Ben Brink, the CFO of Carriage Services Inc, has announced he will be leaving at the end of the year to pursue other opportunities. The company has begun a search for a new CFO. Mr. Brink will assist the new CFO in a consulting capacity for the first six months of 2023.
Carriage Services is a leading provider of funeral and cemetery services and merchandise in the United States. Carriage operates 169 funeral homes in 26 states and 31 cemeteries in 11 states. The company has a market capitalization of $473 million.
Mr. Brink, who is 41, began his career at International Paper. He joined Carriage in 2009 as a Cash Manager and was promoted to CFO in 2015.
Chairman and CEO Mel Payne issued a very effusive press release praising Mr. Brink’s contributions to the company’s recent development. In the press release, the CEO stated that he offered Mr. Brink a severance payment of $1 million in cash or 30,000 shares (worth $965,000 at Friday’s close). Mr. Brink chose to take the shares.