IHS (IHS) Appoints New CEO, Reaffirms Outlook

IHS (NYSE: IHS) announced that its board of directors has appointed Chairman Jerre Stead as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), effective immediately. This appointment follows the resignation of Scott Key as the company's President and CEO, and his resignation from the IHS board of directors.

Stead is the former CEO who became Executive Chairman two years ago upon Key’s appointment. He has remained very close to the business, which will allow for a seamless transition. The board of directors acted in accordance with the company’s succession plan in reinstating Stead as CEO and, also in accordance with the succession plan, will begin the process of considering future CEO candidates in due course. Stead is fully committed to the CEO position and ensuring that the company delivers against its objectives.

“We have mutually agreed with Scott that it would be in the best interest of IHS to end our relationship,” Stead said. “This careful and deliberated decision was not precipitated by any business issues, but was personal in nature.”

“The company is in very good shape,” Stead continued. “Despite the current pressure from depressed energy markets, we have not deviated from the execution of our long-term strategy and we’re extremely well-positioned for the future. In addition, we have in place what I believe is one of the best leadership teams in business, who will remain focused on executing the strategies that have been fundamental to our success over the past several years. As Chairman of IHS, I have been closely involved in overseeing the business and we will not skip a beat in running this company and delivering solid results.”

Stead added: "We recognize Scott’s contributions to IHS, including leading transformation and growth across IHS operations globally. He led corporate marketing and strategic planning through the successful initial public offering of the company, and was intimately involved with the acquisition and integration of a full range of assets during his tenure with the company. Our priority as a board now is to ensure the execution of our annual plan and delivering solidly against our guidance for the year. I will be here in the CEO role for as long as it takes to ensure we have all of the right pieces in place in order to leverage our company's assets and drive the next stage of the company's growth."

Reaffirmation of Guidance (forward-looking statement):

For the year ending November 30, 2015, IHS reaffirms and expects:

• Revenue in a range of $2.27 billion to $2.31 billion, including 5-6 percent subscription organic growth and negative non-subscription organic growth;
• Adjusted EBITDA in a range of $715 million to $735 million; and
• Adjusted EPS in a range of $5.77 to $5.97 per diluted share.

The above outlook assumes no further currency movements, acquisitions, divestitures, pension market-to-market adjustments or unanticipated events. See discussion of non-GAAP financial measures at the end of this release.

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