Shareholders are typically more likely to give compensation packages a thumbs down when pay plans include significant year-over-year increases in the 20%-50% range as well as when a company’s performance wanes, Newbury said.

More compensation information is on its way for investors to pore over. For the first time this year, large public companies will be required to disclose additional information about executive compensation under the long-delayed pay-versus-performance rules that were adopted last year by the SEC. READ MORE