Media and entertainment company Time Warner (TWX) has appointed a new chief financial officer, Howard Averill, effective Jan.1, the company announced this week. Time Warner's current CFO, John Martin, will then take on the title of chief executive officer for Turner Broadcasting System.
Averill currently serves as Time Inc.'s chief financial officer, where his duties include overseeing accounting, taxes, and budgeting activities. He is also responsible for Time's marketing business, and has previously served as executive vice president and CFO for NBC Universal Television.
Jeff Bewkes, Time Warner's chairman and CEO, was quoted in the company press release as saying that Averill has proved to be a solid, dependable leader whose "financial acumen, sound judgment, and broad understanding of our business will be an asset to Time Warner's management team and our company."
Time Warner also announced Monday that Joseph A. Ripp has been named chief executive officer of Time Inc. Ripp, a former top Time Inc. and Time Warner executive, is currently the CEO of OneSource Information Services Inc. He begins his new role in September.
In March, Time Warner announced plans for the legal and structural separation of Time Inc. from Time Warner through a spin-off. Following the separation, Time Inc. will be an independent publicly traded company.
Time Warner has seen its stock price rise 29% since the beginning of 2013. On Monday, the company's price per share moved from $61.91 to $62.22.
