Dr Pepper Snapple Group CFO to retire

PLANO, Texas John Stewart, EVP and CFO of the Dr Pepper Snapple Group, announced his retirement Tuesday after three years with the company.

To facilitate the transition of his duties as CFO, Stewart has agreed to remain in his position until March 31, 2010. The company said it will conduct an external search for his replacement, and Stewart will assist in his successor's transition.

"John has played a critical role in our successful business transformation from a subsidiary to a publicly traded company," said Larry Young, the company's president and CEO. "He has built a strong and highly effective finance and IT organization and has led significant improvements in our systems and controls. All of us at Dr Pepper Snapple thank John for his lasting contributions to our great business."

Stewart has served as CFO since November 2006. Prior to joining the company, he was SVP and CFO of Diageo North America, a subsidiary of Diageo PLC.