The chairman of the Memphis-based First Horizon National Corp. board, Michael Rose, had to answer questions from a handful of angry investors Tuesday at the bank’s annual shareholders’ meeting as investors who saw their stock tank while the company paid millions in stock bonuses to top executives wanted answers.

“I need you to explain record bonuses and record losses,’’ said Mike Meyerrose, a Nashville shareholder who is married to a former executive who lost her job at the bank in 2008.

First Horizon, the parent company of First Tennessee, lost $269.8 million last year, the third straight year of losses. It increased its overall compensation for executives by $7.7 million more last year, mostly in stock units that will turn into cash in 2011.

Rose said that most of the current slate of executives were not at the bank when decisions were made to expand into lending outside the state, insisting they’ve been dealing with the problems and coming up with solutions since then.

Read the full story from The Tennessean in Nashville.

Similar Posts:

• Bank leaders’ compensation stirs criticism
• Memphis-based First Horizon National Corp. reports dramatic jump in 2Q profits
• Nortel trial focuses on ‘optics’ of bonus payments
• The Habits that Reveal a Fantastic Investor
• Memphis-based Wright Medical reports jump in 2Q sales, profits