Lauralee Martin Steps Down at HCP

Martin had been a member of HCP’s board since 2008.

IRVINE, CA—In the second abrupt leadership transition at a market-leading REIT in as many days, Lauralee Martin has left HCP Inc. , effective immediately. The healthcare REIT said Monday afternoon that executive chairman Michael McKee has assumed the additional role of interim president and CEO following the departure of Martin, who also resigned from the board. In contrast to Monday’s surprise termination of president and CEO David J. Oakes at DDR Corp ., Martin’s departure from HCP appears to have been expected by some analysts. Also in contrast to Oakes’ departure, Martin’s comes with a severance package, while Oakes is receiving none, according to SEC filings by both companies. StreetInsider.com reported Tuesday that Mizuho Securities analyst Richard Anderson had contacted HCP following the announcement of Martin’s departure. Based on that conversation, Anderson told StreetInsider.com, Mizuho believes that “this was a mutual/coordinated decision aimed at checking off an important box for a company still in a major transition.” Anderson observed that Martin, who became CEO in October 2013 after serving as Americas CEO at JLL, “provided a leadership bridge during a very difficult time, and the board concluded it needed to hit control-alt-delete, at least from a leadership point of view.” Martin had replaced Jay Flaherty III, then the REIT’s chairman, president and CEO, following his removal by the board. Following a disappointing fourth quarter of 2015, the company said it would undertake a strategic review. This past May, GlobeSt.com reported that HCP planned to spin off its HCR ManorCare portfolio of mainly skilled nursing facilities into an independent, publicly-traded company. “With the completion of our strategic portfolio review in May and the resulting spin-off transaction that is well underway, the board felt now is the appropriate time to advance the process of developing HCP’s next generation of leadership,” says McKee, an HCP board member since 1989. “We have made substantial progress towards rebuilding our executive team to align with our strategic vision for the future, and identifying our next CEO represents the cornerstone of that effort.” The board expects to name a permanent replacement for Martin within three to six months. CoStar reported Monday that HCP has now revamped nearly its entire executive team. Simultaneous with naming McKee executive chairman, HCP in May promoted Justin Hutchens to CIO and hired Kai Hsiao , former CEO of Holiday Retirement, as EVP for seniors housing asset management. Former CFO Tom Herzog rejoined the company in that capacity last month, succeeding Timothy Schoen, who left in May to become president of BioMed Realty. “I remain confident and excited about our recent C-suite appointments and the broader management team,” says McKee. “Our portfolio performance and business outlook are consistent with our plan across all investment sectors, and the spin-off of our HCR ManorCare portfolio remains on track to be completed later this year.” Lead independent director David Henry , formerly CEO of Kimco Realty Corp. and now head of Peaceable Street Capital, says the HCP expresses “sincere gratitude to Lauralee for her many contributions to HCP, both as a member of our board since 2008 and during the last three years as CEO. Lauralee’s energy, passion and dedication to HCP are much appreciated by all of us, and we wish her the very best in the years ahead.”