Lovisa Holdings Ltd (ASX: LOV) shares have crashed into the red in Thursday lunchtime trade.
At the time of writing, the Australian jewellery chain's shares are down just over 9% to $22.45 a piece.
It's been a pretty rocky road for the company's share price over the past year. After suffering a strong sell-off in November last year, and again in February, the ASX consumer discretionary shares have experienced several peaks and troughs.
Over the past 12 months, the shares have fluctuated anywhere between $19.30 and $39.33 each. They're now down around 23% for the year to date, and 39% lower than this time last year.
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Why are Lovisa shares crashing today?
Today's share price decline appears to be the result of the company's latest update to the ASX.
Ahead of the market open this morning, Lovisa announced a change to its senior executive lineup.
It said that its group chief financial officer, Chris Lauder, has resigned. He will serve his six-month notice period, and his final day will be Wednesday, the 7th April 2027.
The company confirmed that he is fully supporting an orderly transition and said that it is in search of a successor.
"Lovisa has a very strong global finance team, and the Board will appoint a successor following a global search process," the company said in its ASX statement.
"A further announcement will be made when a successor is appointed."
It's not uncommon for investors to sell up their shares in an ASX company during leadership changes. There are often concerns about increased uncertainty about the company's near-term direction, and the risk that the changes suggest hidden problems.
The announcement follows a strong FY26 result in August
Today's news follows the company's FY26 results, which it posted to the ASX in late August.
Lovisa confirmed its total revenue increased 17.6% to $938.8 million, while comparable-store sales rose 2% for the year.
The company saw a 14.1% increase in its EBIT, and NPAT climbed 10.7%. The company generated a 21% increase in its operating cash flow, and shareholders also received a boost. Its 86-cent per share full-year dividend represents an 11.7% increase from FY25.
Investors were clearly happy with the result, and the share price spiked to a six-month high soon after the announcement.
The peak didn't last for long, though, and the shares soon tumbled downwards again.
What do the experts think of Lovisa shares?
Market Index data shows that, at the time of writing, the majority of brokers have a buy rating on the shares. The $29.09 average target price implies an upside of around 28%, at the time of writing.
The team at Morgans said Lovisa's FY26 results were strong, with net profit coming in ahead of consensus estimates. They added that Lovisa has ambitious expansion plans, with significant white space for continued network expansion.
Morgans added that ongoing investment will be needed to expand Lovisa's multinational network, but the company has the capacity to fund this, and that it expects strong returns.
Morgans has an accumulate rating and a $31 target price.
Morgan Stanley is more bullish. The broker has a $33.50 target price and said it sees a compelling bull case for the stock based on expansion in the total addressable market, extended store roll-outs, and an increasingly diversified business.
