shares in azelis group fell thursday after the company said longtime chief executive officer joachim mueller would retire at the end of the year and reported a lower net profit for the first half at 0757 gmt shares in azelis fell 6 to eur2124 the belgiumbased distributor of chemicals and food ingredients said it has appointed anna bertona who currently heads azeliss operations in europe the middle east and africa as ceo effective from jan 1 mueller decided to retire after more than 10 years at the helm the company said azelis posted net income for the first half of 1035 million euros 1132 million down from eur1388 million in the yearearlier period on revenue that grew 61 to eur214 billion revenue from acquisitions was the largest contributor to growth and made up for a slowdown in some markets azelis said adjusted earnings before interest taxes and amortization rose 86 to eur2634 million helped by higher margins the company said however the companys adjusted ebita in the second quarter was weaker than expected and will likely trigger downgrades to consensus expectations jefferies analyst david kerstens said in a research note azelis said it is on track to achieve its midterm annual revenue growth guidance and is confident of expanding its adjusted ebita margin in 2023