Matisse Long
COVENANT LOGISTICS GROUPAbout Matisse Long
Matisse Long, 49, served as Chief Accounting Officer (principal accounting officer) of Covenant Logistics Group (CVLG) from January 5, 2024, after joining as Corporate Controller in June 2021; he is a Certified Public Accountant with 23+ years of experience, co‑founded Advisory Information Technology (AdIT) at Mauldin & Jenkins, and previously led the advisory services practice at Windham Brannon . He resigned as CAO effective August 11, 2025; the CFO (Tripp Grant) was designated principal accounting officer the next day . During his tenure, company revenues moved from $949.9M in FY 2021 to $1,013.9M in FY 2024, and cumulative TSR value rose from $204.49 (2021) to $434.47 (2024) . CVLG’s pay-versus-performance disclosures emphasize Adjusted EPS as the company-selected performance measure and show strong multi-year TSR vs. the NASDAQ Transportation Index .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Covenant Logistics Group | Chief Accounting Officer (principal accounting officer) | Jan 2024 – Aug 11, 2025 | Led principal accounting function; promoted from Corporate Controller . |
| Covenant Logistics Group | Corporate Controller | Jun 2021 – Jan 2024 | Oversaw corporate accounting prior to promotion . |
| Mauldin & Jenkins (AdIT division) | Co‑founder and Director, Advisory Information Technology (AdIT) | Prior to 2021 (not specified) | Oversaw advisory, accounting, and IT responsibilities . |
| Windham Brannon, PC | Practice Leader, Advisory Services | Prior to 2021 (not specified) | Led advisory practice; transportation industry expertise . |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| None disclosed in company filings | — | — | CVLG biographies and proxies include no external directorships for Mr. Long . |
Fixed Compensation
Not a Named Executive Officer (NEO); therefore, individual base salary, target bonus, and perquisite detail for Mr. Long are not presented in the Summary Compensation Table. The NEO list (2024 and 2025 proxies) excludes Mr. Long, and his January 2024 8‑K appointment did not disclose compensation terms .
Performance Compensation
No individual performance incentive detail for Mr. Long is disclosed. The following tables summarize CVLG’s disclosed senior executive (NEO) incentive architecture and outcomes in 2024 for context.
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2024 Senior Executive Bonus Program outcomes and metrics (NEOs): | Named Executive Officer | 2024 Payout ($) | Program metrics and outcomes | |---|---|---| | David R. Parker (CEO) | $744,357 | Adjusted EPS (FY24 1.98 achieved); role metrics achieved (Lew Thompson & Son; IT Strategic Projects) . | | M. Paul Bunn (President) | $647,368 | Adjusted EPS; Lew Thompson & Son; IT Strategic Projects achieved . | | Tripp Grant (CFO) | $275,232 | Adjusted EPS; Lew Thompson & Son; IT Strategic Projects achieved . | | Dustin Koehl (COO) | $235,879 | Customers, Sales Organization, Operational Improvement achieved . | | Joey Ballard (EVP, People & Safety) | $199,838 | Lew Thompson & Son; Driver Retention; DOT Safety achieved . |
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2024 Long‑Term Incentive Plan (structure and targets, NEOs): | Component | Weighting | Targets | Payout Curve | Vesting | |---|---|---|---|---| | 3‑yr Cumulative Adjusted EPS | 25% | $6.75 target; threshold $6.00; max $7.50 | 50%–200% of target based on achievement | Earned at performance conclusion (period ending Dec 31, 2027) . | | 3‑yr Average ROIC | 25% | 9.0% target; threshold 7.0%; max 11.0% | 50%–200% of target based on achievement | Earned at performance conclusion (period ending Dec 31, 2027) . | | Time‑based RSUs | 50% (3 tranches of 16.67% each) | Service only | N/A | 33.34% vests on July 1, 2025; 33.34% on July 1, 2026; 33.34% on July 1, 2027 . |
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Beneficial ownership: Mr. Long is not listed among directors/NEOs in the security ownership tables (as of March 27, 2025 and March 29, 2024); no individual ownership disclosure for him is provided .
- Stock ownership guidelines: Apply to CEO (6x salary), President/COO/CFO (1x salary), and non‑employee directors; CAO is not explicitly included .
- Anti‑hedging/anti‑pledging: Policy prohibits hedging and pledging for CEO, President, COO, CFO, and directors; CAO is not specifically named; Insider Trading Policy applies to all personnel .
- Code of ethics: Applies to CEO, CFO, Chief Accounting Officer, controller, or similar functions .
Employment Terms
| Date | Term/Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Jun 2021 | Joined CVLG as Corporate Controller | Controller to Jan 2024 . |
| Jan 5, 2024 | Promoted to Chief Accounting Officer; designated principal accounting officer | 8‑K Item 5.02 announced the promotion and designation . |
| Aug 11, 2025 | Resigned as Chief Accounting Officer, effective immediately | 8‑K Item 5.02; on Aug 12, 2025 CFO designated principal accounting officer; no compensation changes disclosed for CFO in connection . |
- Severance/change‑in‑control: Company policy indicates double‑trigger change‑in‑control is required for severance benefits and equity vesting acceleration (program‑level feature; not specific to Mr. Long) .
- Clawback: Mandatory recovery of erroneously awarded incentive‑based compensation upon an accounting restatement for current/former executive officers (as defined for Rule 10D‑1), and board discretion to recover for restrictive covenant breaches or misconduct harming the company; applies to awards after Oct 2, 2023 .
Company Performance During Mr. Long’s Tenure
| Metric | FY 2020 | FY 2021 | FY 2022 | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue ($) | 776,218,000 | 949,913,000 | 1,046,396,000 | 970,509,000 | 1,013,941,000 |
| EBITDA ($) | 70,316,000* | 117,244,000* | 137,872,000* | 119,158,000* | 149,411,000* |
Values with an asterisk (*) are retrieved from S&P Global.
| CVLG Cumulative TSR ($ value of $100 invested at 12/31/2019) | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Company TSR ($) | 114.58 | 204.49 | 270.24 | 363.79 | 434.47 |
Investment Implications
- Disclosure transparency and alignment: Mr. Long was not a Named Executive Officer, so there is no granular disclosure of his base salary, bonus targets, or equity grants—limiting direct pay‑for‑performance assessment at the individual level .
- Turnover signal: The immediate resignation of the CAO on Aug 11, 2025, with the CFO reassuming principal accounting officer duties the next day, warrants monitoring of subsequent financial reporting cadence and control disclosures; the company disclosed no changes to CFO compensation for the designation .
- Governance guardrails: Company policies feature double‑trigger change‑in‑control, anti‑hedging/anti‑pledging (for CEO/President/COO/CFO and directors), robust clawback provisions, and stock ownership guidelines (CEO/President/COO/CFO/directors), indicating strong structural alignment at the top; CAO is covered by the code of ethics and insider trading policy, though not explicitly by ownership multiple or anti‑pledging policy .
- Performance context: From FY 2021 to FY 2024, revenues expanded from $949.9M to $1,013.9M while EBITDA increased to $149.4M*, and cumulative TSR value rose from $204.49 to $434.47, providing positive operating and shareholder return context during his accounting leadership tenure .
- Shareholder sentiment: Say‑on‑pay passed with 98.7% support at the 2024 annual meeting, signaling broad investor approval of CVLG’s compensation framework, even as individual CAO pay details were not disclosed .