SeraCare Life Sciences Inc. (NSDQ:SRLS) CEO Susan Vogt was replaced by CFO Greg Gould amid a troubling third quarter earnings report and a hostile takeover bid by private equity firm MSMB Capital.
Vogt held the keys to the corner office at SeraCare for the past five years, but stepped down today on the heels of the release of the company’s third quarter earnings report, which showed a 60 percent decrease in earnings to $520,000 with a 15 percent loss in revenue to $11 million compared to the same time last year for the three months ended June 30.
CFO Greg Gould will take the reins as interim CEO while the Milford, Mass.-based company searches for a permanent replacement.
"We believe we have a great foundation in place and see a healthy environment for profitable growth in the foreseeable future," board chairman Joseph Nemmers said in a press release. "The board of directors is making these changes and raising its expectations for commercial and R&D execution as well as a more focused business development strategy. We’re confident these steps will lead to improvements in the overall performance of the company."
Seracare is mired in a $82 million hostile takeover bid by MSMB Capital, which offered to acquire for $4.25 per share in an offer made last week. In a June 23 letter to SeraCare’s board of directors, MSMB wrote that the firm’s management ought to be ousted and promising to take action to ensure that further erosion to stockholder value is prevented.
Shares of SeraCare stock were down 2 percent to $3.91 at close today.
"Even though SeraCare is having a difficult year in fiscal 2011, we remain confident in our market opportunity and the potential for our products and services to win in our target markets," Gould said in prepared remarks. "The restructuring underway in our commercial channel is designed to capitalize on this opportunity. In addition, we have a solid balance sheet with a strong cash position and virtually no debt. I look forward to working closely with the board of directors to return the company to a profitable growth trajectory."