Kering stock climbs as de Meo reportedly set to take over as CEO
Shares in Kering rose in early trading on Monday while stocks in Renault fell after reports that the French carmaker's CEO Luca de Meo is poised to become the new chief executive of the luxury goods maker.
Kering shares gained around 5% on trading platform Tradegate by 0606 GMT, and Renault shares fell around 3%. Renault said late on Sunday that de Meo will leave the company in mid-July for a new role outside the auto industry.
De Meo turned around the troubled French automaker during his five years at the helm, overhauling its two-decade-long strategic alliance with Nissan and doubling down on hybrid motors while shifting towards electric vehicles.
The Italian is set to replace Kering CEO François-Henri Pinault, whose family controls the heavily indebted luxury conglomerate and who has led the group for 20 years, Le Figaro first reported.
Le Monde reported, without citing sources, that Kering is expected to announce de Meo's appointment after the market closes on Monday.
Kering declined to comment on the reports.
'Luca de Meo has expressed his decision to step down in order to take on new challenges outside the automobile sector,' Renault said in a statement late on Sunday. The French state holds a 15% stake in Renault.
If confirmed, de Meo's move to Kering—which has lately failed to convince stock market investors of its plans to turn around its Gucci label—would mark a dramatic shift at the group. Pinault would remain Kering's chairman.
'Brand management and marketing are his forte,' Luca Solca, analyst at Bernstein, said of de Meo, 'which dovetails with what the luxury industry does—for which he seems passionate.'
'It is not hard to imagine how intriguing he found the Kering opportunity,' Solca added.
De Meo joined Renault from Volkswagen in 2020, a year when the French carmaker reported record losses following a pandemic-induced hit to sales.
In the years since, de Meo launched wide-ranging cost cuts that sharply reduced headcount and production capacity worldwide, transforming the company into a smaller but nimbler operation. He also oversaw a major reshaping of Renault's long-standing but often fraught relationship with Japan's Nissan.
'De Meo is perceived to have largely contributed to Renault's turnaround through product newness, technological innovation, EV transition shift, brand elevation, and a return to growth and profit,' Citi analysts wrote.
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