US Chemours shares crash after CEO, CFO placed on leave

HOUSTON (ICIS)–Shares of pigment and fluoromaterials producer Chemours fell by more than 35% on Thursday after the company placed its two top executives and its principal accounting officer on administrative leave.

Chemours also delayed the release of its full-year earnings for the second time. It did not say when it could release its results.

Right now, the company’s audit committee is conducting an internal review that will cover the following:

• The processes for reviewing reports made to the Chemours ethics hotline.
• The company’s practices for managing working capital, including the related impact on metrics within incentive plans, certain financial metrics made in government filings and in public announcements.

Chemours did not say when it would release its full-year earnings.

Meanwhile, the Rosen Law Firm is investigating whether a class action lawsuit could be filed on behalf of Chemours’s shareholders.

ADMINISTRATIVE LEAVE FOLLOWS BOUT OF EXECUTIVE TURNOVER
The executives placed on administrative leave are CEO Mark Newman, Chief Financial Officer Jonathan Lock and Principal Accounting Officer Camela Wisel.

Denise Dignam will serve as interim CEO. Matt Abbott will serve as as interim CFO and principal financial and accounting officer.

Newman has been CEO since mid-2021. Before that he was the company’s chief operating officer.

Lock became CFO in mid-2023. He succeeded Sameer Ralhan, who was one of several high-profile departures that took place that year.

The following lists the other departures:

• At the end of March 2023, Ed Sparks resigned as the president of Titanium Technologies and Chemical Solutions.
• Also at the end of March, Sheryl Telford resigned as the company’s chief sustainability officer.
• At the end of May 2023, Alisha Bellezza resigned as president, Thermal & Specialized Solutions (TSS), the business segment that makes fluorochemicals.
• Susan Kelliher, senior vice president, people, resigned at the end of September 2023.

FIRST DELAY ANNOUNCED IN MID-FEBRUARY
Chemours disclosed that its audit committee was conducting the review in mid-February, when it announced the first delay of its earnings release.

Chemours makes titanium dioxide, fluorochemicals and fluoropolymers like Teflon.

Thumbnail shows Chemours CEO Mark Newman. Image by Chemours.