Waitr stock is in the green today after the struggling food delivery service named Carl Grimstad as its new CEO following the sudden resignation of Adam Price after only four months.
Waitr Stock Boosted By New CEO Appointment
Waitr Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:WTRH) announced on Friday that 51-year old Grimstad, who currently manages private investment firm C. Grimstad Associates, would take on the role of CEO effective immediately after Adam Price abruptly resigned from the role as well as his position on the board. Price had only taken on the CEO job four months ago after joining the company in February as Chief Logistics Officer following Waitr’s acquisition of his own logistics firm. Waitr stock is up 3.3% on the news.
“Over the past few weeks I, along with the Company’s Board, advisors and key stakeholders, have been evaluating every aspect of Waitr. This process has given me confidence in the future of Waitr. I see significant potential to build upon the solid foundation of the Company’s existing relationships with diners and restaurant partners in terms of Waitr’s product offering and customer service, and I look forward to discussing these initiatives in future interactions with the financial community,” said Grimstad, with Waitr stock currently trading for $0.38.
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Difficult 2019 and Leadership Turnover
Waitr, which describes itself as a food delivery service for underserved markets such as Louisiana, endured a difficult year in 2019, marked by leadership turnover and a number of layoffs. Price took on the role of CEO in August after the company’s founder Chris Meaux stepped down from the position. This was followed by the resignation of two board members, the board president, the chief financial officer, and then Price’s departure to see out the year. Waitr stock has dropped over 97% since a peak of $14.15 in February.
Waitr’s troubles have arisen from a massive underperformance in 2019. Meaux’s resignation in August coincided with the company reporting a loss of $24.9 million USD for the second quarter, after reporting a profit for the same period 12 months previously. This was followed by a dismal Q3 performance, which saw losses come in at $220.1 million USD, or $2.89 per share, after only losing $6.5 million USD in the third quarter of 2018. As a result, Waitr stock currently sits 96% off its IPO price of $9.70 in August 2016.
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