John C. Ball
About John C. Ball
John C. Ball serves as President, Treasurer, and Principal Financial and Accounting Officer of The Gabelli Multimedia Trust Inc. (GGT); he has held officer roles with the Fund since 2017 and is an Officer of registered investment companies in the Gabelli Fund Complex. He is also Senior Vice President of GAMCO Investors, Inc. (since 2018) and Chief Executive Officer of G. Distributors, LLC (since 2020). The proxy lists his year of birth as 1976. The Fund’s proxies do not disclose executive-specific TSR, revenue growth, or EBITDA growth metrics for Ball.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Gabelli Multimedia Trust Inc. | President, Treasurer, Principal Financial and Accounting Officer | Since 2017 | Senior officer overseeing finance and accounting; officer of registered investment companies in Gabelli Fund Complex |
| Gabelli Fund Complex (registered investment companies) | Officer | Since 2017 | Officer responsibilities across funds in the complex |
| G. Distributors, LLC | Chief Executive Officer | Since 2020 | Leads distribution entity affiliated with Gabelli organizations |
| GAMCO Investors, Inc. | Senior Vice President | Since 2018 | Executive role at the Fund’s Adviser |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Role Scope |
|---|---|---|---|
| GAMCO Investors, Inc. | Senior Vice President | Since 2018 | Executive position at the Adviser to GGT |
| G. Distributors, LLC | Chief Executive Officer | Since 2020 | CEO of affiliated distribution business |
Fixed Compensation
- The Fund’s compensation table lists only one officer (Vice President & Ombudsman) receiving Fund-paid compensation; no Fund-paid compensation for Ball is disclosed (i.e., Ball does not appear in the Fund’s officer compensation listing for 2023 or 2024).
- Ball’s principal employment affiliations are with GAMCO Investors, Inc. (SVP) and G. Distributors, LLC (CEO), indicating his compensation is handled outside the Fund, but the proxy does not quantify his base salary, target bonus, or any cash compensation.
Performance Compensation
- The proxies do not disclose any incentive plan structure, performance metrics, weighting, targets, or payouts for Ball (no RSUs/PSUs/options or vesting schedules are described for Fund officers).
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Metric | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Common shares beneficially owned | 0 | 147 |
| % of shares outstanding | <1% (proxy denotes “*” <1%) | <1% (proxy denotes “*” <1%) |
- The Directors and executive officers as a group owned 8.0% of the total Common Stock as of December 31, 2024; Ball’s holding is individually less than 1%.
- No disclosures of options, RSUs/PSUs, exercisable vs. unexercisable awards, or pledged shares for Ball appear in the proxies.
Employment Terms
- Officer tenure: Ball has served since 2017 in his current officer capacities.
- Term nature: “Each officer will hold office for an indefinite term until the date he or she resigns or retires or until his or her successor is elected and qualified.”
- Agreements: The proxies and recent filings do not disclose employment contracts, severance provisions, change‑of‑control terms, accelerated vesting terms, clawbacks, non‑compete/non‑solicit, or tax gross‑ups for Ball.
- Section 16 compliance: The Fund reports overall compliance for required filers (with one late Form 4 by a Director in 2024, not Ball).
- Recent officer actions: Ball signed recent Fund filings and offering documents in his capacity as President/Treasurer, including an 8‑K and the ATM Sales Agreement Amendment increasing the program to 10,000,000 shares ($44.7 million).
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Direct equity ownership in GGT is minimal (147 shares; <1%), indicating limited direct pay‑for‑performance linkage to the Fund’s stock price for Ball. This reduces insider selling pressure risk due to small holdings but also limits “skin‑in‑the‑game” alignment.
- Compensation transparency: Ball is an executive of the Adviser (GAMCO) and a CEO of an affiliated distributor; Fund proxies do not disclose his cash or equity compensation, incentive metrics, or vesting—making it difficult to assess pay-for-performance alignment or retention incentives at the Fund level.
- Retention risk: Long-standing tenure (since 2017) across Fund and Adviser roles suggests stability of the finance function; however, absence of disclosed severance/change‑of‑control terms means investors lack visibility into turnover economics in stress scenarios.
- Governance and compliance: Ball appears compliant with reporting requirements per the Fund’s Section 16(a) disclosure and is actively executing capital markets actions (ATM program) as President/Treasurer, signaling operational engagement in funding and distribution strategy.