Ocado Shares Tumble on CEO Succession Fears

Shares in Ocado Group (LON: OCDO) fell sharply on Monday morning after media reports suggested the British grocery technology firm is actively preparing to appoint a successor to its long-serving co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Tim Steiner.

The stock tumbled to an intraday low of 171.87p — plunging from an opening high of 204.2p — before partially recovering to around 173.4p, a decline of 4.6% against Friday’s closing price of 180.8p.

The sell-off was triggered by a Sky News report that Ocado’s board is lining up a replacement for Steiner, who co-founded the company and has served as CEO since its London Stock Exchange IPO in 2010.

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In response, Ocado issued a terse regulatory announcement confirming that “the CEO and the Board continually engage in long-term succession planning and regularly engage with potential candidates” — a statement that did little to reassure jittery investors.

The news compounds a torrid period for one of the FTSE 250’s most high-profile technology companies. Shares have lost significant ground over the past year, weighed down by the collapse of key North American partnerships.

US grocery giant Kroger closed three Ocado-powered automated warehouses in November 2025, while Canadian chain Sobeys shuttered a fulfilment centre in Calgary. Those setbacks prompted Ocado to announce plans to cut up to 1,000 jobs in February 2026 as part of a sweeping cost-reduction drive.

Steiner has been the public face of Ocado’s international technology expansion, and investors appear concerned that his departure could create strategic uncertainty at a critical juncture. JPMorgan, which maintains an Overweight rating on the stock, has nonetheless cut its price target multiple times in recent months to 290p.