Shire share price dips as CFO leaves for Boston start-up
Shares in Shire (LON:SHP) have fallen deep into the red in London this afternoon, as the blue-chip pharmco revealed that its chief financial officer will be leaving the company at the end of the year to take up a role at a Boston start-up. Jeff Poulton’s departure comes at a sensitive time for the FTSE 100 group which is currently reviewing options for its Neuroscience franchise.
As of 14:49 BST, Shire’s share price had lost 3.49 percent to 3,640.50p, underperforming the broader UK market, with the benchmark FTSE 100 index having lost 0.10 percent to 7,316.84 points so far today. The group’s shares have lost more than 27 percent of their value over the past year, and are down by some 21 percent in the year-to-date.
Shire announced in a statement this afternoon that its chief financial officer Jeff Poulton will be stepping down at the end of the year to take the same position at Indigo Ag, Inc, a Boston-based start-up which uses the plant microbiome to improve the productivity and sustainability of agriculture. The FTSE 100 group said that it will start a formal search to identify a successor to Poulton.
“It is with regret that we announce Jeff’s upcoming departure. Having held numerous roles within the Company, Jeff has demonstrated steadfast commitment to Shire through a very intense period of activity and has made significant contributions to our organisation,” Shire’s chief executive Dr Flemming Ornskov commented in the statement, adding that Poulton “will play an active role in the search for his successor”.
The news comes after Shire recently updated investors on its interim performance, posting a rise in second-quarter revenue, having over-delivered on cost synergies in the first year of Baxalta’s acquisition. The rare disease specialist further announced that it was reviewing the options for its Neuroscience franchise, and expects to complete the review by the end of the year.
As of 15:09 BST, Monday, 21 August, Shire PLC share price is 3,639.50p.
