By Pratyush Thakur
(Reuters) -Johnson Controls said on Wednesday that it has started a succession plan for CEO George Oliver, who is set retire, and added a board member following talks with activist investor Elliott Investment, sending the company's shares up 8%.
The building solutions provider appointed Patrick Decker as a new independent director after which the board will have 13 directors, 12 of whom are independent. Decker was formerly CEO of Xylem and held leadership positions in Tyco.
"The succession plan embeds a degree of continuity, with Oliver remaining chairman after a CEO successor is named, while engagement with Elliott produced a strong new appointment to the board in Decker," Oppenheimer analyst Noah Kaye said.
Elliott, known for pushing for changes at companies to boost shareholder returns, has built a more than $1 billion stake in Johnson Controls.
The move comes amid Johnson Controls' efforts to streamline its business, which included divestiture of its portfolio of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning assets.
"We recognize that Decker has a proven track record at Xylem having guided the company successfully through a multi-year portfolio transformation," RBC Capital Markets analyst Deane Dray said.
Johnson Controls, which makes a wide range of appliances and equipment for commercial buildings, is also considering the sale of its ADT alarms business unit, which has already attracted interest from private equity funds, Reuters reported in May.
"Actions announced today along with the recent portfolio changes position the company to realize the benefits of its transformation, enhance operational performance and drive significant shareholder value creation," said Marc Steinberg, partner at Elliott.
Separately, the company reported an adjusted profit of $1.14 per share for the third quarter, beating estimates of $1.08, according to LSEG data.
(Reporting by Pratyush Thakur in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel and Shounak Dasgupta)
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