Ocado Shares Continue Decline – Here’s Why

Ocado (LON: OCDO) shares have continued to decline Friday following the previous session's more than 5% fall on the back of news that chair Rick Haythornthwaite is not seeking re-election to the board at the company's AGM in April 2025.

Haythornthwaite's increasing commitment as the recently appointed Group Chair of NatWest Group has resulted in him deciding to step down from Ocado.

Haythornthwaite has previously held chairmanships at Centrica and Mastercard.

He stated: “With the benefit of time and greater visibility of the expected growth in requirements of the publicly-listed portfolio, it has become evident that pressure on my time is likely to increase over the medium term.

Haythornthwaite believes Ocado has a strong and stable board as well as a high-quality management team and good momentum in its business performance. He added that he has made the decision to step down a year from now to “ensure that the company has sufficient time for a measured Chair succession.”

Following the news Thursday, analysts at Morgan Stanley cut their price target for Ocado to 345p from 375p, maintaining an Underweight rating on the shares.

Ocado's stock fell over 5.03% to 417.2p on Thursday, and it opened Friday's session over 2% lower at 407.3p per share. The stock is down almost 46% this year and just under 19% over the last 12 months.