Second-largest investor in Premier Foods lashes out at chief executive over ‘five years of failure’
The second largest shareholder in Mr Kipling-owner Premier Foods has called for its chief executive officer (CEO) Gavin Darby to be removed after years of “shareholder value destruction”.
Hong Kong-based Oasis Management said today that Darby should be removed “following years of persistent shareholder value destruction, poor financial performance, consistent missed targets, a lack of strategy and weak corporate governance”.
Oasis said it will be voting against Darby’s re-appointment at its annual general meeting (AGM) on 18 July and called for other shareholders to follow suit.
A spokesperson said: “Gavin Darby has overseen five years of failure which has led to considerable destruction of shareholder value. The equity market has long lost faith in his leadership, and in our view his self-interest and self-preservation, which we will no doubt see much of over the coming weeks, have driven a culture which does not respect the interests of shareholders.”
Oasis took aim at Darby’s £1.23m pay packet which it said was “upper quartile” for both the FTSE small cap index and the FTSE 250 index.
Darby oversaw the rejection of a £537m approach from US herb and spice company McCormick in 2016.
According to Oasis, Premier’s share price has fallen 39 per cent since the McCormick approach and 34 per cent since Darby’s appointment in February 2013.
A Premier spokesperson said the board "fully supports Gavin".
In its latest results revenue rose 3.6 per cent to £819.2m, from £790.4m the year before, while profit grew by 5.1 per cent to £117m, while debt shrank to £496.4m from £523.2m last year.
However, despite the positive results Oasis doubted Darby’s ability to guide the company’s future.
"Darby, who frustratingly has driven Premier Foods into its current zombie-like state, has no credible strategy to return Premier Foods to growth and as the largest independent shareholder, we have completely lost faith in him."