Hexpol’s (Malmo / Sweden; www.hexpol.com) CEO and president Mikael Fryklund has left the company. CFO Peter Rosén is now the interim CEO. The company announced in February 2020 that the Hexpol board and Fryklund “have decided to part ways,” adding there were “several circumstances” that led to the decision. “The development of the group, mainly regarding sales growth and growth of results, which unfortunately lately have not met our expectations” was mentioned by board chairman Georg Brunstam as a reason. Fryklund joined Hexpol in 2017.

Brunstam said Fryklund had made “a number of well-managed and well-positioned acquisitions.” Hexpol bought Preferred Compounding (Copley, Ohio / USA; www.preferredperforms.com) in 2019. A year earlier, it acquired Kirkhill Rubber (Downey, California / USA; www.kirkhillrubber.com) and 80% of shares in Mesgo (Gorlago / Italy; www.mesgo.it) – see Plasteurope.com of 04.07.2019, 05.10.2018 and 20.09.2018.

Fryklund said in January 2020 that fourth-quarter organic sales growth had a negative development due to softening in demand. Its financial position remains strong, and Hexpol is equipped for further expansion, he added. Q4 sales rose 6% to SEK 3.774 bn (EUR 343m), thanks to acquisitions. Operating profit excluding one-offs was flat at SEK 522m. For fiscal 2019, these jumped 13% to SEK 15.508 bn and rose 4% to SEK 2.242 bn, respectively. Organic sales in 2019 was down 9%.

Due to the uncertainty in global demand as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, Hexpol’s board of directors agreed on 7 April 2020 to postpone a decision about paying dividends to shareholders until autumn 2020.