ADVERTISEMENT

Concordia CEO Thompson to Step Down at Specialty Pharma Company

Concordia CEO Thompson to Step Down at Specialty Pharma Company

(Bloomberg) -- Concordia International Corp. announced that its founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Mark Thompson, will leave the specialty pharmaceutical company once a successor is named. 

The company’s shares surged 19 percent to $4.75 at 2:40 p.m. in New York, after earlier trading as high as $5.55, the biggest gain since January 2014. The shares are down 85 percent in the past 12 months through Thursday.

A search process is already underway for new leadership, the Oakville, Ontario-based company said in a statement. No specific reason was given for Thompson’s departure from Concordia, which recently completed a $350 million debt offering. He and the board agreed that it was an “ideal time” for a change, said Jordan Kupinsky, the company’s lead independent director.

“This is an important juncture for Concordia,” Kupinsky said in the statement. “With a portfolio of more than 200 products, a platform for continued international expansion, a strong commercial footprint and opportunities for organic growth, we look forward to building on our past successes.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Michelle Fay Cortez in Minneapolis at mcortez@bloomberg.net. To contact the editors responsible for this story: Cecile Daurat at cdaurat@bloomberg.net, Stephen West, Dan Reichl