Zacks_Analysts' Blog : Morgans Hotel Seeks New CEO - Analyst Blog

New York-based Morgans Hotel Group Co. (MHGC) announced that its chief executive officer (CEO) Fred Kleisner will resign upon the completion of his tenureship on December 31.

The hotel company appointed Fred Kleisner as CEO in December 2007, after his successful stint as an interim CEO since September 2007. We believe Fred Kleisner navigated Morgans Hotel through the economic slowdown and decline in leisure demand quite impressively. His experience in the hotel industry as well as dedicated service has helped the company scale new heights.

Morgans Hotel has only a month to find a suitable replacement for Fred Kleisner. The company has also appointed the executive search firm Spencer Stuart to speed up the search. Fred Kleisner has offered to extend his period of service, if the company fails to appoint the new CEO within the deadline.

Fred Kleisner boasts four decades of experience in the hotel industry. He has served companies such as Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc (HOT), Interstate Hotels Company, and Hilton Hotels. We expect the task of finding a candidate matching Fred’s rich experience and expertise to be rather challenging.

Morgans Hotel is a hospitality company that owns, operates, acquires, and redevelops boutique hotels primarily in the United States and Europe. Primary competitors of Morgans Hotel include Choice Hotel International Inc. (CHH) and Orient Express Hotels Ltd (OEH).

We await the appointment of the new CEO and prefer to remain on the sidelines until then. Consequently, we maintain our long-term Underperform recommendation on the stock. Morgans Hotel currently retains a Zacks #3 Rank (short-term Hold rating).