As I've written in the past, Chesapeake Energy (NYSE: CHK) CEO Aubrey McClendon has come under some well-deserved fire for his high compensation in the face of poor results and a declining stock price. He was paid a one-time $75 million bonus at the end of 2008 -- suspicious timing given that the stock had lost most of its value in recent months and Mr. McClendon had lost his entire stake in the company to margin calls.

The company also made the extremely unusual decision to use $12.1 million of company money to buy some of McClendon's collectible maps to decorate the company's offices.

The board of directors at Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) is under fire for the compensation package handed to CEO Aubrey McClendon -- and with good reason: He took home $112 million last year even as the stock tumbled from a 52-week high of $74 to its current price of $20.

According (subscription required) to The Wall Street Journal, "The compensation package, one of the largest for any corporate executive last year, included a one-time $75 million bonus, a $975,000 base salary, and $32.7 million in stock, according to the company's proxy statement. Chesapeake, one of the biggest U.S. producers of natural gas, also disclosed several transactions involving Mr. McClendon or companies in which he has an interest, including a deal to buy Mr. McClendon's collection of maps and artwork for $12.1 million."

Back in October, Chesapeake Energy (NYSE: CHK) CEO Aubrey McClendon watched his company's stock price tumble along with energy prices -- as a result he faced margin calls and was forced to sell about 94% of his stake in the company.

The stock is still down more than 75% from its 52-week high, but apparently the board of directors' independent compensation committee saw fit to reward McClendon with a new contract that included a one-time $75 million retention payment.

Under this new deal, McClendon will take a salary of $975,000 per year and agrees not to leave for five years.

Normally, I'd be skeptical of a new employment agreement and retention payment to a guy who's stock has lost most of its value. But McClendon's huge stake in the company -- and willingness to borrow money to increase it -- demonstrated tremendous confidence in the company's future and he personally lost about $2 billion when he received those margin calls. The recent decline in energy prices aside, he has a pretty impressive track record and he's worth retaining.

This oil trade takes the cake.

At the zenith of the speculative bubble in the oil patch -- when crude hit $147 per barrel in July -- you had everyone from T. Boone Pickens to Prince Alaweed touting $200-per-barrel oil by the end of the year.

Crude is now trading around $40 -- down $107 per barrel in less than six months. Unbelievable!

And this latest drop comes after OPEC voted to cut daily production by an eye-popping 4.2 billion barrels per day.

Looks like the world is awash in crude oil.

Needless to say, those euphoric longs in the oil stocks got destroyed. Most energy stocks lost 50% to 70% of their value during the course of the sell-off in crude.

And remember those television commercials with T. Boone and Chesapeake Energy (NYSE: CHK) CEO Aubrey McClendon pushing for the expansion of natural gas?

Well, natural gas prices are down 60% from their mid-year highs.

If you put money into T. Boone's Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (NASDAQ: CLNE) as recently as September, when the stock was trading at $20, you now own Mr. Pickens' vision for $5.

Energy stocks are getting hammered today, thanks in no small part to renewed demand concerns following the Labor Department's gruesome nonfarm payrolls report. Natural-gas concern Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE: CHK) is blazing the path lower, with the shares hitting a new 5-year low of $9.86 earlier today.

In fact, CHK has been reeling since late November, when the commodity firm filed a shelf registration to issue $2 billion worth of shares in a bid to raise cash. The move sparked anxiety among investors about share dilution, and it also raised questions about Chesapeake's liquidity position. In response to the news, brokerage firm Calyon Securities on Wednesday slashed the stock's rating from Buy to Underperform, and cut its price target from $41 to $15.

Other analysts are concerned, too; Phil Weiss of Argus Research told Reuters today that "the stock could easily go to $2 a share on fear and panic." Chesapeake CEO Aubrey McClendon asserted yesterday that his company is "in excellent position to weather the current difficult economic situation in the U.S.," but it remains to be seen whether this comment will be sufficient to soothe an increasingly emotional market.

Plus, CHK looks highly vulnerable to more downgrades in the near future. Zacks reports a staggering 16 Strong Buy ratings from analysts, along with one Buy, six Holds, and absolutely no Sells. Any further negative notes from brokerage firms could potentially smack the shares deeper into single-digit territory.

Elizabeth Harrow is an analyst and financial writer in the research department at Schaeffer's Investment Research. She is featured in the video series Schaeffer's Daily Q&A on SchaeffersResearch.com.