Dive Brief:
- FedEx Corp. announced Monday that Autozone finance chief Jamere Jackson will replace interim CFO Claude Russ effective Nov. 30.
- Russ, a 24-year veteran of the Memphis, Tenn.-based shipping business, has served in the interim CFO seat since June 1, following the resignation of CFO John Dietrich the company announced in April. Dietrich’s departure coincided with the finalization of FedEx’s spinoff of its freight business, which created two independent, public entities, according to a June 1 press release.
- Jackson brings “a deep understanding of how disciplined financial strategy translates into strong operational performance,” FedEx CEO and President Raj Subramaniam said in a statement included in the Monday press release announcing his hiring. “Throughout his career, he has proven his ability to balance strategic investments in growth with an unwavering focus on profitability, cash generation, and capital allocation.”
Dive Insight:
Jackson has served as CFO for Memphis-based Autozone since 2021, according to the filing. Before the auto parts company, he served two years as CFO for car rental service Hertz, and his past roles have included serving as CFO for data measurement firm Nielsen and various financial roles for General Electric.
As FedEx Corp.’s finance chief, Jackson will receive an annual base salary of $1 million, and a signing bonus of $2 million, payable in two installments this November and November 2027, respectively, according to a Monday filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. He will also receive a one-time special restricted stock unit award with a grant date value of $5 million, set to vest over a three-year period, “which is intended to compensate Mr. Jackson for the forfeiture of his outstanding AutoZone equity awards.”
Jackson will also participate in the company’s “transition year 2026 (TY26)” annual incentive compensation plan, with a target payout opportunity equal to 120% of his eligible earnings paid during TY26, according to the filing. Additionally, Jackson will receive a TY26 RSU award with a grant date value of $766,000, as well as a TY26 stock option award with a Black-Scholes grant date fair value equal to $191,500, each award set to vest over three years.
The appointment of a permanent CFO successor to Dietrich comes in the midst of FedEx’s seven-month transition period meant to align its reporting with calendar year 2027 after completing the spinoff of FedEx Freight, according to its annual report for the year ended May 31.
Effective June 1 with the spinoff, FedEx changed its fiscal year end from May 31 to Dec. 31, and will report operating results for the seven month transition period from June 1 to Dec. 31, 2026 in a transition form, according to the annual report published July 20.
Following the spinoff and the first quarter of its transition period, FedEx also realigned its “internal reporting and management structure,” creating two new reportable segments: Express U.S. Domestic and Express International.
The spinoff of its Freight business, which offers “less-than-truckload” shipping to industrial customers — a more economical form of shipping where a certain vendor’s goods only take up part of a truck — represented a “pivotal milestone” for both entities, Subramaniam said in a statement at the time.
With the split, FedEx Freight — now trading under the ticker FDXF — became one of North America’s largest LTL shippers, with a market cap hovering around $16.4 billion.
FedEx Corp., meanwhile, reported a “strong finish” to its fiscal 2026 ended May 31, flagging lower structural costs for the period after the business exceeded its $1 billion goal for “transformation-related cost-savings” for the year, according to its June 23 earnings release. Net income for its fiscal year hit $4.4 billion, according to the release.
“With the successful spin-off of FedEx Freight, we are entering this next chapter positioned to grow while further optimizing our network, lowering our cost to serve, creating meaningful long-term value, and driving robust free cash flow,” Subramaniam said in the release.
FedEx is expected to report third quarter earnings for calendar year 2026 on Wednesday, Oct. 28, according to its website.
