David I. Schachter
About David I. Schachter
David I. Schachter serves as Vice President and Ombudsman of The Gabelli Utility Trust, born in 1953 and in the officer role since 1999 . He concurrently serves as Senior Vice President of G.research, LLC (since 2015), having previously served as Vice President of G.research from 1999 to 2015 . The Fund’s DEF 14A filings do not disclose individual officer performance metrics (e.g., TSR, revenue or EBITDA targets) tied to his compensation .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Gabelli Utility Trust (GUT) | Vice President and Ombudsman | 1999–present | Officer role across Gabelli closed‑end funds; governance and shareholder relations function |
| G.research, LLC | Senior Vice President | 2015–present | Affiliate role within Gabelli complex supporting research/brokerage; senior leadership capacity |
| G.research, LLC | Vice President | 1999–2015 | Progression within affiliate; continuity of research/brokerage leadership |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| G.research, LLC | Senior Vice President | 2015–present | External to the Fund but within the Gabelli ecosystem; institutional research affiliate |
Fixed Compensation
Multi-year reported compensation paid by the Fund (note: officers are generally paid by the Adviser; only certain officers receive compensation directly from the Fund; proxies report aggregate amounts without breakouts):
| Metric | FY 2022 | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aggregate Compensation from the Fund (USD) | $87,566 | $104,132 | $106,884 |
Notes:
- The compensation table lists “Aggregate Compensation from the Fund”; no base salary vs. bonus vs. equity breakdown or perquisites are disclosed for officers in these proxies .
Performance Compensation
- The DEF 14A filings do not disclose any performance-based incentive plans (bonus metrics, PSUs, options) for officers, nor any payout curves, weightings, targets, or vesting schedules applicable to Mr. Schachter .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Beneficial ownership tables list trustees and certain executive officers’ Fund shareholdings; Mr. Schachter is not included in these tables, so his Fund share ownership, if any, is not disclosed in the 2023–2025 proxies .
- No disclosures on pledging or hedging policies applicable to Mr. Schachter appear in the proxies reviewed .
- The Fund reports general compliance with Section 16(a) filing requirements for insiders; no officer-specific trading detail is provided in the proxies (2024/2025), with a prior note only of one late filing by a trustee (not Mr. Schachter) in 2022 .
Employment Terms
- The proxies do not disclose individual employment agreements, severance multiples, change‑of‑control triggers (single/double), accelerated vesting terms, clawbacks, tax gross‑ups, or non‑compete/non‑solicit provisions for Mr. Schachter .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Absence of disclosed equity awards and lack of reported beneficial ownership for Mr. Schachter suggest limited direct equity alignment; compensation appears cash‑based and modest in scale relative to typical operating‑company executives .
- Retention: Very long tenure (since 1999) across the Gabelli closed‑end fund complex and continued senior role at G.research indicate low near‑term retention risk based on disclosed roles .
- Trading signals: Proxies provide no Form 4 detail for Mr. Schachter; Section 16 compliance is reported at the aggregate level, limiting any insider‑selling pressure inference from these documents .
- Pay‑for‑performance: No disclosed performance metrics, targets, or incentive structures tied to officer pay in the Fund’s proxies, reducing visibility into pay‑for‑performance linkage for Mr. Schachter at the Fund level .