-000027 | Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 63.31% (votes for as printed: 77,042,769). Filing ↗ |
| 21 | Section 06, 2023 vote | Form 8-K | 2023-07-31 | 0000059440-23-000025 | Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 94.57% (votes for as printed: 112,273,121). Filing ↗ |
| 22 | Section 06, 2022 vote | Form 8-K | 2022-06-30 | 0000059440-22-000031 | Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 44.15% (votes for as printed: 52,204,948). Filing ↗ |
| 23 | Section 01 trend, Δ column (computed) | Computed | — | computed | Δ = current-FY total − prior-FY total per named officer.machine: formula: Δ = FY(n) − FY(n−1) |
| 24 | Section 03b vehicle mix (computed) | Computed | — | computed | RSU / PSU / Options grant-date fair values summed per officer from the grants table; % performance-vested = PSU ÷ (RSU+PSU+Options).machine: formula: sums + PSU ratio |
| 25 | Section 09b board cost (computed) | Computed | — | computed | Cash 600,000 + equity 493,650 + all other 877,014 = 1,970,664, summed across the director compensation table rows.machine: formula: Σ = 1,970,664 |
| 26 | Vector Group (subject), Section 10b CEO total | DEF 14A | 2024-07-10 | 0000059440-24-000018 | CEO total compensation as printed in Vector Group's own proxy. As printed: 17,946,650. Filing ↗machine: span 279688–279698 |
| 27 | Ingredion Incorporated, Section 10b CEO total | DEF 14A | 2026-04-08 | 0001046257-26-000151 | CEO total compensation as printed in Ingredion Incorporated's own proxy. As printed: 12,932,234. Filing ↗machine: r2 · c17 · span 1721497–1721507 |
| 28 | Steven Madden, Ltd., Section 10b CEO total | DEF 14A | 2026-04-06 | 0001493152-26-015299 | CEO total compensation as printed in Steven Madden, Ltd.'s own proxy. As printed: 8,164,373. Filing ↗machine: t91 · r2 · c31 · span 714081–714090 |
| 29 | The Andersons, Inc., Section 10b CEO total | DEF 14A | 2026-03-11 | 0001104659-26-026341 | CEO total compensation as printed in The Andersons, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 5,472,539. Filing ↗ |
| 30 | The Simply Good Foods Company, Section 10b CEO total | DEF 14A | 2025-12-17 | 0001104659-25-121934 | CEO total compensation as printed in The Simply Good Foods Company's own proxy. As printed: 4,330,633. Filing ↗machine: r1 · c48 · span 952887–952896 |
| 31 | Universal Corporation, Section 10b CEO total | DEF 14A | 2026-07-01 | 0001628280-26-046310 | CEO total compensation as printed in Universal Corporation's own proxy. As printed: 3,179,995. Filing ↗machine: t40 · r4 · c16 · span 621641–621650 |
| 32 | Turning Point Brands, Inc., Section 10b CEO total | DEF 14A | 2026-03-25 | 0001437749-26-009811 | CEO total compensation as printed in Turning Point Brands, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 3,011,823. Filing ↗machine: span 496348–496357 |
| 33 | The Boston Beer Company, Inc., Section 10b CEO total | DEF 14A | 2026-04-10 | 0001308179-26-000249 | CEO total compensation as printed in The Boston Beer Company, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 5,695. Filing ↗machine: r1 · c23 · span 463828–463833 |
| 34 | Section 10a, The Andersons, Inc. reciprocity | DEF 14A | — | 0001104659-26-026341 | The Andersons, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Vector Group. Filing ↗ |
| 35 | Section 10a, Universal Corporation reciprocity | DEF 14A | — | 0001628280-26-046310 | Universal Corporation's most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Vector Group. Filing ↗ |
| 36 | Section 10a, The Boston Beer Company, Inc. reciprocity | DEF 14A | — | 0001308179-26-000249 | The Boston Beer Company, Inc. names Vector Group in its own disclosed peer group (read from its most recent proxy). Filing ↗ |
| 37 | Section 10a, Steven Madden, Ltd. reciprocity | DEF 14A | — | 0001493152-26-015299 | Steven Madden, Ltd.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Vector Group. Filing ↗ |