Shares in Next 15 Group PLC (AIM:NFG) fell in Thursday morning’s deals after announcing the exit of chief executive Tim Dyson and warned on profits.
Dyson is retiring from the marketing consultancy and will be replaced by Sam Knights, currently CEO of e-commerce subsidiary Shopper Media Group (SMG), acquired in 2021.
“I know from first-hand experience that Next 15 is very strong at its core,” said Knights.
“We have world-class talent, we work with market-leading clients, and we have an incredible mix of businesses with expertise in data and AI.
“This is a group with big ambitions, and I am personally incredibly excited to start this journey.”
Next 15 told investors that while revenue is "in line with market expectations", it also now sees profit materially below.
It cited weaker pipeline conversion at its Mach49 venture business, along with FX headwinds and the need for continued investment, including talent and AI technologies.
Yesterday, just before the close, Next 15 said it had become aware of "potential serious misconduct" concerning Mach49 and has terminated the employment of three members of the senior management at Mach49 – Linda Yates, Russ Lampert and Paul Holland.
David Charpie, co-CEO of Mach49, will become sole CEO with immediate effect.
"Next 15, on behalf of Mach49, is in the process of reporting the matters to relevant law enforcement agencies. It is too early to know the outcome, but Next 15 will ensure that full co-operation is provided to those agencies," it said.
In today's statement, the group said revenue from other businesses, Transform and SMG, remained strong. It also confirmed the sale of its Palladium business and said the consolidation of its B2B tech marketing brands is progressing.
A rebrand of the group is planned later this year.
In London, Next15 shares were down over 24% changing hands at 217p.
** Update: Adds details, updates share price **