Astec’s ‘unexpected’ CEO change an incremental negative, says Baird

After Astec Industries announced Barry Ruffalo has stepped down as President and CEO and appointed Jaco van der Merwe to replace him, Baird analyst Mircea Dobre said the CEO change was "unexpected" and he views the news as "incrementally negative." While acknowledging results have been choppy at Astec in the past couple of years, Dobre expected Ruffalo to get more time to execute on his initiatives, the analyst tells investors. Dobre, who suspects this move signals that recent operational challenges did not show material improvement in Q4, has a Neutral rating and $36 price target on Astec shares.