Who would have thought, but for the first time in many years, it's the American Economy that is getting all the positive attention. Some of the positive change is related to the precipitous fall in oil prices but more of it relates to improved ecoonomic policies and the ability of the American economy to adapt. Liberum Research has been predicting positive news for the American Economy over the last two years. Most of our predictions have been primarily based on the overall growth trend in executive turnover and the slowly improving employment situation. The latest executive turnover numbers, while not fabulous, continue to support positive growth for the American Economy. The economy is still faced with serious employment problems, particularly for the long term unemployed, and a continuing drag in salary increases for the majority of the working population. Increases in executive turnover, which Liberum Research sees as an important economic indicator, have remained on a constant positive trend. Liberum expects executive turnover to continue in a positive direction as we move through the new year.
Liberum has put together below, a seven year quarterly breakdown of executive turnover totals for CEOs, CFOs and C-level executives covering North America. Most of the below quarterly numbers showed continuing declines until the second quarter of 2011. At that point, the numbers began to reverse themselves. Turnover at the executive levels of corporate America began to grow while not consistently and that trend has continued and is expected to be about the same for all of 2015.
Anyone investing in the market must pay special attention to executive turnover both at the top and the middle executive ranks. Failure to do so, will result in lost opportunities or worse. To take advantage of executive changes, get a free trial to Liberum's Online Management Change Database. Just call Richard at 212-988-5497 or send an email to richard@twst.com requesting your free trial. Within a day of your trial, you will have access to over 200,000 data points from which you can generate ideas and daily information on who is changing jobs at the top and where they are going.
Below is a simple table outlining the quarterly and annual turnover totals as registered through Liberum Research's Management Change Database for 2008 through 2014 for CEOs, CFOs and overall C-level turnover.
Total CEO Turnover Comparisons
| Year | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 |
| 1st Quarter | 745 | 491 | 388 | 346 | 680 | 583 | 500 |
| 2nd Quarter | 596 | 380 | 321 | 581 | 665 | 619 | 527 |
| 3rd Quarter | 533 | 409 | 298 | 713 | 636 | 627 | 557 |
| 4th Quarter | 461 | 430 | 328 | 697 | 673 | 636 | 651 |
| Annual Total | 2,335 | 1,710 | 1,335 | 2,337 | 2,654 | 2,465 | 2,235 |
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Total CFO Turnover Comparisons
| Year | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 |
| 1st Quarter | 593 | 332 | 296 | 280 | 640 | 495 | 468 |
| 2nd Quarter | 551 | 326 | 273 | 404 | 612 | 557 | 595 |
| 3rd Quarter | 438 | 279 | 256 | 629 | 598 | 582 | 550 |
| 4th Quarter | 364 | 313 | 258 | 476 | 569 | 562 | 586 |
| Annual Total | 1,946 | 1,250 | 1,083 | 1,789 | 2,419 | 2,196 | 2,199 |
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Total C-level Turnover Comparisons
| Year | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 |
| 1st Quarter | 6735 | 4061 | 3453 | 2863 | 5442 | 3971 | 4083 |
| 2nd Quarter | 7430 | 5051 | 3199 | 4041 | 5036 | 4102 | 4117 |
| 3rd Quarter | 4865 | 3690 | 2522 | 5349 | 4235 | 4123 | 3950 |
| 4th Quarter | 4277 | 3439 | 2381 | 4596 | 4197 | 4196 | 4200 |
| Annual Total | 23,307 | 16,241 | 11,555 | 16,849 | 18,910 | 16,392 | 16,350 |
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The latest monthly comparison figures with regard to executive turnover for December 2014 as compared with those of December 2013 and December 2014 and November 2014 are as follows:
- CEO turnover for December 2014 showed no change from that of December 2013, CFO turnover increased 2%, C-level turnover increased just 1% and Board of Director turnover declined 4%.
- The the month to month change from November 2014 to December 2014 overall was somewhat more positive. CEO turnover increased 7% for CEOs, declined 12% for CFOs, increased 10% with regard to C-level changes and increased 35% for Board of Director changes.
In the below report, Liberum has focused on 52 CEO changes of special significance for the month of December out of a total of 226. We have also put together the overall turnover figures for the month of December 2014. The below information is just illustrative of how investors could view executive turnover and its possible relationship with a company's performance. The same could be done for COOs, Presidents, Chairmans, etc., just through Liberum's Management Change Database.
