What happened
Shares of Paysafe (PSFE 0.86%), a payments platform, were rocketing higher this morning after the company announced its new CEO and reaffirmed its first-quarter and full-year guidance.
The tech stock jumped by as much as 15% this morning and has gained 10.3% as of 10:45 a.m. ET.
So what
Paysafe said in a press release that Bruce Lowthers had been appointed as the company's new CEO, replacing Philip McHugh, who is stepping down from the position and from Paysafe's board. Lowthers will take the reins starting May 1.
Paysafe is bringing Lowthers on board for his financial technology (fintech) experience after he spent 15 years at FIS, a leading fintech company.
In addition to announcing Lowthers as its new CEO, the company reaffirmed its revenue and adjusted EBITDA guidance for the first quarter and full year. Management said last month that first-quarter revenue will be in the range of $355 million to $365 million and EBITDA will be between $95 million to $100 million.
Now what
Investors are likely reacting so strongly to this news this morning because Paysafe's stock has been falling hard since it went public (for the second time) back in March 2021. The company was publicly traded until 2017 before it went private for several years and then went public again last year through a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) merger.
Since its latest public debut, Paysafe's stock has plummeted 75%.
With new leadership at the helm, investors are hoping that Paysafe's share price will turn around. But they'll likely have to wait for several quarters before they see how the company changes under Lowthers' management.