Investing.com -- Shares in Airbus climbed on Thursday after the European aerospace giant announced a shake-up in the leadership of its key planemaking unit.
The company said Lars Wagner, currently the CEO of Germany's MTU Aero Engines (OTC:MTUAY) AG, will replace Christian Scherer as head of its commercial aircraft division.
In a call with reporters cited by Reuters, Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury called Wagner one of the "strongest executives in the industry," adding that he will continue to work with Scherer to ensure the ramp-up of the company's production despite a challenging operating environment.
It marks the second executive-level change at the commercial aircraft segment in a little over a year. The 62-year old Scherer, a long-time industry insider, took over the role in January, although he was not widely anticipated to stay in the role for an extended period of time because he was reaching retirement age. Even still, analysts said the change was sooner than expected, Reuters reported.
The moves come as Airbus posted adjusted operating profit of 1.407 billion euros in the third quarter, an increase of 39% and above analyst estimates. Revenue also jumped by 5% to 15.689 billion euros.
For the full-year, Airbus continues to expect about 770 commercial aircraft deliveries and adjusted earnings before interest and taxes of around €5.5 billion.
Faury said in a statement the group is "constantly adapting to a complex and fast-changing operating environment marked by geopolitical uncertainties and specific supply chain challenges that have materialized in the course of 2024."
(Reuters and Yasin Ebrahim contributed reporting.)