Industry Veteran Is Named Nabisco CEO
A top food industry executive credited with reinvigorating brands such as Oscar Mayer, Jell-O and Kool-Aid while dumping underachievers at Philip Morris Cos. has been recruited to lead Nabisco Holdings Corp. out of its doldrums.
Nabisco shares soared 9% Friday after the surprise announcement that James Kilts had been named to succeed H. John Greeniaus as chief executive.
Nabisco rose $3.88 a share to close at $46.88 on the New York Stock Exchange.
After 25 years in the food industry, Kilts, 49, is taking over at a company whose brands include Oreo cookies, Ritz crackers and Planters nuts. “The market sees Kilts as an agent of change,” said Steve Galbraith, who follows the food industry for Sanford C. Bernstein & Co.
The executive change comes as Nabisco has seen its sales turn sluggish. The market is also awaiting a move by RJR Nabisco Holdings Corp. to spin off its 80.5% stake in Nabisco. RJR Nabisco shares were up more than 5% on the news, rising $1.88 to $36.38 on the NYSE.
Greeniaus, 52, is retiring Jan. 1 as chairman and chief executive of Parsippany, N.J.-based Nabisco for unspecified health-related reasons. He has been chief executive for a decade.
The company would only say that Greeniaus’ health problems were not life-threatening. Greeniaus was unavailable for comment. He will stay on as a board member.
Kilts, who was unavailable for comment Friday, quit in March as executive vice president of Philip Morris with responsibility for Kraft Foods Worldwide. He oversaw the integration of the Kraft and General Foods operations at Philip Morris and earlier in his career held posts within both companies.
“Kilts is a proven leader,” said John McMillin, food industry analyst for Prudential Securities. “He rejuvenated what was once a tired domestic food company. He added a bit of zip to brands like Oscar Mayer and Jell-O and Kool-Aid.”
Kilts also shed product lines that were performing poorly, such as Lender’s bagels and Entenmann’s cakes and cookies.
Nabisco has expressed disappointment in its recent sales performance. Sales were off 1.6% in the third quarter.
