Thomson Reuters appoints Steve Hasker as CEO, earnings top estimates

Thomson Reuters Corp said on Tuesday it had appointed former Nielsen Holdings Plc president Steve Hasker as its new chief executive officer, succeeding Jim Smith.

The parent of Reuters News also announced higher-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings, reporting a 60% year-on-year rise in operating profit, helped by lower costs and investments following the separation of the Financial and Risk (F&R) business.

Hasker, 50, most recently a top executive at Hollywood talent agency CAA and a senior adviser to TPG Capital, will assume his new role on March 15, Thomson Reuters said. Smith, a former journalist who oversaw a period of major change at the company, will stay on for a transition period and become chairman of the Thomson Reuters Foundation.