The Character Group PLC (LON:CCT), the maker of Peppa Pig soft toys, has ousted its chief financial officer and company secretary, Mark Dowding.
In a statement, the company said the senior executive team has lost confidence in Dowding and his contract of employment has been terminated. He has left with immediate effect.
Shares fell 4.23% to 498p in reaction to the announcement.
Joint managing director, Kiran Shah, will assume the responsibilities of group finance director and company secretary. Shah previously held the role of group finance director until February 2016.
“This board change does not reflect any circumstances relating to the trading of the group or its finances,” the company said.
While the group insisted that the decision to give Dowding the boot had nothing to do with its recent trading, his departure comes after the company's poor financial performance.
READ: Peppa Pig peddler Character Group not bringing home the bacon
In April, the company reported a 25.3% drop in pre-tax profit to £6.5mln and a 5.7% fall in revenue to £61.5mln, blaming “challenging market conditions” and tough comparatives due to strong growth in the same period a year ago.
The Character Group, however, said that it was on track to achieve market expectations for the financial year to 31 August.
The group expects to release a trading update later this month ahead of its full year results in December.