David Ruud
DTE ENERGYAbout David Ruud
David Ruud is Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of DTE Energy, serving in this role since July 3, 2023; he is 58 years old as of March 13, 2025 and has held various positions at DTE for over five years . In 2024, DTE delivered operating EPS of $6.83 and cash from operations of $3.64 billion, while increasing its dividend 6.9%; five-year TSR stood at 129% (2019 base = 100), contextualizing financial performance during his tenure as CFO . DTE’s compensation framework ties annual and long-term incentives to investor-focused metrics including operating EPS, cash from operations, and relative TSR versus a regulated utility peer set .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| DTE Energy | Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer | Present position held since 7/3/2023 | Finance leadership; named executive officer oversight |
| DTE Energy | Various executive positions | 5+ years prior to current role | Broad enterprise experience across DTE |
External Roles
No external public-company directorships or roles disclosed for David Ruud in the latest proxy filings .
Fixed Compensation
| Year | Base Salary ($) | Target Bonus ($) | Actual Bonus Paid ($) | Stock Awards ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 710,192 | 616,250 (AIP target award) | 840,500 | 2,129,484 |
| 2023 | 670,000 | 536,000 (AIP target award) | 265,600 | 1,807,875 |
- Deferred compensation elective deferrals and company matches (Supplemental Savings Plan): $33,815 executive contribution and $25,096 company match in 2024; aggregate balance $1,144,529 at 2024 year-end .
Performance Compensation
Annual Incentive Plan — 2024 (applies to CEO, CFO, Lauer, Harris)
| Measure | Weight | Threshold | Target | Maximum | Result | Payout | Weighted Avg Payout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DTE Adjusted Operating EPS | 20% | $6.54 | $6.69 | $6.83 | $6.83 | 200.0% | 40.00% |
| Cash from Operations ($mm) | 20% | 2,975 | 3,306 | 3,637 | 3,650 | 200.0% | 40.00% |
| Net Promoter Score | 15% | 27 | 33 | 39 | 31 | 75.0% | 11.25% |
| OSHA Recordable Incident Rate | 5% | 0.68 | 0.55 | 0.42 | 0.70 | 0.0% | 0.00% |
| High Energy SIF | 5% | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 100.0% | 5.00% |
| Employee Engagement (Gallup) | 5% | 4.17 | 4.29 | 4.44 | 4.35 | 140.0% | 7.00% |
| Storm Customers Restored ≤ 48h | 10% | 88% | 93% | 98% | 95% | 140.0% | 14.00% |
| CEMI4 % of Customers | 5% | 11.1% | 9.3% | 7.5% | 7.8% | 182.8% | 9.14% |
| Nuclear Annual UCF | 10% | 86.4% | 88.0% | 88.7% | 82.6% | 0.0% | 0.00% |
| % HCA Miles Assessable by ILI | 5% | 96.76% | 96.85% | 96.89% | 96.92% | 200.0% | 10.00% |
| Total | 100% | — | — | — | — | — | 136.39% |
- AIP design and weights confirmed via 8‑K: DTE EPS 20%, cash from operations 20%, customer sat 15%, engagement 5%, safety 10%, utility operating excellence 30% (for DTE Vantage, business development index replaces utility index) .
Long-Term Incentive Plan — PSU payout (awarded 2021, paid early 2024)
| Measure (Ruud) | Weight | Threshold | Target | Maximum | Result | Payout | Weighted Avg Payout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TSR: DTE vs Peer Group | 80% | 25th pct | 50th pct | 75th pct | 73.00% | 192.00% | 153.60% |
| DTE Utility Avg ROE (2021–2023) | 20% | 9.50% | 10.00% | 10.50% | 9.80% | 78.00% | 15.60% |
| Total | 100% | — | — | — | — | — | 169.20% |
- PSU design for 2024 grants: TSR vs custom peer group (80%) and 3-year cumulative operating EPS (20%), performance period 1/1/2024–12/31/2026; payouts 0–200% and settle after O&C certification in early 2027 .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| As of Dec 31 | Common Stock | Phantom Stock | Performance Shares at Target (Other Shares That May Be Acquired) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 79,861 | 175 | 37,310 |
| 2023 | 65,352 | 169 | 30,921 |
- Outstanding unvested awards at 12/31/2024: RSUs unvested 13,500 (market value $1,630,125 at $120.75/share); PSUs unvested at target 37,310 (market/payout value $4,505,183) .
- 2024 vesting events: RSUs vested 3,763 shares ($389,809); PSUs vested 16,208 shares ($1,708,615) .
- Stock ownership guidelines: four-times base salary for CFO; 100% of NEOs met guidelines as of 12/31/2024 . Anti-hedging and anti-pledging policy applied to all officers and directors .
- Options: Company has not granted stock options since 2010; no repricing permitted .
Upcoming vesting and potential supply overhang
- 2024 grant RSUs: 5,500 shares vest on 1/31/2027 .
- 2023 grant RSUs: 4,200 shares vest on 2/1/2026 .
