CSL employees.
William West | AFP | Getty Images
Shares of Australian biotech firm CSL plunged 17% Wednesday after it announced that Chief Executive Officer Paul McKenzie will step down effective February, and posted weak earnings for the first half of its fiscal year ended December.
Former senior executive Gordon Naylor has been appointed as interim CEO, effective Wednesday, until a permanent replacement is found.
CSL on Wednesday reported its net profit after tax plunged 81% year on year to $401 million as the drugmaker booked one-off restructuring costs and asset impairments. Revenue dropped 4% to $8.3 billion.
“We are clearly not satisfied with our performance and have implemented a number of initiatives to drive stronger growth going forward,” said Ken Lim, CSL’s chief financial officer.
The company, which is one of the world’s largest producers of flu vaccines, had a market cap of $58.9 billion as of Tuesday, data from LSEG showed.
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