DENNY'S Executive Compensation (FY23)
DENN · Executive and director compensation, fiscal 2023 only
The paid brief on DENNY'S
Positioning against its disclosed peers, the governance read, incentive design, and the CD&A alignment analysis; the full peer table; a committee-ready PDF.
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Data as of September 5, 2026Latest filing (8-K): May 16, 2025
11 filings cited on this page
Method: intel.velarion.ai/methodology
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Published by Velarion Company Intelligence
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168 figures on this page: 158 cited to the filing that reported them, 10 calculated from figures it prints. See the citations
More on DENNY'S
Five data products on this company. Each one is requested through the developer setup page.
- Peer Disclosure Audit$5The comparison companies this board named, each one tied to the filing that lists it.How to get Peer Disclosure Audit
- Governance Provisions PullfreeThe governance provisions as the proxy states them: board leadership, committee membership, and shareholder rights.How to get Governance Provisions Pull
- Say-on-Pay Risk Signal$9A risk band for the next say-on-pay vote, with the support history and the peer comparison behind it.How to get Say-on-Pay Risk Signal
- NEO Comp Report$24Every named executive officer’s pay by element and year, with the citation behind each figure.How to get NEO Comp Report
- Board Comp Report$24What each non-employee director was paid, the standing fee schedule, and the equity each one holds at year end.How to get Board Comp Report
Frequently asked questions
Answers drawn from the data on this page.
Who is DENNY'S' chief executive and what were they paid?
Total compensation for Kelli Valade, Chief Executive Officer, came to $5,363,088 in fiscal 2023.
What was DENNY'S' say-on-pay result?
Shareholders supported the say-on-pay proposal with 94.7% of votes cast for or against in favor at the meeting held May 14, 2025 for fiscal 2024.
Which companies are in DENNY'S' peer group?
The disclosed peer group includes BJ's Restaurants, Inc., Bloomin Brands, Inc., Brinker International, Inc., Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. and Dine Brands Global, Inc., among others.
What is DENNY'S' chief executive pay ratio?
The disclosed chief executive pay ratio for fiscal 2023 is 206:1, against median employee compensation of $26,054.
Executive compensation
Every element reported for each named executive officer, by fiscal year.
Fiscal 2023
| Officer | Salary | Bonus | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension and deferred earnings | All other compensation | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kelli Valade Chief Executive Officer | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Robert Verostek Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Gail Sharps Myers Executive Vice President, Chief Legal & Administrative Officer and Corporate Secretary | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
John Dillon Former President, Denny's, Inc. Departed during or after this year | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Michael Furlow Former Executive Vice President, Chief Information Officer Departed during or after this year | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Stephen Dunn Executive Vice President and Chief Global Development Officer | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column. $0 is shown only where the filing prints a zero. A negative change in pension value is shown but, as the company reports it, not included in the total.
Equity awards granted
Individual awards as disclosed: type, date, unit counts at each level, and grant date value.
Fiscal 2023
| Officer | Award | Grant date | Threshold units | Target units | Units granted | Maximum units | Exercise price | Grant date fair value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gail Sharps Myers | PSU | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ |
| John W. Dillon | PSU | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ |
| Kelli F. Valade | PSU | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ |
| Michael L. Furlow | PSU | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ |
| Robert P. Verostek | PSU | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ |
| Stephen C. Dunn | PSU | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | — | ◇ |
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column. $0 is shown only where the filing prints a zero. Threshold, target and maximum apply only to performance awards and are never shown for time-based or option awards.
Outstanding awards
Awards still held at fiscal year end.
As disclosed at fiscal 2023 year end
| Officer | Award | Unvested units | Market value of unvested units | Exercise price | Expires |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gail Sharps Myers | PSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — |
| RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| PSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| Robert Verostek | PSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — |
| RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| PSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| Kelli Valade | RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — |
| PSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| PSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| Michael Furlow | RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — |
| PSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| PSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| Stephen Dunn | RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — |
| RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| PSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| RSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | |
| PSU | ◇ | ◇ | — | — |
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column. $0 is shown only where the filing prints a zero.
Director compensation
What each non-employee director was paid.
Fiscal 2023
| Director | Fees earned in cash | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension and deferred earnings | All other compensation | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Brenda J. Lauderback Board chair | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
José M. Gutiérrez | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
Gregg R. Dedrick | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
Bernadette S. Aulestia | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
Laysha Ward | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
Olu Beck | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
John C. Miller | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ |
Kelli F. Valade served on the board in fiscal 2023 and received no compensation for board service. Executive directors are typically paid through their executive roles, shown above.