- 2024 PSU cycle: performance period 2024–2026, payout after certification in early 2027 .
- Note: Upcoming vesting and PSU settlements could create discretionary sale activity, though officers are subject to trading window restrictions and anti-hedging/pledging policies .
Employment Terms
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Executive Severance Plan (non‑CIC) | Cash severance equal to 100% of base salary + target bonus; choice of 12 months COBRA premiums or cash equivalent; up to six months of outplacement; estimated value for Ruud at 12/31/2024: total $5,755,846 (severance $1,341,250; bonus $616,250; pro-rated LTIP $3,761,846; supplemental benefits $36,500) . |
| Change-in-Control | Double trigger; cash severance equal to 200% of base salary + target bonus; additional 100% payment as consideration for a one-year non-compete; accelerated vesting of LTIP awards with performance shares earned at greater of target or actual-to-date; estimated total for Ruud at 12/31/2024: $11,290,028 (severance $2,682,500; bonus $616,250; pension enhancement $331,770; accelerated LTIP $6,135,308; outplacement $108,750; health/wellness $74,200; non-compete $1,341,250) . |
| Clawback policy | Recovery of excess incentive-based compensation for three years preceding an accounting restatement due to material noncompliance; applies to LTIP and AIP awards . |
| Ownership policy | 4x base salary requirement for CFO, counted as common stock, time-based restricted stock, phantom stock, and unvested performance shares at target . |
| Tax gross-ups | No excise tax gross-ups in change-in-control agreements . |
Compensation Structure Details
2024 LTIP Grants (awarded January 31, 2024)
| Grant Date | Instrument | Number of Shares | Grant-Date Fair Value ($) | Vest/Performance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1/31/2024 | Performance Shares (Target) | 14,700 | 1,549,674 | Performance period 2024–2026; settles after certification in early 2027 |
| 1/31/2024 | Restricted Stock (RSU/Time-based) | 5,500 | 579,810 | Vests 1/31/2027 |
2023 LTIP Grants (awarded Feb 22, 2023 and Feb 1, 2023)
| Grant Date | Instrument | Number of Shares | Grant-Date Fair Value ($) | Vest/Performance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2/22/2023 | Performance Shares (Target) | 11,700 | 1,319,877 | Performance period 2023–2025; settles after certification in early 2026 |
| 2/1/2023 | Restricted Stock (RSU/Time-based) | 4,200 | 487,998 | Vests 2/1/2026 |
AIP target awards (reference for “target bonus”)
- 2024 AIP target award for Ruud: $616,250 .
- 2023 AIP target award for Ruud: $536,000 .
- NEO AIP target percentages generally range from 70% to 135% of base salary (position-based ranges; individual percentages not specifically disclosed) .
Peer group and TSR targets
- LTIP TSR peer group includes regulated utilities such as ALLETE, Alliant, AEP, Ameren, CenterPoint, CMS, Con Edison, Dominion, Duke, Evergy, Eversource, IDACORP, NiSource, NorthWestern, OGE, Pinnacle West, PNM, Portland General, Southern Company, WEC Energy, Xcel .
- TSR targets tightened beginning with 2022 grants: target at 55th percentile and maximum at 80th percentile (versus 50th/75th previously) .
Other Benefits and Retirement
- Pension (present value at 12/31/2024): Cash Balance Plan $484,009; SRP $1,074,036; ESRP $3,873,339 .
- Supplemental Savings Plan (nonqualified 401(k)) contributions and balances in 2024: $33,815 executive contribution; $25,096 company match; $90,784 plan earnings; $1,144,529 aggregate balance .
- Additional benefits (perquisites) for Ruud totaled $3,625 in 2024 (category includes items such as home security monitoring; DTE also provides certain executive security benefits, e.g., driver for CEO) .
Governance & Shareholder Feedback
- Organization & Compensation Committee comprised of independent directors (Brandon, McGovern, Murray, Skaggs, Thomas), using independent adviser Meridian Compensation Partners since 2018 .
- Say-on-pay approvals: 96.2% approval in each of 2024 and 2023 .
- Anti-hedging and anti-pledging policy for officers and directors .
Investment Implications
- High pay-for-performance alignment: Ruud’s variable compensation is driven by operating EPS, cash generation, customer/safety metrics and multi-year TSR and EPS goals, with 2024 AIP paying at 136.39% and 2021 PSU cycle at 169.2%, evidencing strong linkage to investor outcomes .
- Retention risk appears contained: substantial unvested equity (RSUs MV ~$1.63M and PSUs MV/payout ~$4.51M at 12/31/2024) and double-trigger CIC protections incentivize tenure; no pledging/hedging permitted and robust clawback policy reduce misalignment risk .
- Near-term supply overhang considerations: RSU vesting in Feb 2026 and Jan 2027 and PSU settlement in early 2027 could introduce discretionary selling windows; trading is subject to insider window policies and anti-hedging .
- Governance quality signals: high say-on-pay support, independent comp oversight, no options or repricing since 2010, and no excise tax gross-ups in CIC agreements suggest shareholder-friendly design .