(The following story ran on the Associated Press wire on Jan. 16, 2004.)
Richard K. Templeton [Union Class of 1980] will take over as president and chief executive of semiconductor maker Texas Instruments Inc. in May,
succeeding Thomas J. Engibous.
Company officials called the move
a planned and orderly succession.
Templeton, 45, is a 23-year TI
veteran and has been chief operating officer since April 2000. He joined the
company board of directors last year. Engibous, 50, will remain chairman of the Dallas-based company, which makes
computer chips for more than half the world's wireless phones.
“This is an excellent time to transition the jobs of president and CEO to
Rich. The company's momentum is building, the management bench is strong, and
the balance sheet is healthier than ever,” Engibous said in a statement issued
by the company Thursday.
A company spokeswoman said TI's
board accepted Engibous' decision to step down as CEO during a previously
scheduled meeting in Dallas.
Cody Acree, an analyst for Legg Mason Wood Walker Inc., said the change in CEO
would not affect TI's strategy. He said over the past several years, all of
TI's business organizations began reporting directly to Templeton, not
Engibous. They have already been taking their cues from Rich. This
doesn't really change the direction of TI at all,” Acree said. David
Wu, an analyst with Wedbush Morgan Securities Inc., called the succession news
“kind of a yawn,” and noted that Engibous and Templeton rose through
the TI ranks together.
“These guys have been joined
at the hip for a long time,” Wu said.
Texas Instruments' profits and
stock price were hit hard during a three-year slump in the semiconductor
industry, as tech companies cut orders for computer chips. The company lost
$344 million in 2002, but results improved last year. In the third quarter, the
last for which figures are available, TI earned $447 million and sales rose
across its semiconductor lineup. The stock has rebounded although it remains
far below the peak in early 2000.
In trading before the announcement
late Thursday, TI shares rose $1.17, or 3.6 percent, to a 52-week high of
$33.65 on the New York Stock Exchange. In extended trading, the shares lost 10
cents.
Templeton graduated from Union College in 1980 with a bachelor's of science degree in
electrical engineering and joined TI the same year. He moved steadily through
the company's sales and marketing ranks, then led several semiconductor
business units, including digital signal processing.
Templeton was named president of TI's semiconductor group, its largest
business, in 1996.