Vistry appoints alternative boss ahead of anticipated and shares fall this morning

Shares in Vistry fell this morning following the appointment of a new chief executive, with current boss Greg Fitzgerald stepping down sooner than expected.

It comes just weeks after the housebuilder announced Fitzgerald’s retirement, who led Vistry as CEO and chair for nine years. He was expected to leave next year.

The FTSE 250 firm, which specialises in affordable homes, said Adam Daniels would take over as chief executive, with non-executive director Rob Woodward already appointed chair.  

The quicker-than-anticipated transition follows a difficult period for the builder, which last month warned that profit margins would remain under pressure as higher costs, planning delays and muted demand weigh on the market.

Vistry shares fell 4.53 per cent to 324.4p, and are down nearly 50 per cent in the year-to-date.

All change: Vistry has appointed a new CEO and chair just weeks after Fitzgerald announced his plan to retire next year

Daniels has most recently led Vistry’s Yorkshire, North Midlands and West divisions, and will join the board as an executive director for the first time. 

He previously worked at Bloor Homes and Galliford Try and moved to Countryside Partnerships in 2016 before its merger with Vistry in 2022.

The housebuilder previously said that the search for a new CEO could take up to a year.

In a statement, Vistry said Daniels has ‘undertaken a variety of leadership roles with responsibility for large areas of the Vistry business across the country’.

The incoming CEO said that the group’s priorities on improving cash generation, driven Open Market sales and reducing inventory levels would remain unchanged.

‘These objectives remain an absolute priority for [CFO] Tim and I during 2026 to ensure the business is well positioned to capture the opportunities ahead,’ he said in a statement.

The building sector has come under further pressure from the Iran war, which has pushed up costs and likely to keep interest rates higher.

Oli Creasey, head of property research at Quilter Cheviot, said: ‘While the transition of both roles has been well-flagged, the timeline comes as a surprise, with the search for the new chief executive in particular guided to take until March 2027 at the latest.

‘While investors may be reassured to see the transition not drag on, and see a well-respected internal candidate take on the chief executive role, they may also be confused as to why guidance was provided just over a month ago that the search might take up to a year to complete, especially as Vistry now tell us that a ‘multi-year chief executive succession plan’ has already concluded.’