Nestlé: trailing SMI after sudden departure of CEO
(CercleFinance.com) - On Friday, Nestlé shares were the biggest losers on the Zurich Stock Exchange's SMI index, as the Swiss food giant was penalised by the announcement of the departure of its CEO Mark Schneider, who will leave the company on 1 September.
In early trading the share fell was down over 2%, while the SMI was up 0.6% at the same time.
Last night, Nestlé announced the appointment of Laurent Freixe, the current CEO of its Latin America division (LATAM), as Group CEO.
Mark Schneider has been CEO for almost eight years, during which time the executive has focused on high-growth categories such as coffee, pet care and nutritional health.
For analysts at Canadian bank RBC, this sudden change 'raises more questions than it answers'.
They note that Nestlé maintained its annual targets during this morning's conference call, but did not reiterate its medium-term forecasts of organic growth of around 5% and an operating margin (Ebit) of 17.5% to 18.5%.
From his point of view, the company's organic growth is currently around 3%, which could necessitate a downward revision of this roadmap.
Oddo BHF describes this as a "good decision", coming "earlier than expected", but above all one that will put Nestlé back on its historical trajectory ("the Nestlé way").
Unlike Mark Schneider, who came from the German medical group Fresenius, Laurent Freixe is an 'in-house' executive, having joined Nestlé France in 1986.
Since then, he has continuously progressed within the company, holding various positions of increasing responsibility in different business sectors, markets and regions.
A member of the Executive Committee for 16 years, he successfully managed the Europe zone during the financial and economic crisis from 2008 to 2014.
Copyright (c) 2024 CercleFinance.com. All rights reserved.
In early trading the share fell was down over 2%, while the SMI was up 0.6% at the same time.
Last night, Nestlé announced the appointment of Laurent Freixe, the current CEO of its Latin America division (LATAM), as Group CEO.
Mark Schneider has been CEO for almost eight years, during which time the executive has focused on high-growth categories such as coffee, pet care and nutritional health.
For analysts at Canadian bank RBC, this sudden change 'raises more questions than it answers'.
They note that Nestlé maintained its annual targets during this morning's conference call, but did not reiterate its medium-term forecasts of organic growth of around 5% and an operating margin (Ebit) of 17.5% to 18.5%.
From his point of view, the company's organic growth is currently around 3%, which could necessitate a downward revision of this roadmap.
Oddo BHF describes this as a "good decision", coming "earlier than expected", but above all one that will put Nestlé back on its historical trajectory ("the Nestlé way").
Unlike Mark Schneider, who came from the German medical group Fresenius, Laurent Freixe is an 'in-house' executive, having joined Nestlé France in 1986.
Since then, he has continuously progressed within the company, holding various positions of increasing responsibility in different business sectors, markets and regions.
A member of the Executive Committee for 16 years, he successfully managed the Europe zone during the financial and economic crisis from 2008 to 2014.
Copyright (c) 2024 CercleFinance.com. All rights reserved.