Shares in weight-management company NutriSystem Inc. (NASDAQ: NTRI), which have starved investors over the last year, falling from over $70 to as low as $12.55 a share, are surging more than 30% today on news of a new CEO and the release of preliminary numbers much stronger than analysts had expected.
Earnings estimates for the first quarter show revenues of $216 million, $13 million more than analysts had figured. The company also named Joseph Redling as the new CEO.
According to a report in Forbes, current Chairman and CEO Michael Hagan said: "The business is in good shape as we enter the second quarter. The business performance in the first quarter was better than expected as the marketing efficiency in the latter stages of the quarter showed improvement, and it's certainly stabilized versus January trends. We also continue to witness improvement in our customer retention efforts and in the business of reactivating ex-customers."
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