*Weight Watchers stock has tumbled to an all time low since mega mogul Oprah Winfrey came on board. Winfrey is 10% owner of the company, “which has seen $117 million in wealth vanish as shares of the company have crashed 66%” because enthusiasm over her involvement with the brand has diminished, USA Today reports.
Shares are also down following the resignation of CEO Jim Chambers on Monday. The value of the company has dropped over a billion dollars ($1.2 to be exact) since the November 2015 peak hit after Winfrey came on board. Investors now value Weight Watchers at a little more than $600 million.
According to Bloomberg.com, “Oprah’s arrival got investors rallying behind Weight Watchers, bumping its stock price from less than $7 to more than $26. The stock fell again in the following months as customers dropped out of the program and sales suffered.”
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Winfrey is now using her position on the board to push for management changes. As of Sept. 30, CEO James Chambers will be out, and he was running the company when Oprah joined.
According to Forbes.com, Winfrey’s golden touch initially worked in the stock market — with WW stock surging 300% and Queen O earning hundreds of millions of dollars.
“Through our conversations, it became clear that there is tremendous alignment between Oprah’s intention and our mission,” said Weight Watchers’ CEO Jim Chambers last October. “We believe that her remarkable ability to connect and inspire people to realize their full potential is uniquely complementary to our powerful community.”
Chairman Ray Debbane’s investment firm owns nearly half of Weight Watchers’ stock. Winfrey is the company’s second-biggest shareholder, and Debbane said she will play a role in finding a new CEO.
“Board members, including Oprah Winfrey and myself, will be actively involved in the search for a new CEO, and look forward to working with her or him in shaping the future of Weight Watchers,” Debbane said in a statement.
While Weight Watchers is looking for a new CEO, chief financial officer, Nicholas Hotchkin, and two board members will run the company on an interim basis.
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