Nikola's Fourth CEO In 4 Years Doubles Up As Acting CFO For Troubled EV Truck Maker

Troubled electric truck maker Nikola Corp. NKLA has appointed CEO Stephen Girsky as the company’s new acting Chief Financial Officer, following the departure of its previous CFO in November.

CEO Takes on Additional Role: In a filing on Wednesday, Nikola announced that Girsky had been appointed to the additional role of acting CFO, effective Feb. 14. Notably, he will not receive any additional compensation for this added responsibility.

Frequent Turnover: This marks the latest in a string of leadership changes at Nikola. The previous CFO, Anastasiya Pasterick, resigned in November after only six months on the job. She had replaced Kim J. Brady, who stepped down in April. Notably, Girsky himself is the company’s fourth CEO in the past four years, having taken over the position in August from Michael Lohscheller.

Financial Performance Under Scrutiny: The leadership changes come amid ongoing financial challenges for Nikola. The company will announce its fourth-quarter and full-year 2023 financial results on Thursday morning. Analysts will be keenly watching these figures, as the third quarter saw a significant widening of losses:

• Gross loss: Increased to $125.5 million from $30.2 million year-over-year.
• Adjusted EBITDA loss: Expanded to $188.6 million from $107.9 million.
• Adjusted EPS loss: Came in at 30 cents, exceeding analyst expectations of 14 cents.

Price Action: On Wednesday, Nikola’s share price closed down 0.4% at $0.7, according to data from Benzinga Pro. This represents a nearly 70% decline over the past year, reflecting investor concerns about the company’s future prospects.

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