Andy Hobson resigned as Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, just days after saying Univision would likely go public over the next 12 to 18 months, and that an IPO was the most plausible option for the company’s private equity owners to exit their investment.
Hobson made the comment during Univision’s fourth-quarter earnings conference call last Thursday.
Univision Communications reported a loss of $136.2 million for the fourth quarter, compared with a year-ago profit of $172.2 million,.
However, the company’s full-year 2014 revenue jumped 10.8% to $2.91 billion, thanks to World Cup pumping an estimated $174.2 million in advertising income.
Univision announced Hobson’s departure via a press release on Tuesday. The company did not cite a reason for Hobson’s resignation, but did say it would “conduct a comprehensive search for a new CFO.”
Hobson has been with the company since 1993, when he was hired as Executive Vice President of the Univision Network. He went on to hold multiple leadership roles, including Chief Strategic Officer. He assumed his most recent position in 2005.
Peter H. Lori, EVP finance and Chief Accounting Officer at UCI, will be interim CFO. Hobson will assist the company during the transition.
Lori joined UCI in 2005. He was previously an audit partner at KPMG LLP from 2002-2005.
The group of private equity owners, which bought Univision for $13.7 billion and took the company private in 2007 include: Thomas H. Lee Partners, Providence Equity Partners and Saban Capital Group, among others.
Televisa also owns a share in Univision after investing $1.2 billion in 2010.
