Stanley Black & Decker Names Fortune Brands Executive as CFO

Fortune Brands, meanwhile, named

David Barry

as its finance chief, effective March 2. Mr. Barry has served as Fortune Brands’ senior vice president of finance and investor relations for nearly two years. Mr. Hallinan will remain CFO at Fortune Brands until March 2.

At Stanley Black & Decker, Mr. Hallinan will succeed

Corbin Walburger,

who stepped in as interim finance chief last July when

Donald Allan Jr.

, the previous CFO, was elevated to chief executive officer. Mr. Walburger will resume his prior role as vice president of business development, the company said. 

“Patrick is a seasoned executive who has led global, high-performing finance functions across top consumer brands,” Mr. Allan said in a statement, referring to the incoming CFO. 

As CFO, Mr. Hallinan is set to receive a base salary of $800,000 and a one-time signing bonus of $350,000, the company said in a filing with regulators. He will also be eligible for an annual bonus with a target this fiscal year of 100% of base pay as well as a one-time restricted stock grant with an aggregate grant date value of $2.65 million.

Mr. Hallinan’s appointment follows Stanley Black & Decker’s announcement last July of ambitious cost-cutting plans, including $1 billion in reductions by the end of this year and $2 billion by 2025. The company, whose brands include DeWalt and Craftsman tools as well as Cub Cadet riding lawn mowers, said it is simplifying its structures and processes, reducing certain spending and streamlining operations. The cost-cutting efforts have included head count reductions, which are “largely complete,” Mr. Allan told analysts in October.

During the quarter ended Oct. 1, the company’s revenue rose 9% from the prior-year period, to $4.1 billion, with profits rising to $845 million from $414 million a year earlier.

Stanley Black & Decker, which was able to carry out a $290 million inventory reduction in the quarter, cut its annual guidance for diluted earnings per share under generally accepted accounting principles to between 10 cents and 80 cents per share from a range of 80 cents to $2.05 per share. 

The company will report on its fourth quarter next week.

Demand for Stanley Black & Decker products surged during the pandemic as consumers spent on home improvement and yard work, but waned last year as high inflation and a murky economic outlook took their toll.

A key task for Mr. Hallinan will be addressing the company’s supply chain and inflation difficulties, said

Tom Hayes,

a senior equity research analyst at Northcoast Research Partners LLC. He will also likely focus on restoring investor confidence, Mr. Hayes said, noting that Stanley Black & Decker’s stock price has dropped to around $87 from roughly $175 a year earlier. On Monday, it traded at $88.74.

“I think certainly Stanley continues to face on the financial side a number of challenges” that the incoming CFO will grapple with, Mr. Hayes said.

Write to Jennifer Williams-Alvarez at [email protected], Will Feuer at [email protected] and Chris Wack at [email protected]