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column. $0 is shown only where the filing prints a zero.
Disclosed peer group
The companies this board named as its compensation comparison group. The list is disclosure; the comparison is analysis.
Fiscal 2023
- BJ's Restaurants, Inc. BJRI
- Bloomin Brands, Inc. BLMN
- Brinker International, Inc. EAT
- Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. CBRL
- Dine Brands Global, Inc. DIN
- El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. LOCO
- Fiesta Restaurant Group, Inc. symbol not shown
- Jack in the Box, Inc. JACK
- Noodles & Company NDLS
- Ruth's Hospitality Group, Inc. symbol not shown
- Shake Shack Inc. SHAK
- Texas Roadhouse, Inc. TXRH
- The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated CAKE
- Wingstop Inc. WING
Say-on-pay history
Shareholder support for the compensation program, by year.
| Year | Meeting | Support | Votes for | Votes against | Abstentions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | May 14, 2025 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2023 | May 15, 2024 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2022 | May 17, 2023 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2021 | May 18, 2022 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2020 | May 19, 2021 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2019 | May 20, 2020 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2018 | May 8, 2019 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2017 | May 9, 2018 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2016 | May 10, 2017 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2015 | May 23, 2016 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
Chief executive pay ratio
As calculated and reported by the company.
Ratio
◇
Median employee compensation
◇
Chief executive total compensation
◇
What this page does not include
Everything above is a fact DENNY'S disclosed, and it is free. Everything below is our analysis of those facts, and it is not.
Peer benchmarking
Where DENNY'S sits against its disclosed peers — percentile position by role and by pay element, and the ranking behind it. The disclosed peer group is free; comparisons across it are part of the Velarion platform.
Executive Compensation Report — $1,500Written compensation analysis
A read of the pay program as designed and as paid: incentive structure, goal rigor, the alignment between the committee's stated philosophy and what the numbers show.
Executive Compensation Report — $1,500Board and governance analysis
Committee composition, independence, director pay positioning, and the governance provisions read together rather than listed.
Board Governance Report — $1,200Realizable pay
What the awards above are actually worth today against what they were valued at on grant, and what the gap says about the pay-for-performance link.
Velarion IntelligenceAdviser switching and vote outcomes
Two datasets covering compensation-adviser changes and what followed a contested vote. Both are part of the Velarion platform.
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Velarion IntelligenceCitations
Every figure on this page is cited to the document that reported it. Select any figure to see its citation.
168 figures on this page: 158 cited to the filing that reported them, 10 calculated from figures it prints.
158 cited to the filing
10 calculated from the filing
Documents cited
- 0000852772-25-000087Item 5.07 Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
- 0000852772-24-000049Item 5.07 Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
- 0000852772-23-000061Item 5.07 Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
- 0000852772-22-000056Item 5.07 Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
- 0000852772-21-000059Item 5.07 Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
- 0000852772-20-000102Item 5.07 Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
- 0000852772-19-000062Item 5.07 Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
- 0000852772-18-000069Item 5.07 Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
- 0000852772-17-000056Item 5.07 Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
- 0000852772-16-000135Item 5.07 Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
- 0001193125-24-0865592023 Director Compensation · 2023 Outstanding Equity Awards at Fiscal Year-End · 2023 Summary Compensation Table · C. 2023 Grants of Plan-Based Awards · and 2 more sections
Cite this data
This page is free to cite. Attribution we ask for:
Velarion, “DENNY'S executive compensation, FY2023.” https://intel.velarion.ai/comp/DENN (accessed 2026).
Short form: data: Velarion
The paid brief for DENNY'S
Positioning against its disclosed peers, the governance read, incentive design, and the CD&A alignment analysis; the full peer table; a committee-ready PDF.
$1,500 for the Executive Compensation Report. Both reports for $2,400.
11 filings cited on this page
Method: intel.velarion.ai/methodology
A report that fails to generate is refunded in full
Published by Velarion Company Intelligence
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Peers DENNY'S discloses
The companies named in DENN's own disclosed peer group.
Terms on this page
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Cite this data
APA
Velarion Company Intelligence. (2026). Velarion database: executive and board compensation data (Version 2026Q3) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22283854
BibTeX
@misc{velarionData2026,
author = {{Velarion Company Intelligence}},
title = {Velarion database: executive and board compensation data},
year = {2026},
version = {2026Q3},
doi = {10.5281/zenodo.22283854},
publisher = {Zenodo},
url = {https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22283854}
}