Matthews International said two long-serving directors, Katherine E. Dietze and Morgan K. O’Brien, will not stand for re-election at the company’s 2027 annual meeting, reducing the board from 10 directors to 8.
The move comes alongside a wider board and management reset. Since 2023, Matthews has added 5 new directors. In 2024, the company began a strategic review that led to three divestitures: SGK Brand Solutions into the Propelis joint venture in May 2025, the European packaging business in December 2025, and the warehouse automation business in December 2025.
The company also completed a governance overhaul in 2026, including board declassification, majority voting in uncontested director elections, and the removal of supermajority requirements for amending its articles of incorporation.
Operationally, Matthews said it initiated a restructuring of its European engineering operations in fiscal 2026, with expected annual cost savings of about $10 million starting in fiscal 2027.
Leadership has also changed. J. Michael Nauman became chairman at the 2026 annual meeting, and Michael J. Whitehead took over as president and chief executive officer on August 31, 2026, replacing Joseph C. Bartolacci.
On the acquisition side, Matthews said it continued tuck-in deals in memorialization, including the purchase of Dodge Company, an embalming fluid maker, in May 2025. Following these announcements, the company's shares moved -1.24%, and are now trading at a price of $19.19. Check out the company's full 8-K submission here.
