Dean Foods announced its finance chief and executive vice president Jody Macedonio stepped down from the US dairy business yesterday (24 September).
“Macedonio’s departure is not related to any issues regarding the integrity of the company’s financial statements or accounting policies and practices,” the New York-listed company said in a statement.
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By GlobalDataThe owner of the TruMoo and DairyPure brands has been struggling financially as demand for liquid milk, its major business, wanes, and earlier this month revealed the outcome of a strategic review. Dean Foods opted for an internal transformation programme under newly-appointed chief executive Eric Beringause rather than pursue a previously suggested sale of the firm or a joint venture with another partner. The option it has taken would “provide the best opportunity to enhance long-term shareholder value,” it said.
Dean Foods has seen revenues almost half over the past decade and posted its biggest annual loss in seven years in 2018. The business, which is also heavily reliant on private label, has been closing factories across the US to save costs.
John Baumgartner, a senior analyst at Wells Fargo Securities, commented on the CFO’s departure in a note to clients: “It’s a reminder of the unsettled nature of the business and does nothing to improve visibility following 9/6’s [6 September] decision to pursue a ‘go-forward’ strategy among other potential strategic alternatives.
“We firmly remain on the sidelines given weak fundamentals, including last week’s Nielsen data (DF’s branded milk volume still -11% yr/yr and category volume worsened to -5%), and an upside bias to milk cost inflation. Given a likely still-heavy degree of lifting, and with DF apparently not a takeout candidate itself, we’ll be curious to hear of Ms. Macedonio’s successor.”
Former PepsiCo executive Gary Rahlfs will serve as chief financial officer on an interim basis. He has served as senior vice president for finance and strategy at Dean Foods since May 2019.
Meanwhile, Russell Coleman has also stepped down as executive vice president, general counsel, corporate secretary and government affairs of the company.
See just-food’s analysis: Dean Foods left with little wiggle room after ruling out sale.
