JD Sports shares slide as finance chief Neil Greenhalgh steps down
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JD Sports shares plummet as finance head Neil Greenhalgh resigns amid turmoil at sportswear retailer
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Shares in JD Sports plummeted as the turmoil at the top of the retailer continued.
The self-proclaimed ‘King of Trainers’ said finance chief Neil Greenhalgh would step down next year.
It follows the departure of former boss Peter Cowgill, who was ousted in May following corporate governance scandals.
Uproar: Sportswear retailer JD Sports said finance boss Neil Greenhalgh would resign next year
The two joined JD in 2004 and were key to its success. They turned it from a Manchester retail chain with annual sales of around £300 million to a FTSE 100 giant with annual sales of £8.5 billion.
The shares fell 10.3 percent, or 10.26p, to 89.2p.
Shore Capital retail analyst Eleonora Dani said: “After Peter left, it’s not great to see Neil leave as well. It was a winning team.
“Now you have another element of uncertainty about who might be next and how long it will take to find someone else.”
Greenhalgh had been thinking about leaving for a while. He said his departure would allow for a “smooth transition” and promised to help new CEO Regis Schultz and chairman Andy Higginson settle into their roles.
Schultz joined the Dubai conglomerate Al-Futtaim Group in September.
Higginson, who was appointed chairman in July, previously served as chairman of Morrisons before it was sold for £7bn last year.