Wolfspeed names new CEO

Wolfspeed, Inc., (NYSE: WOLF) has named a replacement for former CEO Gregg Lowe, who the company ousted last November amid struggling sales and a capital restructuring plan. On March 27, the North Carolina company — which operates a chip fab in Marcy — announced former Micron Technology executive Robert Feurle will take on the CEO role beginning May 1. A citizen of both the United States and Germany, Feurle will relocate to North Carolina and work closely with Board Chair Thomas Werner, who served as interim executive chairman while the company searched for a new leader. “We are excited to welcome Robert to Wolfspeed to lead the company into its next chapter,” Werner said in announcing the news. “With a history of delivering significant operational enhancements and profitability improvements, and deep industry expertise, we are confident that Robert is the right individual to take the helm during this stage in the company’s lifecycle. His history of driving success and operational excellence in each of his previous roles is a significant contributor to our decision to appoint him as CEO. The board and I look forward to working closely with Robert to successfully navigate near-term market dynamics and ultimately position the company for long-term value creation.” Bringing 20 years of leadership experience to the role, Feurle most recently served as executive VP and general manager of the Opto Semiconductors Business Unit at ams-OSRAM AG, where he managed more than 10,000 employees at sites around the world. While there, he expanded market share and accelerated the introduction of LED and laser products into automotive and new advanced LED applications. Prior to that, he served at Infineon Technologies, Micron Technology, Qimonda, and Siemens. Feurle holds a degree in electrical engineering from the University of Applied Sciences in Konstanz, Germany. “I am grateful for the opportunity to lead Wolfspeed during such a transformative period,” Feurle said. “During my tenure at Infineon, I became intimately familiar with the silicon carbide industry and saw firsthand Wolfspeed’s impressive leadership in the space. I believe we have just begun to scratch the surface of the vast potential of silicon carbide. Wolfspeed’s world-class facilities, exceptional talent, and robust intellectual property, position us to maintain and expand our market leadership.” He joins Wolfspeed as the company continues to focus on improving its financial performance and accelerating its path to generate positive free cash flow, taking aggressive steps to strengthen its balance sheet and raise capital. “With all of the company’s competitive advantages, I feel very confident that we will be able to work through this transformative period to refresh the operating plan, improve financial performance, and accelerate our path to positive free cash flow,” Feurle said. The day after announcing Feurle as the new CEO, Wolfspeed announced it has received $192.1 million in cash tax refunds from the advanced manufacturing tax credit under Section 48D — a portion of the approximately $1 billion in refunds the company expects to receive. As of the end of the second quarter of fiscal year 2025, Wolfspeed had accrued a total of $865 million in Section 48D tax credits. The company will use the tax-credit proceeds to strengthen its capital structure and for general corporate purposes. Wolfspeed expects its cash balance at the end of its fiscal third quarter of 2025 will be about $1.3 billion including the tax credits. As a result, the company reaffirmed its business outlook for the third quarter, forecasting revenue from continuing operations of between $170 million and $200 million and a projected loss of between $295 million to $270 million, or between $1.89 and $1.73 per share. Wolfspeed continues to explore alternatives regarding its convertible notes and remains in a dialogue with its lenders including Apollo and Renesas. Wolfspeed’s stock price was down 61 percent year to date, and 90 percent over the last 12-month period, as of mid-afternoon trading on Friday, April 4.