Morgan Stanley says C.H. Robinson ‘sudden’ CEO change signals near-term pressure

After C.H. Robinson announced that Bob Biesterfeld has stepped down as president and CEO and chair Scott Anderson has been appointed interim CEO, Morgan Stanley analyst Ravi Shanker said the "sudden changes likely signal near-term pressure on numbers" that the board will be hoping to reverse over the longer-term. While some investors have considered whether management changes were a possibility, "the Street will likely still be surprised by the nature of the transition with the Chairman of the Board taking over on an interim basis on the first day of a new year, without a transition period for the outgoing CEO and no replacement readily identified," said Shanker, who has an Underweight rating and $66 price target on C.H. Robinson shares.