April 23, 2012 – BUSINESS WIRE — Freescale Semiconductor Holdings (NYSE:FSL) launched a formal process to identify a successor to Chairman and CEO Rich Beyer, who has informed the Board of Directors that he will retire as CEO after a transition.
The Board engaged an executive recruitment firm and will consider external and internal candidates.
Beyer joined Freescale in March 2008, and led the company to its initial public offering (IPO) in May 2011. He helped strengthen Freescale Semiconductor Holdings’ strategic focus, develop a strong leadership team, and improve its market positions and market share, said Claudius Bud Watts, FSL’s lead director.
Freescale also announced Q1 2012 financial results, which Beyer said “represented solid execution for Freescale.” The company faces “some challenges” in its end markets, but announced “solid gross margins and cash and made improvements to its capital structure.” Beyer says Freescale expects the future to hold “market stabilization and improving trends.” Income from operations for the first quarter of 2012 benefited from the partial settlement of an insurance claim for business interruption following the damage to Freescale’s Sendai, Japan fabrication facility during the earthquake in March 2011. These benefits were partially offset by costs associated with closing this facility.
Freescale Semiconductor makes embedded processing solutions to the automotive, consumer, industrial and networking markets. Internet: http://www.freescale.com.