Twitter shares tumbled another 5% today, falling as low as $14.86 as they continue to set new record lows. Investor sentiment just isn’t getting better as there have been no signs that management will be successful in executing a turnaround. There was a blip last week as refreshed buyout rumors picked up steam, but was just a brief respite.
Meanwhile, Twitter is said to be planning to name two new board members this week.
Twitter said to be naming board members
Re/code reports that multiple unnamed sources claim the micro-blogging platform will announce the names of two new board members who will replace two outgoing directors tomorrow along with the fourth quarter earnings report. However, the website also said that other sources warned that this may not happen in time although one male and one female potential board members have been “undergoing serious due diligence.”
It’s expected that Peter Currie and Peter Chernin will be leaving Twitter’s board of directors, and Re/code’s sources also said that it’s likely the company will make additional changes at some point. However, they said the micro-blogging platform isn’t expected to replace the entire board as some have suggested might happen.
Who might the candidates be?
Twitter is said to be scrutinizing a key executive at a large media company and a “powerful creative player within Hollywood.” One of the names being floated as a possibility is Shonda Rhimes, who created hit TV shows like Scandal and Grey’s Anatomy, among others. Kara Swisher and Kurt Wagner of Re/code said it might not be much of a reach for Twitter to attract Rhimes despite her powerful position in Hollywood. She is also quite active on Twitter and a powerful business executive. Other names they gave were Oprah Winfrey and rapper Kendrick Lamar.
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has been making a lot of changes in an attempt to get things going at the company once again, and it makes sense that he would want a lot of big names and greater diversity on the embattled firm’s board. Twitter’s board has been dominated by white men and has had only one woman serve on it.
Twitter stock hits new lows
Twitter shares have fallen 63% since the company’s initial public offering in 2013, and tomorrow’s earnings report isn’t expected to be pretty. To be fair, today’s decline may be partially affected by the broader market selloff, suggests Business Insider, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average took a major hit, falling by over 300 points at midday before starting to recover, although the key benchmark will still likely end the day in the red.
