Diageo has named Nik Jhangiani as its new chief financial officer following the company’s profit warning last year as unsold stock dented investor confidence.
Current CFO Lavanya Chandrashekar is leaving the world’s largest spirits group after three years in the role.
Jhangiani will take on the role in autumn 2024, leaving his current position as CFO of Coca-Cola Europacific Partners which he has held since 2016.
He did not give a reason for the change.
'Strong Period Of Growth For Diageo'
Chandrashekar, who was previously CFO of Diageo’s largest market in North America, will step down and return to the US, the company said in a statement.
Chandrashekar said, “I am proud to have overseen a strong period of growth for Diageo.”
The chief executive of Diageo, Debra Crew, said she was grateful for Chandrashekar’s contribution.
Crew, who took on the role in June last year, added that she is excited for Jhangiani to take on the role.
Crew said of Jhangiani, “He is a highly experienced CFO with a proven global track record of generating growth across multiple consumer businesses and industries.”
Latin American Stock
Diageo issued a profit warning last year amid a build-up of unsold stock in Latin America that hurt investor confidence.
Although some investors’ concerns have since eased, RBC Capital analyst James Edwardes Jones said that the warning still hangs over Diageo’s shares.
The company’s shares remain 16% lower than before November’s announcement about Latin American stock.
Edwardes Jones said, “Diageo’s weak share price performance has, in part, reflected questions around financial communication and some perceived missteps from senior management.”
Diageo’s shares rose 1.5% in early trading, outperforming the FTSE 100 index.
Crew said that the drinks giant will continue to invest in its brands, create shareholder value and maintain its leadership position.
Jhangiani, who said he looked forward to driving shareholder value at Diageo, has more than 30 years of finance experience across the UK, Europe, India, Africa and the US.