DATE COMPANY TICKER EXCHANGE MARKET CAP $ MILLIONS
12-01 Bison Instruments BSOI OTC 67
12-01 Idera Pharmaceuti IDRA NASDAQ 349
12-01 Legg Mason, Inc. LM NYSE 6292
12-01 Millcom Swed Dep MICCF 8500
12-01 Pope Resources POPE NASDAQ 280
12-01 Pulse Electronics PULS OTC
12-02 Allied Minds ALM LONDON 7
12-02 Loews Corporation L NYSE 15433
12-03 Digi International Inc. DGII NASDAQ 185
12-04 Carbonite, Inc. CARB NASDAQ 383
12-04 New Jersey Mining NJMC NYSE 7
12-05 Arctic Cat, Inc. ACAT NASDAQ 430
12-05 Areva - Societe ARVCF OTC 4531
12-05 Bay Bancorp, Inc. BYBK NASDAQ 48
12-05 Francesca's Holdi FRAN NASDAQ 638
12-05 South Jersey Industries SJI NYSE 1968
12-05 Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. SWK NYSE 14970
12-05 Warren Resources, Inc. WRES NASDAQ 122
12-08 Innocoll Ag INNL NASDAQ 137
12-09 Abercrombie & Fitch Co. ANF NYSE 1961
12-10 G. Willi-Food International Limited WILC NASDAQ 93
12-10 Layne Christensen Company LAYN NASDAQ 157
12-10 Seaworld Entertai SEAS NYSE
12-10 Walgreen Company WAG 70595
12-11 C T I Group CTIG OTC 11
12-12 Midway Gold Corpo MDW NYSE 124
12-15 Bob Evans Farms, Inc. BOBE NASDAQ 1243
12-15 Crocs, Inc. CROX NASDAQ 1050
12-15 Lyondellbasell In LYB NYSE 41055
12-15 Spark Networks plc (ADR) LOV NYSE 86
12-16 Medbook World Inc MBOO OTC
12-16 Sms Management SMSUF OTC 194
12-17 American Apparel, Inc. APP NYSE 128
12-17 Ampco-Pittsburgh AP NYSE 180
12-17 Crimson Wine CWGL OTC 231
12-17 Hudsons Bay HBAYF TORONTO 3746
12-17 New Peoples Banks NWPP OTC 29
12-17 Par Petroleum Corporation PARR NYSE 589
12-18 Avix Technologies AVIX OTC 719
12-18 Sierra Bancorp BSRR NASDAQ 240
12-19 Blue Ridge Banksh BRBS OTC 20
12-19 Bonanza Gold Corp BNZA OTC 4
12-19 Huntsworth HNT LONDON
12-19 SupportSoft, Inc. SPPR NASDAQ 11
12-19 Table Trac Inc TBTC OTC 4
12-19 Tesco Corp TESO NASDAQ 539
12-22 Orca Gold CANWF OTC 30
12-23 Comtech Telecomm. Corp CMTL NASDAQ 530
12-23 Echo Therapeutics ECTE NASDAQ 19
12-23 Redux Holdings In RDXH OTC 205
12-23 Supernova Energy SPRN OTC 2
12-24 Takata Corp Unsp TKTDY OTC 922
DECEMBER 2014 MANAGEMENT CHANGE STATISTICS
C-LEVEL MANAGEMENT CHANGE STATISTICS
GRAND TOTAL - 1457
TOP INDUSTRY SECTORS
> Drugs/Biotech - 148
> Energy -119
> Banking - 97
GRAND TOTAL - 1457
TOP INDUSTRY SECTORS
> Drugs/Biotech - 148
> Energy -119
> Banking - 97
DECEMBER 2014 CEO CHANGE STATISTICS
GRAND TOTAL - 226
TOP INDUSTRY SECTORS
> Energy - 14
> Drugs/Biotech - 12> Banking -10
> Consumer Products - 10
> Metals/Mining - 10
GRAND TOTAL - 226
TOP INDUSTRY SECTORS
> Energy - 14
> Drugs/Biotech - 12> Banking -10
> Consumer Products - 10
> Metals/Mining - 10
DECEMBER 2014 CFO CHANGE STATISTICS
GRAND TOTAL - 185
TOP INDUSTRY SECTORS
> Drugs/Biotech - 17
> Metals/Mining - 13
> Computer - 10
GRAND TOTAL - 185
TOP INDUSTRY SECTORS
> Drugs/Biotech - 17
> Metals/Mining - 13
> Computer - 10
DECEMBER 2014 BOARD OF DIRECTOR CHANGE STATISTICS
GRAND TOTAL - 517
TOP INDUSTRY SECTORS
> Drugs/Biotech - 68
> Energy - 49
> Banking - 33
GRAND TOTAL - 517
TOP INDUSTRY SECTORS
> Drugs/Biotech - 68
> Energy - 49
> Banking - 33
Investors need to diligently monitor key management changes. Certain management changes should be viewed as a "special situation" that can have a direct and major impact on a company's performance and share price.
- New CEOs know more than the market about the company. Their decision to take the position contains information. Likewise the departing CEO. Likewise departing CFOs.
- New CEOs will bring new skills and often-times a new direction. This is normally significant, and worth analyzing.
Liberum Research, the independent research firm focused on corporate management change, has developed an online relational database designed to assist institutional investors develop special situation investment ideas related to executive management change. While special situation investing traditionally revolves around corporate restructuring, spin-offs and acquisitions, executive management changes, depending on the circumstances, can represent a short or long-term investment opportunity.
Liberum's over ten year old database offers institutional investors the ability to examine an individual company, sector/s, group of companies, and/or geographic region/s/ locations via a metric of one's own choosing. You can use the information individually or in combination with a number of other financial tools to develop unique investment ideas.
ABOUT LIBERUM
The largest database of C-level executive change at public companies. Frequently quoted in the financial press, Liberum helps investors monitor this important, continuous stream of investment events. The data is also useful for investment bankers, private equity, executive search and consulting firms. The data can be used in numerous ways.
