Avon Postpones Annual Investor Day

Avon Products Inc. threw another curveball at shareholders Monday, postponing a long-anticipated investor meeting where it was to outline plans to turn around the struggling company.

CEO Sherilyn McCoy had prepared investors to expect a strategy update at the meeting, originally scheduled for May 13. Now, the company says the meeting will be suspended until the fall.

New York-based Avon said the delay will allow its newly appointed chief financial officer, James Scully, "adequate time to prepare for a more robust discussion at the meeting." But questions were immediately raised about Ms. McCoy's future.

The CEO was recruited three years ago from Johnson & Johnson to lead a turnaround. She overhauled the top management team and brought an end to a multiyear bribery probe that drained cash and management time. But so far, she has struggled to make progress correcting years of dismal results and shrinking representative ranks at the beauty company.

Avon's stock, which is down about 45% in the past 12 months, was removed from the S&P 500 last month. The company declined to comment.

Mr. Scully's appointment was announced Jan. 28, and he began his duties as chief financial officer at Avon on March 9. Avon's mid-May meeting date has been anticipated since January 12, when the company announced it would host a meeting with Wall Street analysts to outline the company's strategies and outlook.

The May meeting was intended to compensate for Avon's decision not to present at a closely watched, widely attended consumer product industry conference last February.

Avon plans to announce its first-quarter results on April 30, and the company said it would provide an update on its turnaround progress then.

Ms. McCoy's efforts to improve sales have been stymied lately by a stronger dollar. Avon, which books 88% of its sales outside the U.S., said in February that the stronger dollar would have a significant effect on sales this year. That pressure has offset progress Ms. McCoy has made in some markets.

Joann S. Lublin contributed to this article.

Write to Ellen Byron at [e-mail]

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