6 ASX Stocks that have been undergoing founder transitions or seen departures of long-term leaders

Here at 6 ASX Stocks that have been undergoing founder transitions!

Reece (ASX:REH)

Strictly speaking, the Wilson family are not the founders, but Leslie Wilson has been on the board since 1958, but the family took control of the company in 1969 – purportedly on the same day as the moon landing. Leslie’s sons Alan, John and Bruce have been long-term operators, but Alan has been the most senior (as Chairman). But Alan announce he’d be standing down and transitioning over to his son Peter.

Reece is a manufacturer and supplier of bathroom, waterworks and HVAC-R (Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration) products. Already well established in Australia, it has sought to enter the USA market.

But trading conditions have been challenging as of late, and there have been few signs that things will get better anytime soon. In its most recent annual results, revenue retreated 3%, its EBITDA by 10%, its EBIT by 17% and its profit by 19%. Accordingly, the company cut its interim dividend by 19%.

Austal (ASX:ASB) 

Austal’s founder transition is just about the only concern this company has right now. This is because building ships in and for Donald Trump’s America is far from the worst business to be in right now.

In its most recent annual results, investors have been told that there could be over $600m in EBIT over the next 7 years at the current margin of 5.1% and assuming all US options are exercised. Specifically for FY25, it has told investors to expect no less than US$80m, and that is even with the company having yet to resolve the accounting treatment of all its contracts.

However, John Rothwell is stepping down as chair and becoming a non-executive director. And as part of a recent A$200m capital raising, Rothwell sold some of his shares (roughly 10m of the 32m he owns) in the current deal.

Brickworks (ASX:BKW)

Lindsay Partridge was with Australia’s largest brickmaker for 39 years and was CEO for 25 of them. New CEO Mark Ellenor is no stranger, having started 25 years ago as a graduate and worked his way up over time. Still, it’d be hard to argue he is as familiar as Lindsay Partridge was.

Brickworks‘ other major problem right now is that it is tough times in the construction sector. High costs, red tape and labour market worries are impacting the company.

In FY24, Brickworks made a $119m loss on a statutory basis. On an underlying basis, it made a $61m profit but this was down 88%. EBITDA was $157m, down 80%. This was due to property devaluations within its property trust, a small loss on the sale of its M7 Hub Estate, and a non-cash impairment in its Austral Masonry and Brickworks North American business units.

In 1H25, the company returned to positive territory in its bottom lines, although its underlying NPAT was only $76m and its statutory NPAT was only $21m. Total revenue was $516m, down 6%.

Propel Funeral Partners (ASX:PFP)

Australia’s only remaining listed funeral provider was co-founded by Fraser Henderson and Albin Kurti (amongst others). PFP told investors in February that Kurti, who was managing director, would be retiring at the end of August 2025. A search for his replacement continues.

There’s no doubt Kurti’s tenure has been a success given its growth over the years. So it remains to be seen what the future holds. Yes, death is one of life’s two certainties, but funeral volumes are more volatile than you might think.

Aussie Broadband (ASX:ABB)

In a previous life, this author was a journalist and spoke with many founders and CEOs of ASX-listed companies. But only Aussie Broadband’s Philip Britt used the words ‘no bullshit’ to describe how his company operated.

Britt is co-founder as he founded one of the telco providers that would evolve into ABB – specifically Wideband Networks which he co-founded in 2003. He retired back in February as managing director, while retaining a seat on the board yet wanting to pursue ‘a personal community-focused venture’.

Taking his place is Brian Maher who has been with the company since 2019 and previously was CFO as well as CEO of the ABB division (but not of the group). From a share price perspective, it has fared quite well in 2025 so far, up just under 10%. The company is aspiring to reach $1.6bn in revenue, a 12.5% EBITDA margin and >20% CAGR EPS growth by FY28.

Lifestyle Communities (ASX:LIC)

More than 2 decades after founding the company, James Kelly announced he was standing away in October last year.

Kelly’s departure came after several months of difficult momentum with softness in the residential property market and media reports of unethical behaviour in new home settlements. Shares have nearly halved in the last year.

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