Kash, thread, Compaq CEO and CFO resign amid PC sales
turmoil
+ or - for the techs tomorrow? I'll guess +. Horrible thought for CPQ shareholders, what are chairman Rosen and his henchmen going to do abut the partially digested DEC and Tandem situations? Gotta believe these were Pfeiffer and Mason something or other dreams, consummated when things were much better at Compaq. Somebody be left holding the bag, I'm afraid.
cbs.marketwatch.com
Compaq coup: Pfeiffer, Mason
resign
By CBS MarketWatch, CBS
MarketWatch
Last Update: 4:26 PM ET Apr 18, 1999
NewsWatch
HOUSTON (CBS.MW) -- On the heels of a substantial
earnings warning, Chief Executive Officer Eckhard
Pfeiffer and Chief Financial Officer Earl Mason of
computer maker Compaq have resigned and an acting
office of the chief executive, composed of three
members of its board, has been named.
Compaq Computer (cpq: news, msgs)
had previously warned its earnings
will amount to only half of analysts'
expectations, reflecting
lower-than-expected market demand
and pricing pressure in
business-computer market.
Compaq earnings are expected to be
released April 21.
Chairman Benjamin M. Rosen,
directors and vice chairmen Frank P.
Doyle and Robert Ted Enloe, III will
make up the office the chief executive.
In a press release, Eckhard Pfeiffer
said, "Compaq has come a long way
since I joined the company in 1983.
We are a world leader in personal
computing, enterprise computing and
Internet applications. Under Ben's
[Chairman Benjamin Rosen] guidance,
I know this company will realize its
potential, transforming the industry yet
again."
It's unclear where Pfeiffer, who submitted his
resignation Sunday, is headed next. Compaq spokesman
Alan Hodel, couldn't comment on Pfeiffer's next step.
Compaq said in a press release that Mason will leave to
head another unnamed company as its CEO.
Hodel said the resignations aren't related to the future of
Compaq's AltaVista Internet property, adding the
computer maker will maintain its "clear and correct"
direction.
The PC sector is going through hard times but it's not a
sector-wide malaise. Piper Jaffray analyst Ashok
Kumar previously estimated Compaq sales were down
20 percent from the previous quarter compared with
Gateway with flat sales (gtw: news, msgs). See related
story.
Shares of Compaq closed flat at 23 5/8 ahead of the
announcement.
This report was compiled by the staff of CBS
MarketWatch. |
