Mark Cherone
About Mark Cherone
Executive Vice President & Chief Accounting Officer at LXP; appointed March 2019 after serving as Corporate Controller at Brandywine Realty Trust (2012–2019). Age 43; education: Pennsylvania State University; Certified Public Accountant . Company performance context during his tenure includes 2024 same‑store NOI growth of 5.0%, leasing of 4.5M sq ft with base and cash base rent increases of ~46% and ~40%, and net debt to adjusted EBITDA of 5.9x; Adjusted Company FFO was $189.4M and Net Income $37.9M in 2024 .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brandywine Realty Trust | Corporate Controller | 2012–2019 | Senior controllership experience at a public REIT; prepared him for LXP principal accounting officer responsibilities . |
| LXP Industrial Trust | Chief Accounting Officer | Mar 2019–present | Leads accounting; designated principal accounting officer in LXP’s filings and signature blocks . |
External Roles
No external directorships or committee roles are mentioned in LXP’s proxy biography for Cherone .
Company Performance During Cherone’s Tenure (selected metrics)
| Metric | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TSR – $100 initial investment (LXP) | 104.19 | 152.23 | 67.04 | 104.33 | 86.82 |
| TSR – $100 initial investment (MSCI US REIT Index) | 92.43 | 143.06 | 75.49 | 113.74 | 108.75 |
| Net Income ($000s) | 186,391 | 385,091 | 116,243 | 42,835 | 37,922 |
| Adjusted Company FFO ($000s) | 209,542 | 223,196 | 193,061 | 206,191 | 189,360 |
2024 operating highlights: leased 4.5M sq ft; same‑store NOI +5.0%; rent escalators ~3.6% on signed leases; 97% of indebtedness fixed/hedged for 2025–2026; net debt/Adj. EBITDA 5.9x .
Fixed Compensation
- Cherone is an executive officer but not a Named Executive Officer (NEO) in the 2025 proxy; base salary, target bonus, and actual bonus amounts are not itemized for him in the compensation tables. The NEOs covered are Eglin, Brunner, Boulerice, Bonventre, and Mullinix .
Performance Compensation
- Program design: annual cash incentives (70% objective, 30% subjective) and long‑term incentives (60% performance shares, 40% time‑based shares) with three‑year performance periods and service‑based vesting over three years; dividends accrue on performance shares and are paid only if vest; dividends are paid currently on time‑based shares .
- 2024 objective metrics and outcomes (applied company‑wide for executive incentives):
| Objective Category | Weight | Target | Actual | Determination (% of weighting) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Investments (development stabilization, pre‑promote yield) | 35% | 1.5M sf; 4 bldgs; 6.5% yield | 0.25M sf; 1 bldg; >7% yield | 23.33% |
| Portfolio Management (leased %, same‑store NOI, leasing spreads) | 30% | 97% leased; 4% SS NOI; 25% spreads | 94%; 5%; >30% | 40.00% |
| Balance Sheet (ratings, leverage) | 20% | Maintain ratings; ND/Adj. EBITDA 6.0x | Ratings maintained; 5.9x | 20.00% |
| Corporate Responsibility (ISS, GRESB, tenant/employee surveys) | 15% | ISS 2; GRESB 102% of peer; tenant 102%; employee neutral | ISS 1; GRESB 105%; tenant 103%/24% participation; employee positive/97% participation | 22.50% |
| Objective Portion Payout | — | — | — | 105.83% of objective target |
- Long‑term performance metrics: Relative TSR vs MSCI US REIT Index and vs competitor peer group; threshold 33rd percentile, target 50th, max 75th; 2022 grant paid 0%; 2024 grant tracking slightly above target on peer group tranche and below threshold on index tranche as of 12/31/2024 .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Stock ownership guidelines: CEO 6× salary; next three most highly compensated executives 3× salary; fifth most highly compensated executive 2× salary. Executive officers must retain at least 50% of net shares from equity awards until retirement/termination; executives and trustees were in compliance subject to phase‑in periods .
- Anti‑pledging and anti‑hedging policy prohibits pledging and hedging (e.g., collars, swaps, exchange funds) by trustees, officers, and employees .
- Equity plan capacity and dilution: As of the 2025 record date, 428,213 shares remained available; 4,198,859 shares subject to outstanding awards (3,080,471 performance shares at maximum). Proposed 5,000,000-share increase (1.7% of shares outstanding) would take overhang from ~1.56% to ~3.25%; 3‑year average burn rate ~0.28% .
- 2025 grant mechanics: performance and time‑based awards sized off $8.01 closing price on 1/2/2025; three‑year cliff for performance tranches and annual pro‑rata vesting over three years for time‑based tranches .
| Equity Activity (plan analytics) | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Restricted shares granted (#) | 314,573 | 469,487 | 690,852 |
| Performance shares granted at maximum (#) | 565,435 | 815,217 | 978,359 |
| Performance shares vested (#) | 552,121 | 266,812 | 119,519 |
| Weighted avg shares outstanding (basic) | 279,887,760 | 290,245,877 | 291,472,930 |
| Burn rate (%) | 0.31% | 0.25% | 0.28% |
Note: Individual ownership amounts (direct, indirect, vested/unvested) are disclosed for trustees and NEOs; Cherone is included in the group total but not broken out individually in the proxy ownership table .
Employment Terms
- Appointment: Named Chief Accounting Officer in March 2019; no family relationships; no related‑party transactions disclosed upon appointment .
- Severance/change‑in‑control framework: LXP maintains severance arrangements for certain executive officers featuring double‑trigger change‑in‑control protection; non‑CEO multiples are 2× base salary plus average last two cash incentives with benefits continuation for two years; pro‑rata bonus and accelerated vesting of time‑based and earned performance‑based awards; unearned performance awards vest pro‑rata on termination; no excise tax gross‑ups; no single‑trigger vesting for unearned awards .
- Clawback: Complies with NYSE/Dodd‑Frank restatement clawback rules for incentive compensation recovery .
Governance, Peer Benchmarks, and Say‑on‑Pay
- Competitor peer group used for pay benchmarking and TSR awards includes industrial and net‑lease REITs (e.g., EGP, FR, REXR, STAG, TRNO, WPC, etc.) .
- Size‑based peer group covers similarly capitalized REITs across sectors for compensation reasonableness .
- Say‑on‑pay support: 96% FOR in 2024; five‑year average ~97% .
Risk Indicators & Red Flags
- Prohibitions on hedging and pledging; no option repricing or cash buyouts without shareholder approval; minimum vesting standards; independent compensation consultant; transparent disclosure practices .
- Trustee and executive ownership guidelines with disclosed compliance reduce misalignment risk .
- No tax gross‑ups in severance or equity plan; double‑trigger CoC design lowers windfall risk .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: LTI is majority performance‑based with three‑year relative TSR conditions across index and peer group and mandatory holding requirements, signaling emphasis on shareholder‑aligned outcomes and retention through staggered vesting .
- Dilution/overhang: Proposed 5,000,000-share increase to the 2022 plan lifts potential overhang to ~3.25% with modest historical burn rate (~0.28%), worth monitoring alongside future grant pacing and performance outcomes .
- Insider selling pressure: Time‑based shares vest annually and pay current dividends, while performance shares cliff‑vest and pay accrued dividends only upon vest; company’s anti‑hedging/anti‑pledging policy and ownership guidelines mitigate near‑term selling incentives for executives including Cherone .
- Retention/transition risk: Double‑trigger CoC protections and three‑year LTI vesting are retentive features; Cherone’s long tenure since 2019 and principal accounting officer designation suggest continuity in financial reporting leadership amid CFO transitions in 2024–2025 .