190823 Dion Weisler
Dion Weisler Image Credit: Bloomberg

SAN FRANCISCO. HP Inc is losing the chief executive who has been leading the personal computer maker since it broke off as a separate company four years ago.

The Palo Alto, California, company says CEO Dion Weisler will step down from the job November 1 because of an undisclosed family issue. He will be succeeded by Enrique Lores, who currently oversees an HP division that includes its highly profitable business of selling ink for the company’s printers.

Weisler joined HP in 2012 and became CEO in 2015 when the company split its PC and printer operations from its businesses specialising in business software. That part is now known as Hewlett Packard Enterprise and was run by former California gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman until her departure from that post last year.

HP’s shares fell 6 per cent to $17.72 in extended trading Thursday after the news of Weisler’s impending departure came out. The reaction, however, may have been driven by the release of HP’s financial results for its fiscal third quarter and outlook for the current three-month period ending in October.

The company’s earnings for the past quarter exceeded analyst estimates that steer investor expectations, but HP’s guidance might lag analyst projections for the current quarter.