Ignite Restaurant Group Inc.
(
IRG
) recently revealed that it has appointed Michael J. Dixon as the
chief financial officer (CFO) and Senior Vice President,
effective January 2, 2013. Dixon will replace Jeffery L. Rager,
who put down his papers for other prospects.
Dixon has donned many important roles in his illustrious
career. Previously, he was the Senior Vice President and CFO at
Pinkberry - a renowned food-chain in the premium frozen yogurt
category with 220 outlets. Prior to that, he held the same posts
at
The Cheesecake Factory Inc.
(
CAKE
) from 2006 to 2008. He also acted as Controller at The
Cheesecake Factory from 2000 to 2004.
Dixon's list of achievements does not end there. He was the
Vice President and Controller with Petsmart.com in 2000, and was
the Director of Finance and Business Development at
Walt Disney Co.
(
DIS
) during 1994-2000. Dixon also has an experience of nine years
with a predecessor firm to PricewaterhouseCoopers, Coopers &
Lybrand. All the past experience coupled with his recent term
with
Brinker International Inc.
(
EAT
) as a board member vouch for his excellence.
Taking into account his vast experience of 12 years in the
food service industry, Dixon can easily be labeled as a veteran
in that sector. Considering his vast know-how about business
development, public accounting as well as his prior experience as
a financial leader with leading retailers, we believe that he
will likely provide meaningful support to Ignite Restaurant's
growth and profitability, going forward.
However, Ignite Restaurants' present scenario is not very
encouraging as evident by the earnings misses in the last two
quarters. The average earnings surprise is (25.00%) over the
trailing four quarters. Hence, the new role for Dixon, the CFO at
Ignite, invests him with additional responsibility in a sluggish
business environment.
Ignite Restaurant currently carries a Zacks #4 Rank, which
translates into a short-term 'Sell' rating. We are maintaining
our long-term Neutral recommendation on the stock.
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