Just Eat boss quits in unexpected resignation
Just Eat chief executive Peter Plumb is to step down from his role at the British takeaway ordering website with immediate effect, the firm revealed this morning.
In an unexpected announcement Just Eat said that Plumb is to be replaced after 16 months at the helm on an interim basis by current chief customer officer Peter Duffy amid a search for a permanent replacement.
Shares slipped by 2.3 per cent in early morning trading to land at 643.6p.
The news comes as Just Eat finds itself under mounting pressure to compete with the likes of Uber Eats and Deliveroo in an increasingly squeezed online food order and delivery market.
Late last month US investment firm Cat Rock Capital, which owns two per cent of Just Eat, called on the firm's board to “address key issues” and sell off non-core assets, such as its interest in the Brazilian iFood as well as other non-European businesses.
Read more: Activist investor launches searing attack on Just Eat over poor returns
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "The departure of Peter Plumb as chief executive of Just Eat after less than a year and a half in the job is the latest hiccup for the previous stock market darling. At first glance, remarks from Plumb that now is the right time for him to step aside seem a bit odd given the short amount of time he’s been in the role. However, his departure isn’t a surprise given how the company’s share price had lost upward momentum under his tenure, plus the business had come under attack from activist investor Cat Rock."
He added: "Cat Rock had complained that Plumb had been in the job for more than a year and that shareholders were still waiting for Just Eat to announce appropriate financial goals and for the board to hold management accountable with a properly aligned remuneration package. Although there is no reference to the activist investor in Plumb’s departure announcement, one can certainly speculate the events are linked."
In a statement today, Plumb said: “2018 was another year of strong growth for the group. The business is in good health, and now is the right time for me to step aside and make way for a new leader for the next exciting wave of growth.”
Chairman Mike Evans added: “The board would like to thank Peter Plumb for setting Just Eat on a new course which better places it to address a much larger and rapidly expanding market. We wish him well for the future.
"Peter Duffy and the senior leadership team will continue to drive the execution of our strategy, which has the full backing of the board. Peter Duffy and Paul Harrison, chief financial officer, will provide a full update to the market at our full year results.”
In its trading update this morning the firm also said that it expected to report revenue of around £780m and underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) in the range of £172m-£174m.