The Computershare Ltd (ASX: CPU) has a new yearly-record.
At the time of writing, shares in the information technology (IT) company are trading for $17.74 – up a whopping 4.78%. Earlier today, shares reached an intraday and 12-month high of $17.945 per share. The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), meanwhile, is down 0.39%.
While the company hasn't made any market sensitive announcements in over a month, something is clearly exciting investors.
Let's take a closer look.
One possible reason Computershare is rising
The rising Computershare share price has coincided with the announcement that its founder, Chris Morris, will leave the board come 11 November.
John Nendick, a senior financial executive who, according to the company, "is an expert in new business models, global financial, accounting and audit matters, transactions and technology and Technology, Media and Telecomm (TMT) trends globally," will replace Morris on the board. He was appointed on 21 September and will seek a full term at the Computershare annual general meeting.
He was, until recently, the Deputy Global Leader of EY's TMT business and served on EY's Global Practice Group.
Computershare Chair, Simon Jones, said of Morris' retiring
Chris was instrumental in taking Computershare from a local player to an international success story – his knowledge, long-term strategic vision and passion for the industry have underpinned Computershare's evolution into a successful global public company.
Chris has previously managed a seamless transition from CEO to Executive Chairman, Non-Executive Chairman and Non-executive Director, and we will look forward to his ongoing involvement as a Computershare shareholder. We will recognise Chris's immense contribution to Computershare at the AGM later this year.
Morris added
Little did I know all those years ago that the business I co-founded would go on to be the global success it is today. It's been an exciting journey and I am really proud of what the team has achieved. It has been great being part of an Australian global success story.
The Company is in very strong and competent hands with an exciting outlook ahead of it and I have confidence it will go from strength to strength. I expect to remain a shareholder to see the benefits of growth strategies and investments come to fruition.
Computershare share price snapshot
Over the past 12 months, the Computershare share price has increased 46.73%. It's outpaced the ASX 200 by about 21 percentage points. Year-to-date, Computershare's value has appreciated 23.19%. The ASX 200 has only increased 10% in the same time.
Computershare has a market capitalisation of approximately $10.2 billion.
