Under Armor (UA, UAA) announced that founder Kevin Plank will return as CEO on April 1st. He replaces Stephanie Linnertz, who is resigning and retiring from the Board of Directors. Mohamed El-Erian, who has previously served as the board's lead director, will now become non-executive chairman.
Yahoo Finance's Julie Hyman, Josh Lipton and Brian Sozzi have the latest details.
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Editor's note: This article was written by Stephanie Mikulich.
video transcript
[AUDIO LOGO]
Julie Hyman: In the latest news, Kevin Blank is returning to Under Armor as CEO, replacing Stephanie Linnertz. The company also announced that Mohamed El-Erian, who has served on the board for the past several years, will become chairman of the board.
Now, this is a surprise. Stephanie Linnertz had only been in the role since February of last year. So it's been 13 months since she's been in that position here, and now Kevin is back at the helm of the company. And I know you're looking at stock price trends. Obviously, it's even higher now. However, it has been a difficult road for Under Armor.
Josh Lipton: Yeah, I mean, if you look at the stock price, there's actually been absolutely nothing done so far and over the past 12 months. At least the initial reaction to After Hours proves to be pop and interesting. Plank, of course, he founded this company in 1996.
If you look through the release, he goes on to talk about his tenure there, how he talks about future opportunities, and what he hopes to capitalize on. For nearly 30 years, the company has focused on inspiring athletes. Industry-leading performance He talks about the solution and says he looks forward to seizing the opportunities ahead.
Investors aren't thrilled with the name. If you look at the street and how they feel about it, even after such an underperformance, most are on the sidelines, and even after such an underperformance, about 60% are still I have a hold. However, things may change with Plank rejoining.
Julie Hyman: Yeah, again, that's kind of shocking. I mean, he worked for Marriott International for years before Stephanie was hired to run Under Armor. So it will be interesting to see if she has a next chapter in corporate America as well. But it will be very interesting to see what changes, if any, Kevin Plank makes to reinvigorate Under Armor, which he has been working on for several years.
Josh Lipton: Stock up about 6% now after hours.
