By Tess Stynes
Coca-Cola Co. said two longtime directors plan to retire, rather
than seek re-election at the company's annual shareholder meeting
in April, as part of a broader changing of the guard on the
beverage giant's board.
The Atlanta-based company said the latest board members set to
to retire are James D. Robinson III, 79 years old, and Peter V.
Ueberroth, 77.
Coke Chairman and Chief Executive Muhtar Kent said the company
was deeply indebted to Messrs. Robinson and Ueberroth, " for their
40 and 29 years, respectively, of tireless dedication" to the
company.
Mr. Robinson has served on Coke's board since 1975 and served as
CEO of American Express Co. (AXP) from 1994 to 1997. He also served
as nonexecutive chairman of Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.'s (BMY) board
from 2005 to 2008.
Mr. Ueberroth has been a Coke director since 1986. Coke said Mr.
Ueberroth is most well known for his role as head of the Organizing
Committee for the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, for
which he was named TIME Magazine's Person of the Year. He also was
the commissioner of Major League Baseball from 1984 to 1989, then
later as the co-owner of Pebble Beach golf course.
The board's transformation began in early 2013, when veteran
Coke directors Donald Keough and James Williams retired.
During December, Coke announced plans to add Marc Bolland and
David Weinberg, the chief executives of Marks Spencer Group and
Judd Enterprises Inc., respectively, as directors--part of its push
to refresh its aging board, which will stand at 15 members after
Messrs. Robinson and Ueberroth retire.
In addition to Mr. Bolland and Mr. Weinberg, other younger
voices have joined in recent years. Robert Kotick, the 51-year-old
CEO of entertainment company Activision Blizzard Inc. joined in
2012. Evan Greenberg, the 59-year-old CEO of insurer ACE Ltd., has
been a director since 2011.
Coke's board transition comes amid pressure from shareholders at
the world's largest beverage company, which failed to meet revenue
growth targets.
Coke recently reported that its fourth-quarter profit plunged
55%, pulled down by weakening foreign currencies and one-time
charges. The company also warned that 2015 will be another
challenging year.
Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
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