L3Harris Ousts CEO Kubasik Over Conduct, Stock Falls 4% — SkimNews
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- L3Harris fired CEO Chris Kubasik on Sunday after determining he engaged in 'certain conduct ... that was not consistent with the values of the Company,' appointing Sam Mehta — previously president of Space & Mission Systems — as his replacement
- Shares of L3Harris dropped more than 4% on Monday, even as the company stressed the ouster was 'unrelated to the Company's financial reporting, controls, customer relationships or operational performance'
- Semafor, citing two people briefed on the investigation, reported Kubasik was ousted after an independent probe found he engaged in an inappropriate relationship with an employee — the same allegation that ended his 2012 rise at Lockheed Martin weeks before he was scheduled to become CEO there
- Under his separation agreement, Kubasik will forgo any 2026 incentive-plan bonus but will keep nearly 384,000 stock options, and 'does not admit, and expressly disclaims, any violation of Company policy or basis for termination for cause'
- The leadership change lands seven months after the Defense Department committed a $1 billion convertible preferred equity investment in L3Harris' missile solutions business, whose planned IPO has been pushed from late 2026 to mid-2027
- Lewis Hay III, L3Harris's lead independent director, was named independent chairman of the board as Mehta formally takes over
Why it matters: L3Harris loses its CEO for the second time in his career over an alleged relationship with a subordinate, with shares dropping 4% even though the company insists the ouster is unrelated to operations. New CEO Sam Mehta inherits a pending $1 billion Pentagon missile-equity deal and a delayed spinoff IPO — concentrating governance change around one of the contractor's largest active capital restructurings.
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