Hyperion "removes" top execs
Hyperion's board of directors says it has "removed" its CEO and vice president of worldwide sales from its management team.
John Dillon has been Hyperion's chief executive since the completion of the company's August 1998 merger with Arbor Software first announced last May. A spokesman for the company said that Dillon had been Arbor's chief executive since January 1998.
As previously reported, both Dillon and senior vice president of worldwide sales, William Binch, Sr., came from Arbor and had maintained their executive positions through the transition after the close of the merger.
The software developer of analytic applications said in a statement that its CFO, Stephen Imbler, will serve as president and chief executive on an interim basis.
The Sunnyvale, California-based company declined to comment on the matter.
Last month, the company reported much lower-than-expected third-quarter earnings of 8 cents a share, compared with the 22 cents that analysts surveyed by First Call projected the company to earn.
Also in April, the company had warned of the third-quarter shortfall, citing weaker sales and merger-related productivity issues.
Basically, the [company's] stock has been a "nonperformer" in recent days, going from $49 to $12 a share since the merger [with Arbor], U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray Analyst Arun Kumar said in a phone interview.
Although Kumar said he wasn't surprise to hear the news, he admitted that he didn't expect the changes so soon. In addition to the company's poor stock performance, Kumar also said he believes that the company's recent business performance is also the reason for the corporate changes.
The company develops analytic applications that help companies conduct financial statement consolidation, financial budgeting, analysis, management reporting, and forecasting. In research notes, analysts at Goldman Sachs said they believe this market will experience rapid growth due to an increase in transactional data and companies' need for these services, especially when it comes to their strategic decision making. Goldman analysts rate Hyperion stock as "market performer."
The company said it will begin looking for a new president and CEO immediately.
Kumar said Hyperion will probably go outside the company to find the replacements and that, perhaps, the company is in need of "fresh blood" for the top positions, referring to Dillon and Binch's Arbor roots before the merger.
In afternoon trading, shares of Hyperion Solutions rose 0.62 to 15.75.