Visteon Corporation announced that President and CEO Timothy D. Leuliette's intends to transition out of the company by the end of 2015, upon the appointment of his successor.
The board of directors has retained executive search firm Spencer Stuart to evaluate candidates to succeed Leuliette. From a collection of many businesses and legacy issues, over the last 30 months Visteon has become a focused electronics company, well positioned in its segment and prepared for the next chapter.
"It has been an honor and a privilege to lead Visteon through our dramatic changes," said Leuliette. "Given the excellent progress we have made to focus and streamline the company, including the pending sale of our 70 percent ownership stake in HVCC, I believe now is the right time to transition to the next generation of leadership. I am proud of the people at Visteon, the significant shareholder value we have created, and the support of my colleagues and our valued customers over the past two and a half years. I also appreciate the guidance and support our Board of Directors has provided as we have been executing our strategy. It is now time for a different leader with different skills to transform Visteon into an even more powerful electronics business."
Under Leuliette's leadership, Visteon has been strategically streamlined through a series of transactions and internal restructurings from a multi-business auto supplier into a focused company with a strong market position in electronics. Over the past 30 months, the company has:
• Acquired the electronics business of Johnson Controls, which strengthened Visteon's product portfolio and broadened its customer base, to create a $3 billion global electronics business;
• Sold the Interiors business of its Yanfeng joint venture to HASCO, while acquiring control of the JV's automotive electronics business in a transaction valued at $1.5 billion;
• Sold its lighting division to the Varroc Group of India;
• Sold a significant portion of its global interiors business to Reydel Automotive Holdings B.V., a company held by Cerberus Capital Management;
• Merged Visteon's historical climate business into its 70 percent-owned Korea climate business, Halla Climate Control Corporation, creating Halla Visteon Climate Control Corporation (HVCC), the second largest automotive thermal management business in the world;
• Acquired Cooper Standard's thermal and emissions product line, expanding the capabilities of HVCC in the growing powertrain thermal systems area; and
• Announced the pending sale of the company's 70 percent ownership stake in HVCC to an affiliate of Hahn & Company, a South Korean-based private equity company, and Hankook Tire Co. Ltd. for $3.6 billion.
"On behalf of the entire board, I would like to thank Tim for his vision, leadership and outstanding contributions to Visteon since becoming president and CEO in 2012," said Francis M. Scricco, chairman of the board. "Tim's transactional experience was critical to our company's dynamic transformation, which has increased Visteon's stock price 2.5 times and created about $2.5 billion of shareholder value. In addition, the strategy was professionally executed and completed almost a year ahead of schedule. The board is extremely pleased with the job Tim and his team have done during this restructuring. Given the tremendous opportunities ahead for Visteon, and its product and market strengths, we are confident we will find an individual with the right background and skill set to lead and transform our company to achieve further success in the rapidly evolving automotive electronics market."
Visteon achieved strong performance in 2014 and received $1.3 billion of annual business awards for its electronics business, the highest on record. With the sale of HVCC, the company will provide leading electronics technology for the auto industry across Asia, Europe and the Americas.
Visteon is a global company that designs, engineers and manufactures innovative products for nearly every vehicle manufacturer worldwide. Visteon currently delivers value for its customers and shareholders through two technology-focused businesses: vehicle cockpit electronics and thermal management. Visteon owns 70 percent of Halla Visteon Climate Control Corp., the world's second largest provider of vehicle thermal management solutions. With corporate offices in Van Buren Township, Mich. (U.S.); Shanghai, China; and Chelmsford, UK; Visteon has approximately 25,500 employees at facilities in 26 countries. Visteon had sales of $7.51 billion in 2014. Learn more at www.visteon.com.
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