TNT Express shareholders demand change at the top

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Two of TNT Express’s minority shareholders, Canada’s Alberta Investment Management (Aimco) and US hedge fund Jana Partners, that each hold 5%, have called for the departure of CEO Marie-Christine Lombard.

They point to TNT’s poor results and describe the strategy put in place by management as inadequate.

Since June, the TNT operation has been split into two enterprises: TNT Express and Post NL.

Het Fnancieele, a senior official at Aimco, said: “We have effectively spoken of a change in the leadership of the executive board of TNT Express.”

Hit by the slowdown in world trade, TNT Express has already revised down its results outlook for the current financial year. In addition to a mediocre performances in Europe and in Asia, the group also faces operational difficulties in Brazil.

Its shares have lost almost half their value since Lombard, took over in May.

A TNT Express spokesman in Amsterdam told IFW: “Everyone is entitled to their opinion and we admit that we have made mistakes in Brazil.

“But we are putting solutions in place and have set the objective of our activities in Brazil returning to breakeven in the second half of 2012, and in 2013 for our Chinese subsidiaries.

“We are being very transparent in communicating our plans to the markets.”

Aimco and Jana have also called for a shake-out in parent TNT’s supervisory board, claiming that half of its members are from the former TNT Post postal division and are hampering strategic decision-making at TNT Express.

The disquiet among the minority shareholders comes at a time when the 29.9% stake held by Post NL in TNT Express is no longer protected by a “lock-up” procedure, prohibiting it from being opened up to the market.

However, given the slide in TNT’s shares, there is little prospect at the moment of the stake being put up for sale.