Citrix Systems Parts Ways With CEO -- Update

By Ezequiel Minaya 

Software company Citrix Systems Inc. said Monday that Chief Executive Kirill Tatarinov has stepped down effective immediately following a "mutual separation decision."

The board of the Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Citrix said in a news release it named David Henshall, the company's chief financial and operating officer, as its new CEO.

Mr. Henshall has been finance chief since September 2011 and chief operating officer since February 2014. He had a previous temporary stint as interim CEO between October 2013 and February 2014.

"Moving forward, the board believes that accelerating our cloud transformation will position the company for even greater success in the years ahead, driving greater value for our shareholders," said Robert Calderoni, executive chairman of Citrix's board. "We now have the right team in place to execute on that vision."

Citrix didn't immediately return a call seeking comment.

Mr. Tatarinov joined Citrix in January 2016 from Microsoft, where he was an executive vice president

In connection with the move, company executive Mark Coyle has been named interim finance chief while a search for a permanent CFO is launched.

Citrix also on Monday backed its previously issued guidance for its quarter ended June 30. Revenue in its fiscal second quarter is expected to be between $685 million and $695 million with adjusted per-share earnings between 97 cents and $1. Analysts for Thomson Reuters expect adjusted earnings of 99 cents on $690.9 million in revenue.

Shares of Citrix, which has reportedly explored selling itself to private-equity firms under pressure from activist investors, fell 1.2% after hours to $79.

In 2015, Citrix gave Elliot Management Corp. executive Jesse Cohn a board seat and placed him on a newly formed committee to focus on improving Citrix's profitability. In exchange, Elliott agreed to "standstill" restrictions that remain in place until the board fails to renominate Mr. Cohn as a director or he resigns. Elliott had urged Citrix to slim down by selling assets and cutting costs.

Citrix makes workplace software that allows employees to work from their own desktops or mobile devices off a centralized data center, which is known as virtualization.

Write to Ezequiel Minaya at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 10, 2017 18:14 ET (22:14 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.