Saint-Gobain names new IR director

Paris-listed Saint-Gobain has revealed that Gaetano Terrasini will take over as director of financial communication and investor relations from August 1, as his predecessor prepares to move to a new position within the firm.

He succeeds Florence Triou-Teixeira, who is taking on the role of director of techno marketing in the company’s innovative materials sector.

Terrasini has held a number of international management positions at Saint-Gobain since joining the firm in 1996, including managing director for the group’s abrasives activity in Spain, Morocco and Portugal, and managing director of building distribution in Italy. In 2012 the Milan Polytechnic and ESCP-EAP Paris graduate moved into the solar activity division as managing director of Saint-Gobain solar systems.

The company, which began in France in 1665 when the Royal Glass Works was established, delivered sales of €43.2 bn ($56.3 bn) in 2012, through operations in 64 countries.

At the Saint-Gobain annual general meeting, held on June 6, shareholders approved the payment of a dividend of €1.24 per share – the same as in 2011 – and the option to reinvest the dividend in new shares of company stock.

Earlier this month, Saint-Gobain revealed that shareholders had ‘responded favorably’ to the reinvestment option, with 72.5 percent of the total dividend to be paid in stock. ‘This high reinvestment rate allows Saint-Gobain to strengthen its equity by €474 mn,’ the company said in a statement. Cash dividends for a total €180 mn were also to be paid on July 5, it added.