Recently hired Yahoo Inc CEO Marissa Mayer may scrap the Internet company’s plan to reward its long-tormented shareholders with a multibillion-dollar payout later this year, underscoring the uncertainty accompanying the new leadership.
The unexpected twist disclosed in regulatory documents filed on Thursday after the stock market closed caused Yahoo shares to drop more than 3 percent in extended trading.
INNOVATION
Mayer is mulling a shift in direction as part of a sweeping review that she is conducting in an attempt to revive Yahoo’s revenue growth, spur more product innovation and boost the company’s stock price. Those goals have eluded her recent predecessors.
Yahoo lured Mayer away from rival Google Inc three weeks ago to become its fifth CEO in the past five years.
Given Yahoo’s persistent headaches, shareholders presumably want Mayer to shake things up.
Even so Mayer will risk alienating stock investors if she decides to do something differently with a windfall that will pour into Yahoo after it completes an agreement to sell half its stake in thriving Chinese Internet company Alibaba Group for US$7.1 billion toward the end of the year.
Yahoo pledged to distribute most of the anticipated after-tax proceeds — an estimated US$4.2 billion — to shareholders. The company, which is based in Sunnyvale, California, reiterated that in a conference call held the after Mayer’s hiring was announced.
Since then, though, Mayer has decided to reassess Yahoo’s strategy in an effort “to enhance long-term shareholder value,” according to the company’s quarterly report filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
Her review will include potential acquisitions, a restructuring plan that eliminated 1,500 jobs during the second quarter and the plans for the Alibaba proceeds, the documents said.
ABOUT-FACE
Mayer’s analysis could culminate in a complete about-face from the previous plans or less dramatic changes, according to Yahoo. The documents didn’t specify a timetable for completing Mayer’s review.
If Mayer decides to chart a completely new direction, she will need the approval of Yahoo’s board. The directors include a major shareholder, New York hedge fund manager Daniel Loeb, who stands to be one of the biggest winners from an Alibaba payday. Loeb’s fund, Third Point LLC, owns a 5.8 percent stake in Yahoo.
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