Smith & Nephew (FTSE:SN, NYSE:SNN) tapped Roberto Quarta to be its new chairman and said its 3rd-quarter profits slid nearly 8%.
Quarta, who’s already chairman of several international conglomerates and of private equity giant Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, will succeed Sir John Buchanan if approved by Smith & Nephew’s shareholders next year, according to a press release.
News of Buchanan’s possible departure was revealed last week. Quarta is slated to join Smith & Nephew’s board Dec. 4 and stand for re-election at the company’s annual meeting slated for April 10, 2014. If we wins re-election to the board, Quarta will assume the chairmanship as Buchanan steps down, according to the release.
"We are delighted that Roberto Quarta has agreed to join the board of Smith & Nephew as non-executive director and chairman-elect. He brings exceptional board experience gained in both the U.K. and internationally, which will be of great value as we implement our strategic priorities to take advantage of the differing opportunities in our established and emerging markets," CEO Olivier Bohuon said in prepared remarks. "I wish to thank Sir John Buchanan for his leadership, counsel and dedication over the past 9 years. As chairman he has overseen a number of significant changes and has given me tremendous support in my role as chief executive. John will be a hard act to follow, but we are confident that in Roberto we have found another excellent chairman."
Apart from heading the board at Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, Quarta is chairman of British engineering firm IMI plc and French energy distributor Rexel. He also sits on the board of Swiss engineering conglomerate Foster Wheeler AG.
In a separate release, Smith & Nephew said it posted profits of $122 million, or 68¢ per share, on sales of $1.03 billion during the 3 months ended Sept. 28, for a profit slip of 7.6% on sales growth of 7.9%. Adjusted to exclude 1-time items, earnings per share were 85.5¢, in line with expectations on Wall Street.
"Smith & Nephew had a strong third quarter, delivering 5% growth in revenue and 10% growth in trading profit on an underlying basis. Our global performance in hip and knee Implants improved following successful new product introductions and increased investment. We generated 20% revenue growth across our emerging and international markets. Advanced wound management significantly outperformed its segment with another excellent quarter from Healthpoint Biotherapeutics, which we have now rebranded as Smith & Nephew," Bohuon said in a statement. "Our markets remain tough, but through implementing our strategic priorities we are meeting these challenges, investing where we see the greatest opportunities for growth, and successfully reshaping the Group for long-term success."
SNN shares were down 0.5% to $63.94 apiece as of about 10:40 a.m. today.
