United Continental (UAL) Announces Changes In Management

United Continental Holdings Inc. (NYSE:UAL) announced changes to its managerial team. The company has appointed Andrew Levy as Executive Vice President (“EVP”) and Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Levy will replace Gerry Laderman, the acting CFO who will go back to his position as the senior vice president, finance, procurement and treasurer. Meanwhile, Julia Haywood has been appointed as executive vice president and chief commercial officer (“CMO”). The chief revenue officer and vice chairman of the company, Jim Compton is expected to retire after the transition by the end of 2016.

The new appointments are one of the several major decisions undertaken by the company’s Chief Financial Officer, Oscar Munoz as he strives to bring about a turnaround at United Continental.

Background of New Joiners

Levy has been in the airline industry for the past 13 years. He has been part of the leadership team at Allegiant Travel Company and has served as Chief Operating Officer and CFO. Haywood has a consulting background and joined United Continental after working at The Boston Consulting Group (“BCG”). She was also part of the leadership team at BCG having served as a partner and managing director. Before joining United Continental as CMO, Haywood was a partner on the revenue and network transformation team of BCG at United.

Both Levy and Haywood have years of experience and leadership between them and it is expected that the new appointees will bring in beneficial changes for the company.

In addition to appointing new leaders, United Continental has been actively working on finalizing several employee contracts to improve operational efficiency.

Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider

United Continental currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Better-ranked stocks in the transportation sector include Copa Holdings SA (NYSE:CPA) with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), and Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) and SkyWest Inc. (NASDAQ:SKYW) with a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).